When James Cope was born on 15 July 1815, in Rowan, North Carolina, United States, his father, John Andrew Cope, was 33 and his mother, Margaret Bostian, was 44. He married Margaret Melissa Plunket on 16 January 1838, in Cabarrus, North Carolina, United States. They were the parents of at least 4 sons and 3 daughters. He lived in Cabarrus, North Carolina, United States in 1870 and Deweese, Cabarrus, North Carolina, United States in 1880. He died on 16 September 1893, at the age of 78, and was buried in Robinson Presbyterian Church Cemetery, Mecklenburg, North Carolina, United States.