James Patten Paul

James Patten Paul (17 July 1817 - 3 April 1891) was a Mormon pioneer from Ayrshire in Scotland who trekked to Utah with the David H. Cannon Company in 1861. His chief claim to fame is that he was the stepfather and mentor of Martha Hughes Cannon ("Mattie"). Further notable children of his included Professor Joshua Hughes Paul, a Mormon university president and newspaper editor, and actor Logan Paul.

A native of the Burgh of Ayr, and the son of Logan Paul and Margaret McConnell, carpenter James first married Robina Gribben, the first of several wives, and the couple became Mormon converts whilst still in Scotland, after which the family emigrated to the United States. After a spell in Cincinnati, Ohio, Robina died, whereupon James took his family to Salt Lake City, arriving there around 1857. Elizabeth Evans Hughes, his later wife, had herself suffered the ordeal of a Mormon Pioneer trek to Utah.

Although he earned little in his capacity of cabinet maker on the Union Pacific Railroad, he helped finance the education of his stepdaughter Mattie, greatly encouraging her to pursue a career.

Of James P Paul's children by Robina, the best known was Logan Paul, whose career as an actor began in Utah and took him to New York City, where he portrayed, among others, Abraham Lincoln.