JAMES
JAMES, John W. March 28 1861 - February 25, 1906 Obituary of Mr. J. W. James. Crab Orchard, KY., Feb 27 - On February 25, near the somber hour of midnight, the noble and generous spirit of Mr. J. W. James, the noblest man that ever lived in all the tide of time, took its flight from his elegant home to a far more splendid mansion in the skies. He was not yet 45 and no man, not even his lamented father, the late G. W. James, will be so sadly missed by the poor and humble. He has had many work hands in his service, and when any servant or ex-servant died, he always gave him appropriate burial at his own expense. When some poor black woman, sick and out of coal and provisions, both would be sent at his own expense in his own wagon. On one occasion, a poor destitute man with a withered arm passing his place of business with an empty meal sack on his shoulder, and a coffee sack in which he had three hens, the only property he had in the world, stopped in to warm. Willie said, 'what have you there, Bill, a possum?' 'No' .. 'How are possums?' 'Mighty scarce.' 'How are times with you?' 'Mighty hard. I have in my sack my only three hens. The only things I have in the world. I am taking them to the store to buy me some meal and coffee.' 'Look here at this paper and see what your hens are worth in the market, 68 cents apiece. Take them back home to lay you some eggs, and take this dollar to buy you some coffee and meat, and take your meal sack up to my miller and tell him to fill it as full of meal as he can tie it.' He gave more to preachers, churches, Sunday schools, Christmas trees, and often fed the hungry---because he could not eat! His donations amounted annually to the hundreds. Frank Brooks said on the train today, "The death of Will James is breaking up the noblest family that ever lived in Lincoln County." His place here can never be supplied. His fortune was ample, his cash capital in the thousands, and his pockets always full to meet the demands of the borrower and the beggar. I never saw such universal sorrow expressed in all ranks of life. At his burying were the proud aristocrats and the poor tenant, working men and their wives and their little children shivering in the snow. At Stanford, Monday morning, much grief was expressed by such men as Cicero Reynolds, County Clerk George B. Cooper and the editor of the Interior Journal, all of whom had had business relations with him. He was for some time clerk in the J. B. Owsley bank at Stanford, and was a devoted friend of the venerable financier, whose confidence he enjoyed. Deceased was twice married. His first wife was Mattie Owsley Evans, daughter of the late George W. Evans and his present wife was Margaret, daughter of the noble old Scotchman, the late John Buchanan. His wives were both excellent women of first families, and his last wife is noted for her domestic qualities. The deceased left no children, but all the poor of this community will ever regard him as a father, brother and friend. His grand old father, G. W. James and devoted mother Lizzie P. James, preceded him to the tomb some years ago. He leaves a most devoted wife to mourn his untimely death. His sisters, Mrs. Louanna Holdam, of Stanford, Mrs. Scott, of Somerset, and Mrs. Berta Morris, of Crab Orchard, are broken hearted with grief. His poor little niece, Sue Beth James, and nephew, George Andrew James, dual orphans, whose father gave his life in service as a soldier in the far away Philippines, came up from Stanford to mingle their tears over the grave of the dear departed. [Burial at Crab Orchard Cemetery] Saturday, September 08, 2001 - Mercer County Newspaper