Jesse Edwards "Tim" James (August 31, 1875 – March 26, 1951) was the only surviving son of American outlaw Jesse Woodson James. He was born in

Nashville, Tennessee Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the List of muni ...

during the height of Jesse James' career as an outlaw. His mother was Zerelda.

Personal life

James was named after his father, American outlaw

Jesse James Jesse Woodson James (September 5, 1847April 3, 1882) was an American outlaw, bank and train robber, guerrilla and leader of the James–Younger Gang. Raised in the " Little Dixie" area of Western Missouri, James and his family maintained stro ...

. He went by the name of Tim Edwards in his youth to conceal his relationship to his father. After his father's death, James and his family lived in

Kansas City The Kansas City metropolitan area is a bi-state metropolitan area anchored by Kansas City, Missouri. Its 14 counties straddle the border between the U.S. states of Missouri (9 counties) and Kansas (5 counties). With and a population of more ...

and were taken under the wing of Thomas T. Crittenden Jr., the son of Governor

Thomas Theodore Crittenden Thomas Theodore Crittenden (January 1, 1832 – May 29, 1909) was a United States colonel during the American Civil War, and a Democratic politician who served as the List of governors of Missouri, 24th Governor of Missouri from 1881 to 18 ...

, who had signed what would become the death warrant of the outlaw Jesse James. In 1898 James was arrested, and stood trial in 1899 for the robbery of a

Missouri Pacific The Missouri Pacific Railroad , commonly abbreviated as MoPac, was one of the first railroads in the United States west of the Mississippi River. MoPac was a Class I railroad growing from dozens of predecessors and mergers. In 1967, the railroad ...

train. Defended by noted progressive lawyer

Frank P. Walsh Francis Patrick Walsh (July 20, 1864 – May 2, 1939) was an American lawyer. Walsh was noted for his advocacy of progressive causes, including Georgism and the land value tax, improved working conditions, better pay for workers, and equal employ ...

, James was acquitted of the robbery charge. James married Stella Frances McGowan (Feb 27, 1882 – Apr 1, 1971) on January 24, 1900, in the parlor of her parents' home in Kansas City. The couple had four daughters. The Jameses moved to

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

, California, in the 1920s, where for a time they ran a restaurant called "The Jesse James Inn", and remained in California until his death in 1951.

Career

Following his acquittal for train robbery, James wrote a book, ''Jesse James, My Father'' (), which was published in 1899. He owned a pawn shop in Kansas City while studying law. In 1906 James passed the Bar exam in Missouri, and opened a law practice in Kansas City. He appeared in the 1921 film ''

Jesse James Under the Black Flag ''Jesse James Under the Black Flag'' is a 1921 American silent film, silent Western (genre), Western film directed and written by Franklin B. Coates. It is about the bandit Jesse James, who is portrayed by his son Jesse E. James, Jesse James Jr. ...

'' with his sister Mary James Barr and in ''

Jesse James as the Outlaw ''Jesse James as the Outlaw'' is a 1921 American silent Western film directed by Franklin B. Coates, cast designed by Edgar Kellar and starring Jesse James, Jr., Diana Reed and Marguerite Hungerford. It is the sequel of '' Jesse James Under t ...

''. He served as technical adviser on Paramount's 1927 biopic of his father titled ''

''. This film starred cowboy hero

Fred Thomson Frederick Clifton Thomson (February 26, 1890 – December 25, 1928) was an American silent film cowboy who rivaled Tom Mix in popularity before dying at age 38 of tetanus. Birth and athletic achievement Born in Pasadena, California to Clara ...

, who usually was a good guy to film audiences. Here Thomson plays Jesse James in a lighthearted way which many old timers who remembered Jesse James's murdering and robbing found inaccurate. The film proved to be unpopular.

References

External links

Biography of Jesse James by his son, Jesse Jr.Official website for the Family of Jesse JamesSome Descendants of Rev. Robert Sallee James
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:James, Jesse E. 1875 births 1951 deaths American male film actors California lawyers Lawyers from Kansas City, Missouri People from Nashville, Tennessee Jesse James 20th-century American male actors