Life History

Notes

• "Good Morning Orville.  I see you saved a picture of the James Family headstone for Joe James & Martha Ruth Falin James. ... I am their grandson, Joe James"
  --  Joe James, Ancestry Messaging to Orville Boyd Jenkins, Dec 13, 2018
  
  Joe gives us the maiden name of his grandmother.  This led to the Social Security record of Martha's daughter Eula, which reports her parents' names.
  
  U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007
  Eula Josephine James [Eula Josephine Fannon] [Eula Fannon Jr]
  Birth 4 Jun 1924 Stonega, Wise County, Virginia
  Death Date 10 Mar 1995
  Father Joseph B James
  Mother Martha R Falin
  SSN 227283352
  May 1943 Name listed as EULA JOSEPHINE JAMES; 18 Jun 1975 Name listed as EULA JOSEPHINE FANNON; 23 Mar 1995 Name listed as EULA FANNON JR
  
  Martha's first marriage record has details of her identity and that of her first husband.
  
  Virginia, Select Marriages, 1785-1940
  Martha R Falin, Age 16, Birth 1891 Scott Co Virginia
  Father Elige Falin
  Mother Sally Fallin [sic]
  Arthur C Blankenship, Age 20, Birth 1887 Lee Co Virginia
  Father Jas Blankenship
  Mother Sarah Blankenship
  Marriage 21 May 1907 Osaka, Wise County, Virginia
  
  Martha's husband James died in 1920.  In 1921, she marrired widower Joseph Bedford Clevenger.
  
  Martha was reported as Joseph's contact person in his WWII draft registration.
  
  U.S., World War II Draft Registration Cards, 1942
  Joseph Bedford James
  Birth 15 Sep 1879
  Residence Stonega, Wise, Virginia
  Contact Martha James, Stonega Coke & Coal Co, in Stonega, Wise, Virginia
  Tall, Medium Build, Gray Eyes, Brown Hair
  Registered 12 September 1918 Norton, Wise County, Virginia
  
  Martha was reported as the spouse in the death record of Joseph Bedford James, under the name Martha Ruth James.
  
  Virginia, Death Records, 1912-2014
  Joseph Bedford James
  Age at Death 80
  Birth Date 15 Sep 1879 Newport, Tennessee
  Retired Tippleman, Stonega Coke & Coal Co
  Father and Mother unknown
  Death 24 Nov 1959 Stonega, Wise, Virginia
  Informant Eula Fannon, Stonega, Virginia
  Cause of Death Acute Myocardial Infarction, due to Arteriosclerosis and Coronary Occlusion
  Burial 29 November 1959 Glencoe Cemetery, Big Stone Gap, Virginia
  Spouse Mrs Martha Ruth James
  
  Gravestone f Martha Falin James
  Martha Ruth Falin James
  Jan 4, 1892  -  Sept 24, 1969
  Joint grave with her husband Joseph Bedford James, with one family headstone
  Glencoe Cemetery, Big Stone Gap, Wise County, Virginia;
  Photo courtesy of Joe James, James Family genealogy on Ancestry, originally posted to Ancestry by Montgomery Stratton 19 Oct 2011, accessed 15 December 2018

Sources

• 1. Virginia, Select Marriages, 1785-1940
• 2. Gravestones of Virginia
• 3. Virginia, Death Records, 1912-2014
• 4. U.S., World War II Draft Registration Cards, 1942
• 5. Ancestry Messaging
• 6. U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007
• 7. Ancestry Trees