James William Knox [22 Oct. 1846 - 30 Oct. 1906] was
the third child of David and Nancy Blair Knox.
He was a farmer in
Abbeville, South Carolina. James served in the Confederate troops in Co. A, 2nd SC Rifles under Capt.
Thomas Thompson. His first marriage on January 19, 1871 was to Miss Martha Jane
Walker [2 Aug. 1846 -18 Jan. 1897]. James and Martha Jane had nine children, eight girls
and one boy:
The daughters of James William and Martha Jane Walker Knox [left to
right] Clara, Nancy Estella, Elizabeth Roberta, Mary Isabelle, Mattie Lou, Maggie Mae, and
Florence Gary Knox. [Clara was the child in Nancy Blair Knox's
lap]
Clara, [17 Nov. 1871 - 25 Apr.
1932] married Joseph Brown Wilson on January 11, 1891. They were the parents of eight
children: Langdon Harvey, Lucile, Joseph, Emmette, Sarah Amanda, Clara Knox, Edna Blair,
and James Brown Wilson.
Elizabeth Roberta "Bert",
[7 Feb. 1874 - 25 Jul. 1962] married November 14, 1894, John Nathaniel McDill. They had
six children: Robert Herman, Knox, Florence Elizabeth, Mary Grace, John William, and Thomas
Edward McDill.
Nancy Estella Knox [10 Jun. 1876 -
1950] married John L. Maxwell. Only one child was born, J. Bailey Maxwell [1905-1926].
Mary Isabella [20 Aug. 1878 - 18
Oct. 1947] married on November 15, 1896 to David Erskine Pressley. They had six children:
Charles LeRoy, Idona, Martha, Madge, Mary Helen, and Frances.
Mattie Lou [17 Nov. 1880 - 23 May
1967] married on June 19, 1901 to William Edgar Shehee. They ran a boarding house in
Athens, GA. Their two girls were Louise and Lillian Shehee.
Maggie Mae [3 Jun. 1884 - 4 Apr.
1972] married January 22, 1908 to William Robert Pennal. Their two girls were Margaret
Agnes and Julia Knox Pennal.
Florence Gary [ 22 Jun. 1886 - 9
Nov. 1950] married John Ester Bailey. Their two children were James Maxwell Bailey and an
infant who lived only several weeks.
William Blair [14 Apr. 1888 - 14
Jan. 1935] married Helen Major. No children.
After Martha Jane's death, William took a second
wife, Lucille Jeanette "Janie" Pennell Smith, the widow of James Willis Smith. By this union, one son was born, James William Knox Jr.[5 Sep. 1906 - 19 Jul. 1939]. He
and his wife Dorothy, had three boys, James, Robert and Donald. James William Knox Jr.
died of TB in a US Public Health Hospital on Ellis Island
while he was in the Coast Guard.
