James Family Archives

 

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Children of Maggie Alma James (1893-1978) of Mulberry, Crawford County, Kansas and Edward “Ted” Luke (1882-1969) of Bayonne, Hudson County, New Jersey:

 

1.    Verle James Luke:  born July 29, 1921 in Mulberry, Crawford County, Kansas; first marriage to Norma June Kemp (1925-2001), daughter of Jesse Clarence Kemp (born 1902) and Iva Glenn Amos (born 1903); second marriage to Frances Bertha Hovey (1917-2013), daughter of Clarence Ray Hovey (1886-1956) and Ada Bell Craven (1894-1993); died May 3, 2003 (aged 81) in Tulsa, Tulsa County, Oklahoma; buried at Rose Hill Memorial Park, Tulsa, Tulsa County, Oklahoma; known children include: Sherry Luke and Janice Luke.

 

2.    Teddy “Ted” Edward Luke:  born February 2, 1924 in Mulberry, Crawford County, Kansas; married 1948 in San Francisco, California to Coriene P. (1925-1999); died November 16, 2013 (aged 89) in Lafayette, Contra Costa County, California; buried at Oak Hill Memorial Park, San Jose, Santa Clara County, California; known children include: Nancy Luke and Scott Luke.

 

3.    Freddie “Fred” Allen Luke: born 1931, first marriage to Janet Anne Shelton (1934-2015), daughter of Andrew Rowley Shelton and Esther Pulley; second marriage to Orpha Payne; known children through Janet Shelton include: Teddy Allen Luke, David Luke, John Luke and Steven Patrick Luke.

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Biographic Notes:

 

Maggie Alma James (1893-1978) was the daughter of George Washington James, Jr. (1846-1919) of Bedford County, Virginia and Alice Ann Burcham (1865-1944).

 

Verle James Luke (1921-2003) enlisted as a private in the U.S. Army Reserve Corps, Serial No. 17061746, on August 3, 1942 at the age of 21.  He was a veteran of World War II.  Following the war Verle worked as a manufacturing plant production supervisor for Heat Exchanger Co., and, as a coal miner and tipple foreman for Pioneer Coal Company.

 

Teddy "Ted" Edward Luke (1924-2013) was remembered as a gentleman, with an always courteous nature and love of family and friends.  He was born and raised in Mulberry, Kansas. Upon graduating from high school, Ted joined the Army Air Corps where he was trained as a B-29 co-pilot and was stationed on the island of Guam in the Pacific Ocean. After World War II, he was shipped back to San Francisco, where he met Coriene, his wife of 51 years. The two married in 1948 and moved to Kansas where Ted graduated from the University of Kansas. Returning to San Francisco, Ted went to work for Union Oil Co. in sales management until retiring in 1986. San Marino, California was their last residence until 2005. Ted enjoyed genealogy, family history and organizing bi-annual James family reunions in the city of Pleasant Hill, California for the descendants of George Washington James, Jr. (1846-1919). He also enjoying playing cards, Co-Weds, golf and vacationing in Maui with Coriene.  Ted was preceded in death by his wife Coriene and older brother Verle James Luke . He was survived by his younger brother Fred Luke of Gilbert, Arizona, daughter Nancy Luke of Laguna Beach, California, son Scott Luke of Pleasant Hill, California, daughter in-law Ann and his four grand-children, Kendra, Brian, David and Steven, Steven's wife Jody and his great-grand children Annalee, Tyler and Lauren.  A celebration of Ted’s life was conducted on December 14, 2013 in Oak Hill Memorial Park, San Jose, California.  At the time of his death Ted was a resident of Lafayette, California.

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Sources:

 

See, World War II Army, Reserve Corps, Enlistment of Verle James Luke, Crawford County, Kansas, August 3, 1942.

 

See also, George Washington James Family Reunion & Picnic, City Park, Pleasant Hill, California, June 29, 1996.

 

See also, Death Notice of Verle James Luke (1921-2003) published in Staff Reports, Tulsa World, OK, May 4, 2003.

 

See also, Obituary of Teddy "Ted" Edward Luke (1924-2013) published in East Bay Times, CA, November 26, 2013.

 

See also, Obituary of Janet Anne Shelton Luke (1934-2015) published in Daily Herald, Provo, Utah, January 3, 2016.

 

See also, Obituary of Steven Patrick Luke (1964-2019) published in Free Lance Star, Fredericksburg, VA, Jan. 13, 2019.

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Virtual Memorials on “Find A Grave” Website:

 

Verle James Luke (1921-2003), Memorial ID No. 17234310, by Okie Bran, added December 31, 2006.

 

Frances Bertha Hovey Luke (1917-2013), Memorial ID No. 180229113, by Dennis Wilson, added June 10, 2017.

 

Teddy "Ted" Edward Luke (1924-2013), Memorial ID No. 190214284, by Chuck Schubert, added May 30, 2018.

 

Coriene P. Luke (1925-1999), Memorial ID No. 190214277, by Chuck Schubert, added May 30, 2018.

 

Janet Anne Shelton Luke (1934-2015), Memorial ID No. 156673224, by Annie Duckett Hundley, added Jan. 2, 2016.

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Photographs:

Verle James Luke (1921-2003)

 

Verle James Luke (1921-2003) and Norma June Kemp (1925-2001)

 

Teddy "Ted" Edward Luke (1924-2013) circa 1945

 

Teddy "Ted" Edward Luke (1924-2013) circa 1960

 

Janet Anne Shelton Luke (1934-2015)

 

 

Freddie “Fred” Allen Luke and Orpha Payne Luke

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Updated: January 13, 2024