JEX BIOGRAPHIES

JEX BIOGRAPHIES 1

THE EVERYDAY LIVES OF JEX PEOPLE BIOGRAPHIES AND SNIPPETS

A REFERENCE TO THE PERSONS ENTRY NUMBER ON THE JEX SPREADSHEET IS INCLUDED HERE

Charles A. JEX, grocer and wholesale confectioner, is a native of Hamilton, Ontario, Can., and was born November 16, 1842. When only thirteen years of age, he went on the lakes on the schooner Pilot, and for twenty-one years was engaged in sailing on the lakes, and during nine years was master. The last vessel he had command of was the J. H. Rutter, at that time the largest on the lakes. In 1876, he built a store and engaged in the grocery and provision trade, and since then has carried on the business. In January, 1882, engaged in the wholesale confectionery business with P. C. COY. Mr. JEX has also successfully been engaged in the wrecking business for the past three years. He was united in marriage January 6, 1874, to Miss Sarah BARRON, of St Clair, this county; they have three children-William Arthur, Ina Nettie and Charles Albert. pg. 579 Port Huron

SOURCE: History of St Clair County, Michigan. Chicago: A. T. Andreas, 1883.

JEX SPREADSHEET REF NO. 453,454,455,456,457

Capt. H. N. JEX, master of the Victoria, is a native of St Clair County, and was born in Port Huron, June 18, 1851; he began sailing on the schooner Idaho when only thirteen years of age; when twenty years old, he sailed Captain of the schooner Hanson, and has also sailed the Troy, the Curlew, and several others, and has owned several of them. He is now master of the Victoria. He has also been successfully engaged in the wrecking business for the past four years. Capt. JEX was united in marriage October 1, 1879, to Miss Rosena ROBB, of the city of Port Huron, a native of London, Can. pg. 579 Port Huron

SOURCE: History of St Clair County, Michigan. Chicago: A. T. Andreas, 1883.

JEX SPREADSHEET REF NO. 458,459

Capt. Frank N. DOWNER, is a native of Michigan, and was born in the town of Washington, Macomb County, July 17, 1835. The following year his parents came here. From early boyhood his life has been spent on the water, his earliest recollections of it was sailing on a slab on the river. When eleven years old, in 1847, he went on the Grace Amelia, Capt. John Dillon, and in 1852, when only seventeen years old, he was Captain of the Hawk, and next sailed on Esculapius, and the Lady Jane. In 1855, 1856 and 1857, he was master of the Euphemia, then the Henry Young, the Curlew, E. M. Carrington, Lilly May and the Skinner. In 1872, he built the Dunford, and since then has sailed as a master and part owner of her. Capt. DOWNER has been in the marine service for thirty-six years, and for more than thirty years has sailed as master, and has had a large practical experience. He has held the office of Tax Collector. Capt. DOWNER was united in marriage July 18, 1860, to Miss Britannia JEX, a native of London, Canada. They have had eight children, only two of whom survive-Charlie JEX and Frank Nelson. pg. 567 Port Huron

SOURCE: History of St Clair County, Michigan. Chicago: A. T. Andreas, 1883.

JEX SPREADSHEET REF NO. 460

John Anthony Jex born 29/8/1935 in Scotland Half Moon Village, Belize, formerly British Hunduras. Father was Mr Jex and his mother Miss Evarista Estrada, at 14years of age he came to Crooked Tree Village to work as boat assitant to a boating Company owned by Adalbert and Edward Dawson. Their boats ran a passenger service to Belize City. Eventually John started his own transport business, Jex and Sons Bus Services together with another enterprise the Jex Grocery Store. He married Radiance Flowers and had children; Rosemary, Edward, Jerry,Dale,Leah,Howard,Alex,Eva and Timothy, they eventually had 17 grandshildren. He was instrumental in founding the Crooked Tree Wesleyan Church and was active in Village affairs. John Anthony Jex died in 1997 of a heart attack and the John Jex Boardwalk was named after him.

SOURCE: Crooked Tree Village Reunion Newsletter, January/February 2008 Vol 1 Issue 3

JEX SPREADSHEET REF NOS. 461 TO 473

Garnet JEX: Born in Kent, Ohio in 1895, Garnet Jex was a noted landscape painter, portraitist, and illustrator who was active in Washington DC throughout his career and lived there until his death in 1979. He enlisted in the Army at the outbreak of World War I, beginning fifty years of public service. Upon returning from the war, Jex worked as a medical illustrator for the Army Medical Corps while attending the Corcoran School of Art and George Washington University where he earned his B.A. in 1927. He was a prolific painter and many of his paintings are seen in current auctions.

SOURCE: Ask Art the Artists Bluebook - Worldwide Edition

JEX SPREADSHEET REF NO.474

Storrington, West Sussex 1934, the scene of a shooting and a manhunt that ended in death. Police Constable A. JEX disturbed Leonard Rowland Hill in a house which he was burgling, PC JEX was wounded with a gun, he was taken to Worthing Hospital. Hill believed he had killed PC JEX and fled to the downs. A manhunt took place and a report was taken that he had been seen. The police borrowed Mrs Michael Sadler's bloodhounds who quickly cornered Hill. The Police now armed, rushed in to arrest Hill but before they could get to him he shot himself, it was thought that he had not seen a newspaper as he had been living rough and stealing food from houses, and that he still thought he had murdered PC JEX. Hill died in a bed in Worthing Hospital close to PC JEX.

See an artcle in Time Magazine 11th June 1934 http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,762178,00.html

JEX SPREADSHEET REF 673

Arthur JEX a WW1 Hero.His Royal Aero Certificate states he was born in 1889. On his Attestation papers when he enrolled in the Army in 1914 he was 24 years and 10 months old - this was dated 26th October 1914. He had a very colourful role during WW1, he was discharged from the army due to an old injury to his ankle, then joined the RFC in 1915 as an Air Mechanic, he was promoted to Sergeant AM, and later he became an Observer, flying in 45 Squadron with Arthur Harris (later Bomber Harris) and eventually he qualified as a Sgt Pilot and was shot down over France in Sept 1918 and captured and as a POW he was imprisoned at Karlsruhe in Germany. He flew the famous SE5 a fighter plane. While he was a POW he sent a photo in September 1918 to his father Henry Edward JEX. Please go to the JEX Gallery page to see his picture.

JEX SPREADSHEET REF 234

Simon Jex Ref 2859. The son of Johan Jex and Anna Pach. Johan and Anna have a birth history from Bohemia, Austrio Hungary, Southern Germany. They travelled to the Unites States about 1880 and settled in Michigan as did many from those areas. They always claimed Germany as their homeland but they had not lived in Germany but in Austria=Hungary in the area that became Czechloslovakia for the years before coming to the US. They were miners and followed the work to Ishpeming, Michigan. They also crossed the ocean 7 times with half of their children born in the US and half in the area around Slovakia which was by that time, I believe, becoming Czechloslovakia. The family tree is listed on Ancestry.com by their descendent Sharon Toscana. The family made pasties. A dryer meat pie that could be taken to work in the mines in the workers pocket. (exactly the same type of history as the Cornish Pasty beloved by the Cornish Tin miners in the 17 and 1800s in England) it had meat potatoes onions and sometimes carrots or turnips a favourite with miners. The exact town of origin is being researched and eventually will be found along with the origin of the Jex name in this Austrio Hungary area.

John Jex of Lowestoft -In the 17th Century Lowestoft was a prosperous port. The rich merchants built houses high on the cliff overlooking the sea and the lower town. Lowestoft grew and prospered and many of the merchants' houses became shops.

The lower floor was where the goods were stored and sold and the family lived in the rooms above. Although many were extended to accommodate extra selling or living space most kept their original features. This road at the top of the cliff became Lowestoft's High Street.

46 High Street was originally built by the merchant John Jex. it had in later years a bedroom called 'the King's bedroom'. King George II came ashore at Lowestoft in 1737 during a storm and stayed overnight at the house. There is a plaque on the wall commemorating this event an engraving of the event is shown here.

The visit is mentioned in several books about Lowestoft and one account mentions that John Jex kept a phial of the King's urine on prominent display.

The house was an ironmongery shop by the time of the 1901 census.

History of Thomas Woods and Rebecca (Jex) Woods

Thomas Woods of Blundeston Hall, Suffolk, and formerly of Ellough and Willingham in Suffolk, son of Robert Woods of Somerleyton, was born apparently in 1746 and died on 11 Nov.1836 aged 90. His monument is in Blundeston churchyard where he was buried 17 Nov.1836. As already related, he was the younger brother of Robert Woods who preceded him in possession of Blundeston Hall and with whom the family possession of Blundeston Hall begins. Indeed, the tombs of Thomas and Robert Woods and those of their families adjoin each other very compactly within a fenced off family plot in the corner of Blundeston churchyard to the left of the church in the back. Thomas Woods married at Worlingham, Suffolk, by licence at North Cove Suffolk, on 30 Apr.1778 (recorded in the Worlingham Suffolk parish register 30 Apr.1777!) to Rebecca Jex, then of Willingham Suffolk. She was born apparently in 1756 and died 12 Sept.1836 aged 80, buried at Blundeston 17 Sept.1836 where her M.I. is recorded along with her husband's. Although her parentage is not recorded in local records, she was certainly a daughter of John Jex (1727-1796) of Ellough and his wife Rebecca (nee Moore) who married at Ellough 10 Oct 1753 (see JEX FAMILY). Thomas and Rebecca Woods lived after their marriage at Willingham (possibly on the Jex family property) and their first seven children were born there and christened at Ellough nearby. In 1791 they moved from there to Blundeston Hall, which Thomas had acquired "in fee" that year from the widow of Robert Woods, and it was there that the last three children of Thomas and Rebecca Woods were born. Thomas Woods made his will dated 11 Dec.1820, with codicils dated Jun.29 1825 and Aug.12 1833, witnessed by Robt Bowgin, Robt Fiske and Ralph Adamson. Properties disposed of in his will included 60 acres in Westhall Suffolk (ie, messuage, farm, hereditaments, lands and premises formerly occupied by his eldest son and after that by George Adams), a freehold cottage with lands and appurtenances in Beccles Suffolk (or Ingate next Beccles) then in the occupation of James Balls, and an estate in Blundeston and Flixton Suffolk (freehold lands and hereditaments, and a Capital messuage (evidently Blundeston Hall) which had been lately in his own occupation. In the will he mentions his wife Rebecca Woods and his friend (and we guess relative of his wife's) Henry Jex of Brampton Sfk, farmer. At the time of his last codicil in 1833, seven of his children were still living and two deceased, all named in the will. Also named were six of his grandchildren.