When you’re working on someone’s ancestry, some people just stick out. Such is the case of James Sexton, born about 1833 in Kentucky and living in Lincoln, Nebraska later in life. A veteran of the Mexican-American war who later in life lost his legs to frost bite, Old Kaintucky Jim was as good a man as ever walked on soil or sod, was none too steady on his wooden legs when sober, and thought nothing of keeping the company of a black woman despite being white himself, or driving home drunk in his horse-drawn cart. While Jim certainly wouldn’t have made an ideal neighbor, he is an entertaining character to follow. These newspaper clippings speak better to Jim than I ever could, so see them below!
Weaving the Tapestry 