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Bill James

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Bill James
Bill James
Bill James on his 110th birthday in 2021.
Birth: 5 July 1911
Lincoln, Vermont, USA
Death: 24 October 2021
Bristol, Vermont, USA
Age: 110 years, 111 days
Country: United StatesUSA
Validated

William Andrew “Bill” James (5 July 1911 – 24 October 2021) was an American supercentenarian whose age was validated by the Gerontology Research Group (GRG) in 2023. He was the oldest known living person in the U.S. state of Vermont at the time of his death.

Biography[]

Bill James was born in Lincoln, Addison County, Vermont, USA on 5 July 1911 to parents Vernon James (1878–1963) and Rena York (1884–1959). His parents were divorced when he was young, leading to him and his brothers going to live with his grandparents for some time. They lived on a farm with no electricity, running water, or indoor plumbing. “I guess by today’s standards you would call that living off the grid,” James said in an interview at 105. “but it was the way of most people in Lincoln at the time.” Longevity was present in his family: his grandfather, whom he later called the “toughest man he ever knew”, lived to the age of 98.

While growing up on his grandparents’ farm, James fell in love with horses and spent his time plowing, cutting hay, and hauling logs with the draft team. Electricity first arrived in his town in 1927, by which point James was already approaching adulthood. Interested by this new technology, he decided to begin training as an electrician. James worked for CVPS for over fifteen years as a lineman in Middlebury until 1955, before he moved to Bristol as a district representative. He retired on 1 January 1974, with over thirty years of service in total. After his retirement, he volunteered for the Bristol Rescue Squad.

In 1945, James met a woman named Mable Lucia at a dance in Monkton, who he would soon marry. They had three children. The couple were married for 63 years until her passing in 2009. After his wife's death, he donated $25,000 to the Bristol Rescue Squad.

In July 2021, he turned 110, making him the first known male supercentenarian in Vermont.

He became the oldest known living person in Vermont, following the death of Florilla Ames on 22 October 2021. James died two days later in Bristol, Vermont, USA on 24 October 2021 at the age of 110 years, 111 days.

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