James Holman Pennington

James' name appears on the 1863-1865 Civil War Draft Records, where he lists his age as 24, his race as "white" and his marital status as "unmarried". Although he registered for the draft, there is no indication that James fought in the Civil War.

In the 1850 census, James was living at home with his parents, listed as "Eligah Penington" and "Elizabeth Penington". He was 11 years old. James is listed as the fourth-oldest. The children in the family were: Didama (17), Nelson (15), Eli (13), James (11), Frances (9), Abel (7), Danl (4), and Eligah (1).

In the 1860 census, James was living at home with his parents, whose names were spelled "Elijah Pennington" and "Elizabeth Pennington". His age is listed as 21.

In the 1870 census, James Pennington was around 30 years old and his wife Mary was 23. They were living in Precinct 3, Elliott County, Kentucky. They had three young children: Sarah J (age 4), Susannah (2), and Eliza (8 months). Susannah is probably Elmira, as her middle initial is S.

In the 1880 census, James Pennington was 41 years old and was living in Elliott County, Kentucky. His wife, Mary, was 33 years old. They had seven children living at home: Sarah J (age 14), Elmira S (12), Eliza A (10), John W. (9), Richard F. (7), Margerett V. (3) and William M. (1).

His name was sometimes spelled James Pinnington. (Does this reflect the "pen"/"pin" merger in Southern American English?) James sometimes went by Jim.

Mary and James spent most of their lives in Kentucky. Toward the end of their lives, they moved to Idaho and Washington State. James died in Washington State in 1920 and Mary died in Idaho in 1933.

Elijah Pennington and Sarah Caudill Pennington are listed as James' parents on his death certificate.