James McCartney (1902 - 1976)

Born 7 Jul 1902 in 8 Fishguard Street, Everton, Liverpool, Lancashire, England, United Kingdom

Ancestors

Husband of Mary Patricia (Mohin) McCartney — married 5 Apr 1941 in St. Swithin's Roman Catholic chapel in Gillmoss, West Derby, England, United Kingdom

Descendants

Died 18 Mar 1976 at age 73 in Birkenhead, Wirral, Merseyside, England

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Biography

Jim McCartney is Notable.

James "Jim" McCartney (7 July 1902 – 18 March 1976) and Mary Patricia McCartney (née Mohan) (29 September 1909 – 31 October 1956) were the parents of the famous Beatle Paul McCartney.

The McCartney and Mohin families are of Irish descent. Jim's great-grandfather, James McCartney (an upholsterer), was born in Ireland, but it was previously unknown where Jim's grandfather, James McCartney II, was born. New evidence found in Scottish archives suggests that James McCartney moved with his family (including James McCartney II) from Ireland to Galloway, Scotland, around 1859, before moving south and settling in Liverpool.

James II (a plumber and painter) married Elizabeth Williams in 1864, in Liverpool. The pair were both under-age when they were wed, but found a place to live together in Scotland Road.

Jim's father, Joseph "Joe" McCartney (born 23 November 1866) was a tobacco-cutter by trade when he married Florence "Florrie" Clegg (born 2 June 1874) in the Christ Church, Kensington, Liverpool, on 17 May 1896.

Joe never drank alcohol, went to bed at 10 o'clock every night, and the only swear word he used was "Jaysus". Florrie was known as "Granny Mac" in the neighbourhood and was often consulted when families had problems.

Jim was born at 8 Fishguard Street, Everton, Liverpool and was the third eldest of seven children. The McCartney children (Jim's siblings) were

1. John (Jack),
2. Edith,
3. James (Jim),
4. Ann,
5. Millie,
6. Jane (Jin) and
7. Joe (who was named after a brother who died in infancy).

The parents Joe and Florrie McCartney moved shortly after Jim's birth to 3 Solva Street in Everton, which was a run-down terraced house about three-quarters of a mile from the Liverpool city centre, where Jim attended the Steers Street Primary School off Everton Road.

After leaving school at 14, Jim found work for six shillings a week as a cotton "sample boy", at A. Hanney & Co.; a cotton broker in Chapel Street, Liverpool. Jim's job entailed running up and down Old Hall Street with large bundles of cotton that had to be delivered to cotton brokers or merchants in various salesrooms.

Between 1940 and 1942, Liverpool endured 68 air-raids, which killed or injured more than 4,500 of the population and destroyed more than 10,000 homes.

Mary met her future husband Jim during an air raid on Liverpool in 1940, when Jim was 38 years old, and had settled into what his friends thought was, "a confirmed bachelorhood." Mary had been too career-conscious to think of marriage and, at the age of 31 years, was thought of as a spinster. They met in June 1940, at 11 Scargreen Avenue, West Derby, the McCartney family home. Mary was staying with Jim's sister, Jin, because of the lack of accommodation in Liverpool at the time.

They took out a marriage licence at Liverpool Town Hall on 8 April 1941, and were married a week later at St. Swithin's Roman Catholic chapel in Gillmoss, West Derby, on 15 April 1941.

They first lived at 10 Sunbury Road, Anfield, and then resided for a short time at 92 Broadway, Wallasey, during November 1942. Jim's job at Napiers was classified as war work, so the McCartneys were given a small, but temporary, prefab house at 3 Roach Avenue, Knowsley.

After the cotton exchange closed for the duration of the war, Jim worked as an inspector at Napier's engineering works, which made shell cases that were later filled with explosives.

Jim returned to the cotton trade in 1946.

Jim worked for most of his life in the cotton trade, as well as playing in ragtime and jazz bands in Liverpool, while Mary was a trained nurse and midwife.

After the death of his first wife Mary, Jim McCartney married widow Angela (Stopworth) Williams, after only three meetings, on 24 November 1964. Jim was 62 and Angie was 34.

Angela was the mother of Ruth Ann Williams (b. 1959), whom Jim then adopted. Ruth grew up to be a successful songwriter and businesswoman.

Jim died of bronchial pneumonia on 18 March 1976. ^[1]His second wife, Angela McCartney (née Williams) said that his last words were "I'll be with Mary soon." Jim died two days before a Wings European tour; his eldest son was unable to attend the funeral. Jim was cremated at Landican Cemetery, near Heswall, Merseyside on 22 March 1976.

In 1976, John Lennon's ex-wife Cynthia Lennon married John Twist, an engineer from Lancashire, Together they ran Oliver's Twist, a hotel-and-restaurant in Wales along with Jim's wife Angie McCartney, who had become the young step-mother of John's Lennon's former Beatle partner.

Sources

1. ↑ UK GRO Death index Q1 1976 Birkenhead 37,995 (born 07 Jul 1902) https://www.freebmd.org.uk/cgi/search.pl

• Wikipedia article: Jim and Mary McCartney

• Wikipedia:Paul_McCartney

• Kenneth Womack. The Beatles Encyclopedia: Everything Fab Four, 2014, p. 620

• Wikipedia article on his adopted stepdaughter Ruth