Mr. James Durham of Blue Ridge passed from this life to his heavenly home on Sunday January 29, 2012.
Mr. Durham was born October 29, 1924 In Bennington Oklahoma and was 87 years of age.
He was preceded in death by his wife of 59 years, Carmen Fagg Durham. Mr. Durham was affectionely known by friends and family as "Bull" and was a well known farmer and rancher in the area. In addition to farming and ranching he was employed by the Texas Animal Health Commission for 25 years as an inspector and made many friends and professional acquaintances across North Texas. Known by those close to him as a great storyteller, he loved to boast of never missing a day of school or Sunday School between first and 12th grade. He recanted the days of riding his horse to the nearest location to catch the bus to school. He would leave his horse tied to a tree to graze until the bus dropped him off in the afternoon. The second youngest of eight children, Mr Durham was a lifelong member of the First United Methodist Church in Blue Ridge. He attended Texas A&M University and served with the Army in the Pacific during WWII, and was awarded the Purple Heart. As a Professional Rodeo Cowboy Association Gold Card Member, he loved everything related to agriculture and livestock and spent many years traveling across the U.S. as a professional bulldogger. He often remarked that his best bulldogging partner was former Dallas Cowboys Hall of Famer Walt Garrison. James trained and sold Garrison his favorite horse which was featured when the two cowboys filmed a commercial advertisement for Skoal. He is survived by his daughter Jan Snow and husband Danny of Savoy, Texas and his son Jim Durham and his wife Stacie of Blue Ridge, as well as two granddaughters, Jenna and Taylor Durham all of Blue Ridge. He is also survived by several neices and nephews.