Editing James Simpson Reese

{{Infobox Biography
| subject_name   =James Simpson Reese
| image_name     =JSReese.jpg
| image_size     =225px
| image_caption  =
| date_of_birth  =[[July 4]], [[1866]]
| place_of_birth =Lowndesboro, Alabama
| date_of_death  =[[1939]]
| place_of_death =
| occupation     =Banker
| religion       =[[First Presbyterian Church|Presbyterian]]
| spouse         =Laura Lemenda Wright
| parents        =George and Anna Simpson Reese
| children       =[[Wright Reese|George Wright Reese]]<br/>Valerie<br/>Jamie
| signature      =JSReese-sig.png
| signaturesize  =120px
}}
'''James Simpson Reese''' was a prominent Pensacola banker who served as the longtime president of the [[Citizen and Peoples National Bank of Pensacola]].

==Life and career==
Born in Lowndesboro, Alabama, Reese and his parents moved to Pensacola in [[1872]].  The Reese family traced its roots to Wales, where their surname was originally spelled ''Rhys'', and are believed to be descended from princes of Wales, including [[Wikipedia:Rhys ap Tewdwr|Rhys ap Tewdwr]].  An ancestor, David Reese, was a signer of the [[Wikipedia:Mecklenburg Declaration of Independence|Mecklenburg Declaration of Independence]].

Reese was educated in the public schools of Pensacola, then went on to attend the Agricultural and Mechanical College of Alabama (now [[Wikipedia:Auburn University|Auburn University]]).  After returning from college he worked in the office of the [[First National Bank]], where he remained, working through the ranks, until April [[1904]], when he left to organize the Peoples Bank of Pensacola.  In [[1908]], the bank doubled its capital and became a national institution, called the Peoples National Bank.  In [[1911]], the bank merged with the Citizens National Bank to become Citizen and Peoples National Bank.

Reese was married to Laura Lemenda Wright, daughter of [[G. W. Wright]], on [[January 4]], [[1894]], in Pensacola.  The couple had three children, Valerie, Wright, and Jamie.

==Involvement in community and professional organizations.
Reese was a member of the [[Pensacola Chamber of Commerce]], the [[Osceola Club]], and the [[Pensacola Country Club]], as well as fraternal organizations such as the Scottish Rite Masonic Order and the Knights Templar.

In April [[1927]], Reese was elected president of the Florida Bankers Association.

==Other images==
<gallery>
Image:JSReese-young.PNG|A younger Reese
Image:JSReese-yng.PNG|Circa 1899
Image:JSReese-old.png
</gallery>

[[Category:Bankers|Reese, James Simpson]] [[Category:Presbyterians|Reese, James Simpson]] [[Category:People buried in St. John's Cemetery|Reese, James Simpson]]