James was such a big baby that he was brain damaged at birth. He hurt his mother during the childbirth. She always walked with a limp afterward.
Family folklore not proven yet: After his parent's death, when he was 4 years old, John was raised by his mother's sister until he was grown. He went to college at Jackson but quit just before graduation when he was suspended for going to a dance. When he reached legal age, he sold the family plantation and spent all the money. John's father was William Castle. He was a singer with an evanglist and a farmer. He married Lorrainee Welch who was from Ireland. The Welch's were suppose to have had six sets of twins in the family. William's home was on a river near Jackson, Tennessee, with 500 acres on one side of the river and 500 acres on the other. He had a long red beard and owned a steam boat. He had cousins in Little Rock, Arkansas named Duckett. William and Lorrainee had three children - John, Lorrainey and Narcissi. Ed was a child from a previous relationship of either William's or Lorrainee's. Lorrainee had a twin brother named Lewis and a first cousin named John C. Welch who was also a cousin of William's. John was born 30 May 1855 and died 15 Nov 1928. He married Ida who was born 9 Dec 1874 and died 7 Sept 1928. They had a daughter Edna Holland Carrie Welch who married Henry A. Crowder. Henry's father was born 27 Oct 1861and died 18 Feb 1912. William was out fighting in the civil war when his wife and daughters had typhoid fever. They were recovering when they received news that William had been killed and they all died leaving John.