James W. Carlin 1886 - 1946

CARLIN, LAMBERT

Posted By: Connie Swearingen- Volunteer (email)
Date: 10/19/2022 at 23:17:24

Sioux City Journal
4 February 1946

J. W. Carlin, Department Store Official Here, Dies

Executive of Davidson's Succumbs to Heart Attack

James W. Carlin, 2807 Valley drive, vice president of Davidson Bros. Co. since 1933, died suddenly of a heart attack at his home Sunday evening. He would have been, 60 years old February 24.

Mr. Carlin, a native Kentuckian, came to Sioux; City in 1923 as advertising manager of Davidson Bros. Co. He resigned in 1925 to accent a similar position with a St. Louis firm but returned here in 1930 as general sales manager at Davidson's. He became vice president in 1933.

Mr. Carlin was born February 24, 1886, in Fayette County, Ky. His parents were descendants of Kentucky pioneers who had migrated from Virginia, Maryland and Massachusetts. He attended public schools in Louisville.

Traveled Southern States

For several years he was employed in various kinds of office and advertising work in Louisville and in 1909 became a salesman of advertising novelties, traveling in southern and western states for four years.

In 1913 Mr. Carlin became advertising manager for a department store at Waco, Tex., a position he held until 1917, when he enlisted in the 131st field artillery. He was commissioned a second lieutenant in May 1918, after attending an officers training camp, and was assigned to the 132d field artillery. He served with that regiment in France from July 1918, to March 1919, when he returned to the United States.

He resumed his position with the Waco firm and in 1921 was made advertising manager of a mercantile company at Memphis, Tenn., a position he held until 1923 when he came to Sioux City.

Married in 1921

He married Miss Lucile Lambert in 1921 at Waco.

Mr. Carlin was owner of one of the largest private collections of rare books in this section of the country, including medieval manuscripts and books by the earliest printers. Among the rarest volumes is a first edition of the New Testament in English printed by Tyndale in 1552, and a copy of the famous "breeches" Bible, about 1560.

Mr. Carlin was a member of Monahan post 64, American Legion, and the Rotary club and was a director of the Sioux City Art Center association. He was a member of the Waco Masonic lodge and Royal Arch chapter and a past master of the Waco council of Royal and Select Masters, York Rite Masonic body.

Surviving besides the widow are his mother, Mrs. Minnie S. Kahn of Louisville, and three sisters, Mrs. S. J. Snowden of Louisville, Mrs. Wilfred Lyeth of Augusta, Ga., and Mrs. Lewis P. Speaker of Austin, Tex.

The body was taken to Perasso Bros, funeral home.

Sioux City Journal
5 February 1946

The sudden and unexpected death of James W. Carlin, vice president and advertising manager of Davidson Bros. Co. ended the career of a well-known and popular man in the mercantile field. He was a victim of a heart attack, which ranks first in the nation as a cause of death. Several prominent Sioux City business and professional men recently have succumbed to heart disease.

"Jim" Carlin, as he was known to his many friends and fellow club members, was a man of proved ability in business. He had been in the merchandising field most of his life, having served over a wide area from Texas and Kentucky, his native state, to Memphis, Tenn., and St. Louis to Sioux City where he had lived for several years. As advertising manager for Davidson Bros. Co., he frequently was a Journal visitor in connection with his work and was well known and well liked in this office.

Mr. Carlin had an engaging personality. Few had a more delightful sense of humor or could tell a story with as much skill and force. He had a fund of good stories, many of them reflecting his deep understanding of human nature, of which he was a constant and intelligent student. He knew people, was aware of their strength and their weakness, their virtues and their faults and yet he liked them, all the assorted varieties, and was liked by them.

In the Carlin home were evidence of a culture all too rare in these times. He owned and loved one of the finest collections of rare books in the community. He had many first editions, having been a collector over a long period of years, and some of them were of great value. He was an inveterate reader of the best in literature and gave close attention to modern books as well as those of earlier years. He also was a collector of antiques and had many fine things in his home, furniture, China, silver, prints, engravings and the like.

Cultural pursuits and working with his hands, on his grounds and in his home were "Jim" Carlin's hobbies. He was an enthusiastic planter of trees, and his grounds showed results of his planning and his industriousness. He was skilled in the use of tools and found in that a pleasant recreation and relaxation. A brick retaining wall Mr. Carlin built with his own hands on his grounds was an example of his thoroughness, which was emphasized in his business career. He will be missed by a large number of friends and associates who regarded him highly.

Sioux City Journal
5 February 1946

CARLIN FUNERAL TO BE AT WACO

Body of Davidson Bros. Executive Will Be Sent to Texas

Funeral services for James W. Carlin, 2807 Valley drive, vice president of Davidson Bros. Co., who died unexpectedly at his home Sunday evening of a heart attack, will be held in Waco, Tex.

The body will remain at Perasso Bros, funeral home today and will be sent early Wednesday to Waco.