James Woodson Kelly was born on April 22, 1874, in Indiana, his father, Samuel, was 32 and his mother, Parthenia (McIntire), was 19. He married Bertha Ola Patterson on January 4, 1899. They had two children James Woodson and Amanda Gertrude during their marriage. James and Bertha had two children, Lydia May born May 5, 1900 and Lois Franklin born November 30, 1901. James served in the Spanish American War. James died on December 26, 1906, in Boulder, Colorado, at the age of 32.