Zerelda Mimms


Zerelda Amanda Mimms James was the wife and first cousin of Jesse James.

Personal life

Zerelda Amanda Mimms was the daughter of Pastor John Wilson Mimms and Mary Elizabeth James. Her mother was sister to Jesse James' father, Robert S. James.
She and Jesse James married on April 24, 1874, while the James-Younger Gang was still in full force. Of the Jameses and Youngers, Jesse was the first to marry. Zerelda and Jesse had four children, two of whom died in infancy:
Mimms died November 13, 1900, in Kansas City, Missouri, and was buried at Mount Olivet Cemetery in Kearney, Missouri. Eighteen months after her death, her husband's body was moved from the James family farm to rest next to hers.

Portrayal in films