James Barton

1934 - 2017

BARTON James William, Jr., 83, of Lexington, Kentucky, passed away Saturday, September 30, 2017. He was born on January 5, 1934 in Woodford County, Kentucky. He was the son of James William and Anne Mulholland Barton. Jim was preceded in death by his first wife, Gillian Letchworth Barton and survived by his wife Betty Marcum Barton. Jim, a member of St. Paul Catholic Church, but faithfully attended the St. Joseph Hospital Chapel, was a long-time resident of Lexington and graduated from Lexington Latin High School. He also graduated from the College of Agriculture at the University of Kentucky and continued a lifelong career and passion for farming with Barton Brothers Farms. Jim was a dedicated farmer and actively served the agricultural community in Kentucky. During his life, he was the President of the Kentucky Corn Growers Association, Secretary for the National Corn Growers Association and served on the Boards of the Kentucky Farm Bureau, Southern States Cooperative and the Kentucky Hemp Growers Association. He was a Chapter 12 trustee for the Kentucky Federal Court system and helped establish the Burley Producers Marketing Cooperative. Jim was named Outstanding Young Farmer in 1961 by the Lexington Chamber of Commerce. He was a strong advocate for the preservation of farmland in Lexington. In addition to his wife, Betty, Jim is survived by his brother Robert E. Barton (Janie) and his sisters Anne Marie House and Margaret Williams. He also leaves behind his children, John Robert (Lisa), James Michael (Suzanne), Richard Charles (Lisa), Margaret "Meg" Mary Galvin (Mark), Christopher Douglas (May May), and Ann Worth Grant (John) and 15 grandchildren Lucy and Will Barton, Patrick, Evan and Nicholas Barton, Brett and Andrew Barton, Noah, Ian and Josh Galvin, Ella and John Barton, James William, Thomas and Peter Grant, in addition to his step-children Chuck (Linda) Williams (Tyler and Ryan) and Laura (Stewart) Crutchfield (Leo and Phoebe). Jim valued the importance of family (and made all of his kids work in the tobacco barn). He worked tirelessly to ensure that his family was well cared for. He was a great story-teller and had many tales about the history of Kentucky and growing up in the Bluegrass (some may have been accurate). The support of friends, family and his loving wife gave him the strength to recover from an accident last winter and gave us time to enjoy his smile and good humor. The family wishes to thank all the doctors, nurses, techs and staff who helped care for Jim over the past year. Visitation will be from 5-8 PM, Thursday, October 5, at Milward Funeral Home Broadway. Funeral services, presided by Father Dennis Knight, will be at 10 AM Friday, October 6, at St. Paul Catholic Church on Short Street. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations to the Fayette County Farm Bureau Education Foundation, 1316 Versailles Rd., Lexington, KY, 40504, in Jim's name, would be appreciated. www.milwardfuneral.com