James had a brilliant, shrewd mind and a boundless curiosity and he often dabbled in photography, geology, mechanics, archeology, natural history and other disciplines that piqued his interest. James was a motorcycle enthusiast and rode a Harley Davidson. According to family members he was instrumental in developing one of the first panoramic photos. Looking closely, he can be found both at the far left end and at the far right end in the same photo. Notice the Davis Millinery Co of Dallas which made the Davis hats. They can still be found from time to time in antique stores.