James Francis Bell III ’45
JIM BELL died Nov. 24, 1990, at his home in Antigua, Guatemala, where he is buried. Although Jim was with us for only our first year, his affection for Princeton over the years remained very strong, as befits the greatgreat-greatgrandson of Princeton's sixth president, John Witherspoon, and the son of James Francis Bell '13.
Jim entered Princeton from Portland, Oreg., and Exeter, and lived at 16 Dickinson, He departed for Navy V12, was stationed at Walla Walla, Wash., and served in the Navy's supply corps. Jim served in the Seventh Fleet as a liaison officer aboard H.M.S. SHROPSHIRE and as a communications officer aboard the destroyer U.S.S. EARLE. Upon separation from service, he did not return to Princeton. He married Alice Lockhart and graduated from Whitman College, where his V12 unit had been stationed.
Jim was recalled for naval service during the Korean War and endured an extended stint, from 1950 to 1954, on three different flag staffs. He then joined Dole Pineapple in their San Jose, Calif., office. However, it was employment with SUNSET magazine which led to his lifelong career in Guatemala, After handling a market research project for SUNSET in Central America, he opened a guest house in Antigua and took up residence there more than 20 years ago with Alice and younger daughter Elizabeth. A major achievement was his collection of Indian costumes for the Heard Museum in Phoenix, Ariz., which led to locating and preserving an example of one complete Indian costume from virtually every village in Guatemala.
Jim is survived by his widow, as well as by two daughters, one son, and four grandsons. The Class extends its sympathy to them all.
The Class of 1945
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Dirk Bachmann
4 Years AgoHe Deeply Influenced My Life
Back in spring of 1990 I was studying Spanish at the PLFM language school in Antigua, Guatemala, for a couple of months. One afternoon while sitting on a park bench opposite the fountain on the main square I met Jim. After that first encounter we would see each other more frequently, often there at the plaza central.
It was him who said to me: "Education is the fundament of every society."
Not only did I become a teacher of languages later on to work in this field. I have also passed on his words to quite a few people with many of them being my students.
Jim was a great man, a wise man.
R.I.P.