James Claudius Ariail and his wife Vastie Bellamy

James Claudius Ariail and his wife Vastie Bellamy. James was the son of James Leland Ariail and Lettie Meticia Duncan. He was born on Jul 7 1881 in Stranges District Franklin County Georgia and died 21 Mar 1970. He and Vastie were the parents of 12 children 11 boys and 1 girl. Two of the boys died as infants. The Ariail family reunion began as a birthday party for James Claudius Ariail and was originally held in the back yard of his home. From the start this was a very big affair because of the large number of children spouses and grandchildren who attended. James was a farmer and owned a large farm on the Franklin/Banks County line. His descendants still own and farm the land. The farm was originally purchased by his grandfather William Harrison Ariail and his wife Mary Adelaide Barr in the 1850s when they moved from South Carolina to Georgia. The original size of the farm was in the vicinity of 650 acres.