Norfolk City Virginia USGenWeb Archives Obituaries.....Brockenbrough, James Gill Sr. March 9, 2009
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Dorothy Strawhand https://www.genrecords.net/emailregistry/vols/00034.html#0008405 April 29, 2020, 2:33 pm

Virginian-Pilot, The (Norfolk, VA) - March 11, 2009

NORFOLK - James Gill Brockenbrough Sr., 92, of Virginia Beach and Norfolk, 
passed away peacefully March 9, 2009. He was a resident of Harbor's Edge 
Retirement Community and was a native of Suffolk, the son of the late Samuel 
Richardson and Christianna Gill Brockenbrough.
Mr. Brockenbrough retired as president of one of Norfolk's oldest family-
owned businesses; founded in 1902, The James G. Gill Coffee Company was 
later to become First Colony Coffee and Tea. His career in the coffee 
business stretched back into the 1930s and encompassed the period that saw 
Gill's Hotel Special Coffee as the top selling brand in the mid-Atlantic 
region. He was always proud of the fact that his small regional company 
successfully competed against the large national brands. People who grew up 
in Norfolk, will remember the illuminated neon coffee pot atop the factory 
building on 22nd Street.
Mr. Brockenbrough proudly served in World War II in the 116th Infantry 
Regiment in the 29th Division. He landed on Omaha Beach on the third day of 
the Normandy invasion and fought through France, Belgium and Germany until 
the fall of the Nazi regime.
He served on the board of First and Merchant's Bank, which later became 
Wachovia Bank. He was a former member of the Norfolk German Club, Norfolk 
Yacht and Country Club and the Princess Anne Country Club. In the summer, he 
loved to play croquet with his friends at Virginia Beach and was champion of 
the 71st Street Croquet Club.
Mr. Brockenbrough is survived by his wife of 67 years, Mary Cross Jordan 
Brockenbrough; a son, Thomas Jordan Brockenbrough and his wife Joan of 
Charlotte, N.C.; six grandchildren, James Gill Brockenbrough III and his 
wife Wendy of Manakin-Sabot, Va., Mercer Brockenbrough Davis and her husband 
Todd of Athens, Ga., Alexandra Brockenbrough Stone and her husband Stuart of 
Norfolk, Austin Cross Brockenbrough of Charlotte, N.C., William Mallory 
Brockenbrough and his wife Sarah of Savannah, Ga., and Thomas Jordan 
Brockenbrough of Norfolk; and five great-grandchildren. He was preceded in 
death by his son, James Gill Brockenbrough Jr.
The family would like to give special thanks to the staff of Harbors Edge 
for their care and support.
In celebration of his life, a memorial service will be held at 11 a.m. 
Friday in the Episcopal Church of the Good Shepherd in Norfolk by the Rev. 
Robert Davenport. H.D. Oliver Funeral Apts., Norfolk Chapel, is handling 
arrangements. Online condolences may be sent to the family through 
hdoliver.com.
In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be sent to either Norfolk Academy 
or Norfolk Collegiate, schools of his children, grandchildren and great-
grandchildren.

Additional Comments:
Elmwood

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