Birth 1862Death1950Biographical NoteJames Robert Monroe (J.R.M.) Blakely moved his family from his Iowa farm to Arizona in February of 1896, possibly Tempe. By 1900 J.R.M. moved his family to Mesa where he purchased a creamery, thus beginning three generations and 65 years of Blakelys as business owners in Arizona. J.R.M.’s five children- Charlie, Doris, Cora, Florence, and Marion- attended the old Stringtown School in Mesa, which later became the Alma School. Because his wife Mary Regina Spainhower (M.R.S.) Blakely loved the ocean, they sold out and moved to Southern California around 1907.
