James Nixon Daniel Jr. was born on March 22, 1927, in Chipley, Florida, to James Nixon and Villeta McGeachy Daniel. He grew up in Chipley and served in the U.S. Air Corps from 1945 -1946 (including a tour of duty with the Army of Occupation in Japan), before studying economics at Washington and Lee University.
Christine Susan Zeigler was born on June 29, 1926, in Thomasville, Georgia, to George Edward Zeigler and Christine Hjort Zeigler. She grew up in Thomasville, graduated from Leon High School in Tallahassee, FL, in 1944, and earned a bachelor’s degree in Commerce from Florida State University in 1948 before working in the Student Records department.Christine, a friend of Nixon’s sister Emily, wrote him letters while he was homesick in Japan and the two were introduced when Nixon returned home in 1946. They were married at First Baptist Church in Tallahassee on June 4, 1949,
and honeymooned in St. Augustine. The newlyweds lived in Gainesville after the wedding, where Nixon was attending the University of Florida’s Law School. He was editor-in-chief of the Law Review and, like his father, graduated Phi Beta Kappa.Upon graduation, the Daniels moved to Pensacola and Nixon began practicing at Blount, Blount & Carter Law Firm. They had 4 children between 1952-1959. During his 25-year practice at Blount, Blount & Carter (which would later be named Beggs, Lane, Daniel, Gaines & Davis), Nixon was a member of several professional legal organizations, including the Florida Bar Board of Governors and the Florida Board of Bar Examiners, and served as President of the Society of the Bar of the First Judicial Circuit. He also served as president of the Children’s Home Society, the Pensacola Junior Chamber of Commerce, and the Pensacola Young Men’s Christian Association. Both Nixon and Christine were very active at First Baptist Church, leading Sunday School classes, bible studies and missons efforts.
Nixon was a loving father, wonderful husband, and faithful friend who passed away after suffering a heart attack on May 7, 1975, at the age of 48. Christine continued to be active at First Baptist and in the Pensacola community, working as an ophthalmic technician and a realtor for Connell & Manziek for 17 years. Over the years, she was also a member of the Women's Board of Baptist Health Care Foundation, the Pensacola Symphony Guild and the Pensacola Garden Club. She enjoyed watching her children marry, have children of their own and build strong Christian families; her eight grandchildren became the twinkle in her eye. Christine, the bedrock of her family and a fighter to the very end, lost her 12-year battle with breast cancer on May 9, 2007, at the age of 80.