When James W. Levi was born on 18 November 1824, in Allen, Kentucky, United States, his father, Solomon Levi Jr, was 19 and his mother, Jane Richey, was 27. He married Nancy Anne Writesman on 10 February 1848, in Fishing River Township, Clay, Missouri, United States. They were the parents of at least 1 son and 5 daughters. He lived in Missouri, United States in 1870. He died on 27 September 1888, in Fishing River Township, Clay, Missouri, United States, at the age of 63, and was buried in Mosby, Clay, Missouri, United States.