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Sept. 16, 1941 – July 15, 2024

James Michael Biglane of Natchez, passed away on July 15, 2024, surrounded by his loved ones. The son of D. A. Biglane and Mary Temple Biglane, he was born in Hattiesburg, MS, on Sept. 16, 1941. After attending public schools in Natchez and Hattiesburg and graduating from Hattiesburg High School in 1959, he graduated from the University of Oklahoma in 1964 with a degree in Petroleum Management. He then served from 1964 to 1966 in the United States Army as a First Lieutenant during the Vietnam War. In the summers of 1974, 1975, and 1976, he attended the LSU School of Banking in Baton Rouge, LA.

Biglane served as Vice-President and then President and General Manager of Biglane Operating Company from 1967 until his passing, and for decades was President of the D. A. Biglane Foundation. He organized First Natchez Bank, which opened on May 14, 1973, in a trailer on Pearl Street in Natchez. In 1985, the bank’s name changed to United Mississippi Bank. Since its founding, Biglane served as President, Chief Executive Officer, and Chairman of the Board, having retired from the board in January 2016. United Mississippi Bank recently celebrated its 50th Anniversary and now has over ten branches throughout the Miss-Lou area.

In 1974, Biglane was appointed to the Mississippi State Banking Board and served as its Chairman from February 1976 until March 1994. In April 2000, he was reappointed to this board and remained a member through 2005.

Biglane served on the Board of Directors of Southwest Security, Inc., since 1981; and most recently was its Vice-Chairman/President. An ardent supporter of Alcorn State University, he was President of the Alcorn State University Foundation and a board member for 42 years, also serving as Vice Chairman of the Alcorn State University Foundation Executive Committee and as a member of the University’s Presidential Search Advisory Committee.

Into his fifth decade of devotion to economic and cultural improvement for Natchez and its neighbors, Biglane, aside from his innovative banking policies, is noted for his founding efforts in establishing the Great Mississippi River Balloon Race; his avid involvement with Natchez Inc.; and his commitment to historic re-appropriation, restoring and re-purposing of historic buildings toward a more vibrant image of Natchez.

In 1986, in conjunction with the Historic Natchez Foundation, Biglane with United Mississippi Bank as its sponsor spearheaded Natchez’s first Mississippi River Balloon Race; and the bank remains a primary sponsor to this day. He also was the first to ever pilot a hot-air balloon in this event. In the initial framework of Natchez Inc., Biglane was the Adams County Board of Supervisors representative from 2000 to 2017, offering his business experience, banking acumen, and notable multi-layered and multi-generational knowledge of the history of properties throughout Natchez.

In moving his first bank from its trailer home, historic re-appropriation was the approach Biglane took in restoring a former bakery building into the downtown branch of United Mississippi Bank, inspiring others to take an interest in revitalizing Natchez’s business district while protecting its historic structures. He took the same approach in the restoration of a number of properties in the Natchez Under-the-Hill Historic District.

In addition, Biglane served on the Mississippi Bankers Association Executive Committee, with the United Way’s Natchez-Adams County Leadership Giving Program, as a member of the Investment Advisory Board to the Board of Trustees of the Public Employee Retirement System, as 1976 “Santa Clause” with the Santa Claus Committee, on the Boy Scout SME Campaign Steering Committee, with the Big-Joe/Allen Brown Golf Tournament, as a member of the Natchez-Adams County Economic and Community Development Authority (Budget and Finance Committee), and as a member of First Baptist Church of Natchez.

Throughout all his civic activities, and all his efforts in promoting the economic, cultural, and historic nature of Natchez, Biglane was an unassuming citizen, as avid about improving Natchez as he was about avoiding personal accolades. Nevertheless, in recognition of his many contributions, he was named 2013 Citizen of the Year by The Natchez Democrat and 2013 Natchezian of the Year by the Natchez-Adams County Chamber of Commerce.

An ardently loyal family man, Biglane was married for 60 years to Nancy Kienzle Biglane, originally of Shawnee Oklahoma, and patriarch of four generations of the Biglane Family Tree, having traveled to research its roots in County Sligo, Ireland. He was an avid pilot, duck hunter, and off-roading enthusiast whose favorite getaway was Durango, Colorado.

Biglane was preceded in death by his father, D. A. Biglane, of Natchez; his mother, Mary Temple Biglane, of Hattiesburg; his stepmother, Marie S. Biglane, of Natchez; and his sister, Charlotte Ann Biglane Nobile, of Natchez.

Most dear to James Biglane was his immediate family to whom he was a devoted husband, and doting father, grandfather, and great-grandfather.

He is survived by his wife; his son, Denton Biglane (Jenna Tilghman Biglane) of Natchez; his granddaughter, Lara Nichole Biglane Lipsey (Ross), of Nashville, TN; his grandson, J. William Biglane (Michelle) of Natchez; his step-grandchildren, Cora Crawford of Boulder, CO, and Lennon Aldridge of Natchez; and his great-grandchildren, Lily Marie Chandler Lipsey and Elijah Kane Lipsey of Nashville, TN; and Harper Willis, Vivian Biglane, and Karalina Nichole Biglane of Natchez. He also is survived by his nephews, Douglas R. Nobile (Caroline) and children of Natchez, Barrett A. Nobile of Boston, MA, and T. Russell Nobile (Emily) and their children.

The funeral service for James Michael Biglane will be Thursday, July 18, 2024, at First Baptist Church in Natchez, at 11 a.m. with Dr. Doug Broome presiding. The church service will be preceded by a visitation from 9 until 11 a.m. and followed by a graveside service at the Natchez City Cemetery.

Pallbearers will be J. William Biglane, Ross Ellis Lipsey, T. Russell Nobile, Wes Middleton, Chuck Rasco, Duffy R. Guillory, Benny Jeansonne, and Lennon Aldridge. Serving as honorary pallbearers will be Frederick N. Biglane, Patrick R. Biglane, Bruce M. Kuehnle, Dan Bland, and Khossrow Diba. Memorials may be sent to First Baptist Church or a charity of choice.

Online condolences may be sent to the family at lairdfh.com.