James "Jimmy" Andrew Walsh Jr., 85, of Charlestown, Rhode Island passed away on April 9, 2024 in Palm City, Florida. Jimmy was a sharp-witted renegade soul known for his movie star looks, wisdom, cleverness and swamp Yankee spirit. Jimmy was an adventurous and artistic man who had a lifelong passion for boating and deep-sea fishing.

Born on September 6, 1938 in Charlestown, Rhode Island, Jimmy attended Charlestown Grammar School and later graduated with honors from the La Salle Military Academy. He served honorably in the Coast Guard, where he demonstrated his genuine dedication to serving his country.

A gentleman of tremendous character, Jimmy had a diverse and exciting career. He was the owner of Walsh Auto Body in Wakefield, Rhode Island, and a respected boat captain who navigated both the Atlantic and the Pacific Oceans.

Jimmy is lovingly remembered for his honest and charitable nature. As a farm boy growing up in the aftermath of the Great Hurricane of 1938 collecting meteorites in the fields along Rhode Island’s South County seashore, Jimmy was lauded multiple times (twice by the governor) for his heroic rescues of stranded boaters in the treacherous waters of the Charlestown Breachway. Legend has it, one of those he rescued was the legendary film actor James Cagney.

Cagney wasn’t Jimmy’s first brush with the legendary. As the grandson of America’s original Irish gangster, the colorful Danny L. Walsh, Jimmy often told fantastic tales about the famous (and the infamous) who had visited the magnificent Tudor-style manor house where he grew up.

He is survived by his loving, devoted wife, Carolyn Elena Walsh, his two sons, James Andrew Walsh III and John Patrick Walsh, and his four grandchildren, Katherine, Jacqueline, Grace, and Patrick Walsh. He was preceded in death by his father, James Andrew Walsh Jr., his mother, Dorothea Walsh, and his sister, Patricia Toto.

Send to someone

Share this obituary with others

https://everloved.com/life-of/james-walsh-jr/obituary/

Copy