Published in Star-Ledger on June 25, 2017
James Vail Jr.
James Terry Vail Jr. Morristown dermatologist and specialty
chief at area hospitals, led N.J. professional organization.
Jim was born and raised in Washington, D.C., where he
attended public schools, graduating from Woodrow Wilson
High School in 1951.
His father was a letter engraver at the U.S. Bureau of
Engraving and Printing, and his mother was a school
teacher. Following that, he completed undergraduate studies and medical school at
Georgetown University, interned in the U.S. Army, and served as a battalion surgeon in
Germany from 1960 to 1963. After a dermatology residency at Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit,
Mich., he came to New Jersey with the Summit Medical Group, and practiced dermatology in
Morristown, N.J., from 1967 to 2008. He was the past chief of dermatology at Overlook and
Morristown medical centers, past president of the New Jersey Dermatological Society, and
past president and a founding member of the Richard L. Sutton Dermatological Society. He
was a fellow of the American Academy of Dermatology and a member of the Morris County
Medical Society, the New Jersey Medical Society, and the American Medical Association. He
was also a recipient of the Golden Merit Award from the Medical Society of New Jersey.
Beyond dermatology and family, his interests included reading, classical music, fly-fishing,
golf, and travel. He particularly loved fishing trips to Montana with friends and family.
He was a member of Corpus Christi Parish in Chatham, N.J., and was also a member of
Madison Golf Club.
He is survived by his beloved wife of 58 years, Dot; his son, Peter, of Manhattan, N.Y., and his
wife, Julia Bates, and their sons, William and James; his daughter, Elizabeth, of Madison,
Ala., her husband, Lamar, and her children, Jessica, Shannon, Devon, and Alexander; and his
son, Scott, of Morristown, and his wife, Suzanne, and their children, Sean, Sophia, and
Seamus.
A visitation will be held on Monday, June 26, 2017, from 2 to 4 and 6 to 8 p.m., at Wm. A.
Bradley and Son Funeral Home, 345 Main St., Chatham, N.J. 07928.
A Mass of Christian Burial will be held at 11:15 a.m. on Tuesday, June 27, 2017, at Corpus
Christi Church, 234 Southern Blvd., Chatham.
Cremation will be private.
Memorial donations may be made either to Doctors Without Borders, USA, 333 7th Ave.,
New York, N.Y. 10001-5004, or the THANC Foundation, 5 Union Square E No. 5b, New York,
N.Y. 10003. THANC is dedicated to research and treatment for head and neck cancer.
.