Roll of Honor
Incident
Deputy Sheriff Jack Lee was killed after falling into a mine shaft.
He was on his horse looking for a suspect in the dark, using a lantern. He noticed what appeared to be a large hole. He tied his horse to a tree and walked to the edge of the shaft. He slipped and fell approximately 150 feet to his death. The next morning, several workers noticed his horse tied to the tree and started to search for him. They found his body at the bottom of the shaft.
Deputy Lee was survived by his wife and eight daughters.
Survivors
Deputy Lee was survived by his wife and eight daughters.
In Our Keeping
- Permanent identifier
BO-US-TN-2E3ACC45- Stewardship
- Maintained by NeuraWeb Global Inc.
- Added to badge.nw
- August 2, 2026
- Last updated
- August 2, 2026
Honored here by 1 sentinel - 1 tribute.
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Tributes
127 years is a long time for a name to go unread. Not today.
Deputy Sheriff Lee served with the Putnam County Sheriff's Department.
Thank you for your service to the Cookeville community. Gone but never to be forgotten.
— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993
Agency
Service Record
Incident Details
Deputy Sheriff James Jackson Lee is one of 10,095 officers lost to accidents in the line of duty across the full record of this memorial — 31% of all 32,587 officers honored here.
In TN, 191 of 769 officers were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 24.8% of this state's fallen. That is 6.2 percentage points below the national rate of 31%.
At Putnam County Sheriff's Department, 2 of 4 officers on record were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 50% of this agency's fallen.
National Cause Distribution
How Accident compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. James Jackson Lee's cause is highlighted.
How James Jackson Lee Compares
When Accident Deaths Occur
Monthly distribution of Accident deaths across the full memorial record. James Jackson Lee is highlighted in Aug.
Others Who Wore This Badge
3 officers from Putnam County Sheriff's Department are honored on badge.nw.
