 His father, William Jackson Edwards Jr. (1908-1996), had grown up in Decatur, Alabama and worked for the Rural Electrification Administration at various jobs and receiving promotions until he headed the engineering department.Young Jack also knew and shared his formal name with his long-lived grandfather, William Jackson Edwards (1872-1961).He had a sister, Julia Caroline Edwards Brock, and grew up in Homewood, Alabama during the Great Depression.