Daniel Jackson Cornelius Sr.

Daniel Jackson Cornelius Sr. (Jack), age 95 of Birmingham, Alabama, peacefully passed away on August 29, 2025. He was born on July 31, 1930, in Berry, Alabama, and he was a son of Thomas Hall Cornelius and Carmen Kimbrell Cornelius.

Jack was preceded in death by his wife Betty Cornelius, his sister Wanda C. Willis and her husband John D. Willis, whom he loved like a brother, his brother William Thomas Cornelius, and his twin infant daughters.

He is survived by his brother Miles Parker Cornelius, children (from previous marriage to Carrie Cornelius) Jack Cornelius Jr., Carol Cornelius Purgahn (Chad), and Mike Cornelius, grandchildren Michael Scott (Natosha), Heath Purgahn (Melissa), Danielle Scott, Anna Roberts (Nate), Jordan Crane (Allen), and great-grandchildren Madilyn Roberts, Holland Platts, Haddon Purgahn, Lyla Purgahn, Brantley Purgahn, Hallie Scott, Baker Crane, Tilly Roberts, and Evangeline Scott, and a host of nieces and nephews.

Jack served in the Korean War as a member of the Army, and he was a respected and decorated car salesman in the Birmingham area for 58 years. He loved his family, spending time in the country, John Deere tractors, and listening to country music.

The family would like to thank the TLC Nursing Facility in Oneonta for the excellent care and unwavering love they gave and showed to their Daddy (or Pops, as he was referred to by them). They were a Godsend at a very difficult time.

A visitation for Jack will be held Thursday, September 4, 2025, from 6:00 PM to 8:00 PM at Ridout’s Gardendale Chapel, 2029 Decatur Highway, Gardendale, AL 35071. A graveside service will occur Friday, September 5, 2025, from 11:00 AM to 11:30 AM at Gibson Hill Cemetery, Berry, AL 35546.