Mary Nell Wilson Gilmer, 91, passed away peacefully at her home in Elba on Tuesday morning,  April 14, 2026.
A native of Coffee County, she was born Nov. 25, 1934. She was the eldest of seven children of Lawrence and Ruth Smith Wilson of the Curtis community, between Elba and Opp.
Survivors include her husband, James Emory Gilmer Sr. Elba, AL; sons Ronald Thomas Gilmer of  Austin, Texas, and his wife, Cindy Gilmer, and William Lawrence "Bill" Gilmer of Florence, S.C. Granddaughters; Elizabeth Gilmer Tomberlin, Allison Gilmer, Nerissa (Mark) Vahle, Katie Adelaide Gilmer, Caroline Gilmer (Jacob) Marke and Great Granddaughter, Ella Tomberlin, Great Grandson Luke Tomberlin, Great Grandson, Jack Vahle and Great Granddaughter AnnaKate Vahle.  She was predeceased by sons John Randall Gilmer and James Emory Gilmer Jr. She was also predeceased by the late Barbara Land, wife of son Bill Gilmer.
She attended Curtis Junior High School for the first through ninth grades. She was a graduate of Elba High School, where she played in the band and was 1952 senior class valedictorian. She attended the former Troy State Teachers College and later earned a bachelor's degree in home economics from East Texas State University in Commerce, Texas, in 1976.
While at Troy  she married James Emory Gilmer of Harrisburg, N.C., Oct. 3, 1953. He was in the Army and the couple went to Germany when he received  military orders. He later was stationed in Kansas.
The family moved to Atlanta, Ga., after Mr. Gilmer's Army discharge in 1957. He went to college as they reared their sons.
The family moved several places during Mr. Gilmer's career in the textile manufacturing industry. They lived in Texas, Minnesota, North Carolina,  Alabama, South Carolina and Georgia. Mrs. Gilmer worked in part-time jobs during the moves and spent 52 years taking care of their mentally handicapped son, James, who lived at home until his death in 2009.
In 1996, after the couple retired, they moved  to the Wilson family farm. They planted a tree farm and in 2003 they sold the farm and moved into Elba. They became active in the Elba Methodist Church and Nell served as church historian.
Mrs. Gilmer loved the people and history of Coffee County and worked on numerous community projects for historic preservation and improvements.
One favorite project was helping the Elba History Committee publish a pictorial historical book of the town of Elba in 2013. She was a member of the John Coffee Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution.
Other survivors include a brother, Perry Wilson (Carol) of Elba; sisters Christine Knudson (Al) of Nanticoke, Md.; Judy Brewer of Sarasota, Fl.; Alice Thrasher (Jerry) of Charlotte, N.C., and Carolyn Johnson (Dave ) of Black Mountain, N.C. She was  predeceased by a sister, Susan Fletcher, who lived in Greensboro, N.C., and brothers-in-law Robert Fletcher and Guy Brewer.

A Celebration of Life service will be held for Mrs. Gilmer on Monday, April 20, 2026, at 10:00 AM at Hayes Funeral Home Chapel with burial following in the New Ebenezer Cemetery, Curtis community. The Gilmer family will receive friends from 9:00 until 10:00 AM Monday at Hayes Funeral Home Chapel. In lieu of flowers contributions may be made to Elba Methodist Church, 503 Davis Street Elba, AL 36323