It is native to interior western North America, in the U.S. states of Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah, and Wyoming, growing in mountains at 1600–3000 m altitude.

The genus Jamesia was described by John Torrey and Asa Gray in 1840.

[1] The following species are accepted:[1][3] It is a shrub growing to 1–2 m tall and to 3 m or more broad, with opposite simple leaves 3–7 cm long and 2–5 cm broad, with a serrated margin and a crinkled surface.

The fruit is a dry capsule with numerous small seeds.

The genus is named in honor of Edwin James, the botanist on Stephen Long's expedition in 1820 that explored the territory between the Platte and Arkansas Rivers.