Daniel Webster Jones (December 15, 1839December 25, 1918) was the 19th Governor of the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sove ...

Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the South Central United States. It is bordered by Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, and Texas and Oklahoma to the west. Its name is from the O ...

Biography

Jones was born in

Bowie County, Texas Bowie County ( ) is a county in the U.S. state of Texas. Its legal county seat is Boston, though its courthouse is located in New Boston. As of the 2020 census, the population was 92,893. Bowie County is part of the Texarkana metropolitan s ...

to Isaac N. Jones, a doctor and member of the

Congress of the Republic of Texas : ''For the current Texas legislative body, see Texas Legislature.'' The Congress of the Republic of Texas was the national legislature of the Republic of Texas established by the Constitution of the Republic of Texas in 1836. It was a bicameral ...

, and Elizabeth W. Littlejohn. When Jones was a year old, his family moved to

Washington, Arkansas Washington is a city in Ozan Township, Hempstead County, Arkansas, United States. The population was 180 at the 2010 census, up from 148 in 2000. It is part of the Hope Micropolitan Statistical Area. The city is home to Historic Washington S ...

( Hempstead County where they owned a large plantation in nearby Lafayette County; Jones attended Washington Academy there and later studied law. During his childhood, James Black, creator of the famous Bowie knife, lived with the Jones family before moving to

. Black attempted to show Daniel his metallurgical secret in 1870, the only person known to have knowledge of Black's secret.

Career

When the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states ...

broke out, Jones enlisted in the

Confederate States Army The Confederate States Army, also called the Confederate Army or the Southern Army, was the military land force of the Confederate States of America (commonly referred to as the Confederacy) during the American Civil War (1861–1865), fighting ...

, was wounded in battle, and was captured and held as a

prisoner of war A prisoner of war (POW) is a person who is held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold prisoners of w ...

. His highest rank was of

Colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge o ...

of the

20th Arkansas Infantry Regiment The 20th Arkansas Infantry (1861–1865) was a Confederate Army infantry regiment during the American Civil War. The unit was also known as the 22nd Arkansas Infantry. When the unit was reorganized following its capture at the Siege of Vicksburg, ...

. In 1874, Jones was elected as prosecuting attorney of the Ninth Judicial District. He served as a presidential elector in 1876 and 1880. He was elected to the post of Attorney General of Arkansas in 1884 and 1886. In 1890, he served a term in the Arkansas House of Representatives. Jones was elected Governor of Arkansas in 1896, and was reelected in 1898. During his term appropriations were made for the new state capitol building, and a law ordering uniform textbooks in schools was passed. Jones resumed his law practice after leaving office. He was elected to the House of Representatives again in 1914. After his death his daughter inherited all his belongings. She then sold everything and gained over 2.6 million dollars. She said that because she never got to see her father that his belongings were worthless to her. Just as her father thought of her.

Death

Jones died from pneumonia in

Little Rock, Arkansas ( The "Little Rock") , government_type = Council-manager , leader_title = Mayor , leader_name = Frank Scott Jr. , leader_party = D , leader_title2 = Council , leader_name2 ...

on December 25, 1918. He was buried with a

uniform with an attached American flag at the Oakland Cemetery in Little Rock.

References

External links

* * Encyclopedia of Arkansas History & Culture entry
Daniel Webster Jones

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jones, Daniel W. Democratic Party governors of Arkansas Democratic Party members of the Arkansas House of Representatives Confederate States Army officers 1839 births 1918 deaths People from Bowie County, Texas People of Arkansas in the American Civil War American Civil War prisoners of war 19th-century American politicians Military personnel from Texas

Biography

Career

Death

See also

References

External links