John Matthew Jones (7 October 18287 October 1888) was a British lawyer and naturalist.

Early life

John Matthew Jones was born in Montgomery,

Montgomeryshire Montgomeryshire ( ) was Historic counties of Wales, one of the thirteen counties of Wales that existed from 1536 until their abolishment in 1974. It was named after its county town, Montgomery, Powys, Montgomery, which in turn was named after ...

Wales Wales ( ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by the Irish Sea to the north and west, England to the England–Wales border, east, the Bristol Channel to the south, and the Celtic ...

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

on 7 October 1828. His father was

Rear Admiral Rear admiral is a flag officer rank used by English-speaking navies. In most European navies, the equivalent rank is called counter admiral. Rear admiral is usually immediately senior to commodore and immediately below vice admiral. It is ...

Sir Charles Thomas Jones of Fronfraith.

Career

In October 1852, J.M. Jones was appointed to the Royal Montgomeryshire Militia as an

ensign Ensign most often refers to: * Ensign (flag), a flag flown on a vessel to indicate nationality * Ensign (rank), a navy (and former army) officer rank Ensign or The Ensign may also refer to: Places * Ensign, Alberta, Alberta, Canada * Ensign, Ka ...

under Sir John Conroy, 1st Baronet. Shortly after, he was called to the bar at

Middle Temple The Honourable Society of the Middle Temple, commonly known simply as Middle Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court entitled to Call to the bar, call their members to the English Bar as barristers, the others being the Inner Temple (with whi ...

in London as a

barrister-at-law A barrister is a type of lawyer in common law jurisdictions. Barristers mostly specialise in courtroom advocacy and litigation. Their tasks include arguing cases in courts and tribunals, drafting legal pleadings, researching the law and giv ...

on 6 June 1853. He moved to

America The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

by 1854 before continuing to

Bermuda Bermuda is a British Overseas Territories, British Overseas Territory in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean. The closest land outside the territory is in the American state of North Carolina, about to the west-northwest. Bermuda is an ...

and

Nova Scotia Nova Scotia is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada, located on its east coast. It is one of the three Maritime Canada, Maritime provinces and Population of Canada by province and territory, most populous province in Atlan ...

, where he investigated native plant life and fish species. John Matthew Jones became a Fellow of the

Linnean Society of London The Linnean Society of London is a learned society dedicated to the study and dissemination of information concerning natural history, evolution, and Taxonomy (biology), taxonomy. It possesses several important biological specimen, manuscript a ...

in 1859. He was also a

Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada Fellowship of the Royal Society of Canada (FRSC) is an award granted to individuals that the Royal Society of Canada judges to have "made remarkable contributions in the arts, the humanities and the sciences, as well as in Canadian public life" ...

. Jones authored numerous scientific articles and publications on

natural history Natural history is a domain of inquiry involving organisms, including animals, fungi, and plants, in their natural environment, leaning more towards observational than experimental methods of study. A person who studies natural history is cal ...

. In 1859, he published a volume of 200 pages under the title "The Naturalist in Bermuda: A Sketch of the Geology, Zoology, and Botany of That Remarkable Group of Islands, Together with Meteorological Observations" in

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. The book explored the land animals and plants of

. He was assisted with the work by Maj. John Walter Wedderburn and John L. Hurdis of

Southampton Southampton is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Hampshire, England. It is located approximately southwest of London, west of Portsmouth, and southeast of Salisbury. Southampton had a population of 253, ...

. Collecting in Bermuda for several winters from 1859 to 1876, Jones became the top authority on its natural history. In the early 1860s, he published "Contributions to the Natural History of the Bermudas," edited by

George Brown Goode George Brown Goode (February 13, 1851 – September 6, 1896), was an American ichthyologist and museum administrator. Early life and family George Brown Goode was born February 13, 1851, in New Albany, Indiana, to Francis Collier Goode and Sarah ...

. He and Goode worked to compile complete faunal and floral lists to guide future research in the area. On 5 January 1863, he was admitted to the

Nova Scotian Institute of Natural Science The Nova Scotian Institute of Science (NSIS) is a membership organization promoting science in Nova Scotia. It was founded in 1862 as a direct descendant of the Halifax Mechanics' Institute Halifax Mechanics' Institute was an educational institu ...

. Elected president of the Nova Scotian Institute of Natural Science on 9 October 1867, he succeeded

Philip Carteret Hill Philip Carteret Hill (August 13, 1821 – September 15, 1894) was a Nova Scotia politician. Born in Halifax (former city), Halifax, he was mayor of Halifax from 1861 to 1864 before entering provincial politics as a supporter of Canadian Conf ...

. Jones worked alongside vice presidents Dr. John Bernard Gilpin and J.R. DeWolfe and treasurer W.C. Silver. On 4 November 1867, he presented his paper, "Contributions to the Natural History of the Bermudas—Corals and Their Allies." The 1869 Naturalists' Directory by

Frederic Ward Putnam Frederic Ward Putnam (April 16, 1839 – August 14, 1915) was an American anthropologist and biologist. Biography Putnam was born and raised in Salem, Massachusetts, the son of Ebenezer (1797–1876) and Elizabeth (Appleton) Putnam. After leaving ...

included Jones in both the fish and insects categories. His work titled "Contributions to the Natural History of Nova Scotia" was published in 1870. Four years later, he released "On the Vegetation of the Bermudas." He wrote "The Visitor's Guide to Bermuda with a Sketch of Its Natural History" around 1876. Jones's work titled "List of the Fishes of Nova Scotia" was published in 1879.

Personal life

In Halifax, Jones married Mary Barr Myers on 23 October 1860. His wife was the youngest daughter of Col. W.J. Myers.Annual Register. (1861). United Kingdom: (n.p.).

Death

John Matthew Jones died at 60 years old on 7 October 1888 in Halifax,

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

Works

*The Naturalist in Bermuda: A Sketch of the Geology, Zoology, and Botany of That Remarkable Group of Islands, Together with Meteorological Observations (1859) *Contributions to the Ichthyology of Nova Scotia (1863) *Contributions to the Natural History of the Bermudas (1863–67) *Contributions to the Natural History of Nova Scotia (1865–67) *On the Geological Features of the Bermudas (1865) *On some of the Rarer Birds of Nova Scotia (1868) *Nova Scotia Coleoptera (1869) *Notes on the Marine Zoology of Nova Scotia (1870) *Review of Nova Scotian Diurnal Lepidoptera (1870–71) *On the Vegetation of the Bermudas (1874) *The Visitor's Guide to Bermuda with a Sketch of Its Natural History (1876) *Mollusca of Nova Scotia (1877)Ganong, W. F. (1889). Economic Mollusca of Acadia. Canada: Barnes. *List of the Fishes of Nova Scotia (1879) *The Mammals of Bermuda (1884)Report of the Assistant Director and of the Curators of the U.S. National Museum. (1885). United States: U.S. Government Printing Office.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jones, John Matthew 1828 births 1881 deaths Canadian naturalists British writers British naturalists Montgomeryshire Militia officers Members of the Middle Temple Fellows of the Linnean Society of London Fellows of the Royal Society of Canada