from History of Schuyler County, Illinois

George W. Jones

It is significant of the energy and judgment of Mr. Jones that he has risen to a position of independence without the prestige of capital or influence to aid him in starting.  When he became a land-holder in Schuyler County, he acquired the title to eighty acres on Section 34, Oakland Township, but he lacked $200 of having sufficient money to pay for the land at the time of its purchase.  A part of the tract was not cleared and he at once began to remove the heavy timber, thus placing the land in condition for cultivation.  The first indebtedness was soon paid.  Then he purchased additional land, and from time to time he acquired other tracts until now he owns 490 acres in one body in Oakland Township, this representing the energy and wise management of his active years.

The record of the Jones family, which appears in the sketch of Edward J. Jones on another page, shows that they came from Maryland, the grandfather, Edward J., and the father, James T., having both been natives of Washington County, Pennsylvania, from which the latter migrated to Illinois in an early day and settled in Schuyler County.  Among the children born of his marriage to Miss Gorsuch was George W., whose birth occurred August 16, 1853, on the farm in Rushville Township, now owned by F. P. Ritchey.  During boyhood he accompanied the family to Oakland Township, where he attended school and learned the rudiments of agriculture, to which his life has been devoted.  After the death of his father in 1872, he left the home roof and began working for others, receiving $18 per month, which was at that time the very highest wages paid to farm hands.

The marriage of George W. Jones and Phoebe Jane Rose was solemnized March 6, 1878.  Mrs. Jones was born in Chelsea, Washtenaw County, Michigan, October 22, 1854, being a daughter of Warren P. and Mary (DePeuw) Rose.  The family came to Illinois about 1857 and settled in Schuyler County, where Mr. Rose cleared a tract of land in Rushville Township and improved a good farm.  After the death of his wife in 1893, he removed to Iowa, dying there in 1896.  All of his seven children survive him, namely:  Hardin C., of Ray, Illinois; Henry B., a farmer in Littleton Township; Mrs. Jones; Richard, of Beardstown, Illinois; Edna, wife of Charles E. Chipman, of Davenport, Thayer County, Nebraska; Mira, wife of Gilbert McMillen; and Annie E., Mrs. Samuel E. Simpson, of Oakland Township.  The children of Mr. and Mrs. Jones are as follows:  Mary F., who was born December 1, 1878, and died March 1, 1907; David P., born August 15, 1880; Edna V., who was born November 20, 1882, and is now Mrs. U. Sowers, of Oakland Township; Annie E., who was born March 26, 1885, and married Lewis Heaton, of Vermont, Illinois; Maude E., born May 29, 1888; George E. and James E. (twins) born March 24, 1891; Carrie, June 10, 1893; and Ura Glenn, October 26, 1896.  In working to improve his farm Mr. Jones had the assistance of his children until they, one by one, started out to earn their own way in the world, but the younger still remain to bless the home with their cheerful presence and brighten the lives of their parents with their sympathy and ready aid.  Politically Mr. Jones has always been a staunch Democrat and on that ticket, has been elected to various local offices; the Christian Church, of which he is an earnest member, has had the benefit of his generous contributions, as well as the co-operation and aid of his family.