Charles William JONES, Congress, FL (1834-1897)

JONES, Charles William, a Senator from Florida; born in Balbriggan, Ireland, on December 24, 1834; immigrated to the United States in 1844 with his mother and settled in New York City, where he attended the public schools; moved to Louisiana in 1848 and later to Mississippi; moved to Santa Rosa County, Fla., in 1854; worked as a carpenter and studied law at night; admitted to the bar in 1857 and commenced practice in Pensacola, Fla.; unsuccessful Democratic candidate for election in 1872 to the Forty-third Congress; member, State house of representatives 1874; elected as a Democrat to the United States Senate in 1875; reelected in 1881 and served from March 4, 1875, to March 3, 1887; was not a candidate for reelection; chairman, Committee on Public Buildings and Grounds (Forty-sixth Congress), Committee on Revolutionary Claims (Forty-eighth and Forty-ninth Congresses); moved to Detroit, Mich., in 1885 and was absent from the Senate for nearly two years; died at St. Joseph’s Retreat, an asylum for the insane, Dearborn, Mich., October 11, 1897; interment in St. Michael’s Cemetery, Pensacola, Fla.

Bibliography

Etemadi, Judy. “A Love-Mad Man: Senator Charles W. Jones of Florida.” Florida Historical Quarterly 56 (October 1977): 123-37.

Source: Biographical Directory of the United States Congress, 1771-Present