J. H. Jones (Mississippi politician)

James Henry Jones was born on October 9, 1840, in Autauga County, Alabama.[1] He was of French Huguenot ancestry.[1] He was the son of John Edmund Jones, a lawyer and circuit court judge in Alabama, and his wife Mary (Mellard) Jones.[1] Jones attended the University of Mississippi, graduating with a B. A. in 1858.[1] After studying law, Jones moved to Texas and was admitted to the bar in 1859.[1][2] After the American Civil War began in 1861, he returned to Mississippi and enlisted as a private in the Confederate States Army.[1][2] In the winter of 1861, Jones was promoted to the rank of lieutenant.[2][1] In April 1862, Jones returned to Wilkinson County, Mississippi, where he then raised what would become Company D of the 38th Mississippi Infantry.[2][1] While fighting in the war, Jones was seriously wounded at the Siege of Vicksburg and then captured at the Battle of Tupelo.[1] After returning from the war, Jones settled in Woodville, Mississippi, where he continued practicing law.[2][1]

Jones was elected to represent Wilkinson County as a Democrat in the Mississippi House of Representatives, and served in the 1886 and 1888 sessions.[1][3][4] In 1890, Jones represented the 37th District in the Mississippi State Senate.[1][5] He was also a delegate to the state's 1890 Constitutional Convention.[1][2] Jones was re-elected to the Senate and served in that term from 1892 to 1896.[1] In November 1895, Jones was elected to the office of Lieutenant Governor of Mississippi.[6][1][2] He served for one term that lasted from January 1896 to January 1900.[7] After his term ended, he retired from politics.[2]

Jones was a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South.[1] He was also a member of the Freemasons and of the United Confederate Veterans.[1] He married Helen M. Davis, a resident of Wilkinson County, in 1858.[1][2] They had two children: Mary A., who died aged 14; and William Edmund, who died aged 19.[1] Jones died on December 17, 1911, at his home in Woodville, Mississippi.[2]