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George Washington Jones (Texas politician)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

George W. Jones
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Texas's 5th district
In office
March 4, 1879 – March 3, 1883
Preceded byDewitt Clinton Giddings
Succeeded byJames W. Throckmorton
10th Lieutenant Governor of Texas
In office
August 9, 1866 – August 8, 1867
GovernorJames W. Throckmorton
Preceded byFletcher Stockdale
Succeeded byJames W. Flanagan
Bastrop County Attorney
In office
1858–1860
Personal details
BornGeorge Washington Jones
(1828-09-05)September 5, 1828
Marion County, Alabama, U.S.
DiedJuly 11, 1903(1903-07-11) (aged 74)
Bastrop, Texas, U.S.
Resting placeFairview Cemetery
PartyDemocratic (1866)
Independent (1876–84)[a]
Populist (1898)
Spouse
Ledora Ann Mullins
​
(m. 1855)​
ProfessionLawyer
Military service
Allegiance Confederate States
Branch/service Confederate States Army
Robert T. Allen’s
Seventeenth Texas Infantry
Rank Colonel

George Washington Jones (September 5, 1828 – July 11, 1903) was an American lawyer and politician who served as the 10th lieutenant governor of Texas and was a Greenback member of the United States House of Representatives from 1879 to 1883.

Early life

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George Washington Jones was born to William Dandridge Claiborne Jones and Rachel Burleson Jones on September 5, 1828, in Marion County, Alabama.[1] He moved with his parents to Tipton County, Tennessee, and then to Bastrop, Texas. Jones studied law, was admitted to the bar in 1851, and commenced practice in Bastrop.

He owned slaves.[2]

Early elected office

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He narrowly lost a seat for the state legislature in 1856.[3]

From 1858 until 1860, he served as Bastrop county attorney.[4]

Civil War

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Although a supporter of the Union, Jones served in the Confederate States Army, eventually attaining the rank of colonel as commander of the 17th Texas Infantry Regiment.[5]

Public service

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He was a delegate to the Texas state constitutional convention in 1866. Jones was elected lieutenant governor in 1866, with James W. Throckmorton as governor. Both Jones and Throckmorton were removed from office in 1867 by General Philip Henry Sheridan for being obstructions to Reconstruction.[3]

Congress

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Jones ran an unsuccessful campaign for congress in 1876, but in 1878, Jones was elected as United States Congressman for the Texas 5th Congressional District. He was reelected in 1880 and served from March 4, 1879, to March 3, 1883. He was not a candidate for re-election in 1882. Instead opting to run an independent campaign for governor. His campaign was backed by both the Greenback and Republican parties, but he lost to former Texas Supreme Court Justice John Ireland. Jones ran against Ireland again in 1884, but saw his support fall as this time he did not have the backing of the Republican party.[3]

Jones left politics until he attempted to run for congress as a member of the Populist Party in 1898, but he was again unsuccessful.[3]

Personal life and death

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On August 1, 1855, he married Ledora Ann Mullins in Bastrop.

Jones died on July 11, 1903. Ledora Jones died on August 31, 1903. They are both interred at Fairview Cemetery in Bastrop.[3]

Notes

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  1. ↑ Jones had support from the Greenback and Republican parties for his bids for Congress and Governor.

References

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  1. ↑ George Washington Jones genealogy. LDS Compact Disc #10 Pin #122475: LDS Family Search.org.{{cite AV media}}: CS1 maint: location (link)
  2. ↑ "Congress slaveowners", The Washington Post, 2022-01-10, retrieved 2022-07-08
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 Cutrer, Thomas W. (1952). "George Washington Jones: A Political Biography". Texas State Historical Association. Retrieved June 8, 2026.
  4. ↑ Guttery, Ben (2008). Representing Texas: a Comprehensive History of U.S. and Confederate Senators and Representatives from Texas. BookSurge Publishing. p. 89. ISBN 978-1-4196-7884-4.
  5. ↑ "The 17th Texas Volunteer Infantry Regiment". J.P. Blessington. Retrieved 2 July 2010.
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