52 Ancestors 2015 Edition: #36 William Henry Jones --Postmaster of Morehead City

Amy Johnson Crow, the author of the blog No Story Too Small, is the host of the 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks Blog Prompt series. If you are not familiar with the project please click on the following link:   Announcing 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks: 2015 Edition.


Week 36 (September 3-9) – Working for a Living: September 7 is Labor Day in the United States. Write about an ancestor and his or her occupation.

This week's ancestor is William Henry Jones, my maternal 2nd great grand uncle. He was a brother of my 2nd great grandfather Alexander Hamilton Jones and resided in Morehead City, NC.

From my Jones family line, I've found quite a few ambitious individuals. William most definitely was one of them. An interesting thing I learned about William Henry is that he was at one time the postmaster of Morehead City. That's right, an African American postmaster in North Carolina and before 1900!

Source Information Ancestry.com. U.S., Appointments of U. S. Postmasters, 1832-1971 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2010.  Original data: Record of Appointment of Postmasters, 1832-1971. NARA Microfilm Publication, M841, 145 rolls. Records of the Post Office Department, Record Group Number 28. Washington, D.C.: National Archives.

Here's a closeup of the above entry:

Source Information Ancestry.com. U.S., Appointments of U. S. Postmasters, 1832-1971 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2010.  Original data: Record of Appointment of Postmasters, 1832-1971. NARA Microfilm Publication, M841, 145 rolls. Records of the Post Office Department, Record Group Number 28. Washington, D.C.: National Archives.

This is an excerpt from a book called Morehead City Centennial Jubilee 1857--1957

William H. Jones, colored, was postmaster from Frebruary 15, 1890 until June 15 1893, in a small wooden building in the 900 block on Arendell Street. 

Sanborn Insurance Map of  Morehead City, Carteret Co., N.C., Sep. 1893, Published by Sanborn Map Company

This is a portion of Sanborn Insurance Map of Morehead City from 1893 that shows the location of the post office. 

The post office was an integral part of the community. It was where people received letters, news and information.  To learn more about what it was like to be a postmaster during this time period, I suggest checking out this article that was written by Claire Prechtel-Kluskens called, The Nineteenth-Century Postmaster and His Duties. Here's the link:  https://twelvekey.files.wordpress.com/2014/10/ngsmagazine2007-01.pdf

William Henry Jones was born on or around July 5, 1854 in Onslow County, NC to Cesar Jones and Mary H Mitchell Jones. He settled in Morehead City, NC along with the rest of his family after the Civil War. He married Emma Shepard on November 16, 1881 and together they had eleven children, nine of which were still living as of 1910. His occupation that year was listed as "keeper" of a "restaurant."

Source Information Ancestry.com. 1910 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2006.Original data: Source Citation Year: 1910; Census Place: Morehead, Carteret, North Carolina; Roll: T624_1095; Page: 21B; Enumeration District: 0002; FHL microfilm: 1375108

Children of William Henry Jones and Emma Shepard Jones I've been able to identify:

Fred Douglas Jones (b. Aug 13, 1883 -- d. Feb 17, 1915)
William Thomas Jones (b. Feb 14, 1886 -- d. Dec. 9, 1918)
Oscar Dunn Jones (b. Feb. 29, 1888 -- d. Jul 29, 1943)
Henry C Jones (b. Feb 10, 1892 --Jan 1966)
Nicholas Jones (b. 1894 -- ?)
Willis Harvey Jones (b. Feb 6, 1894--Nov 25, 1967)
James Edward Jones (b. Jan 8, 1895-- Jan 1972)
Elizabeth B Jones (b. Jun 5, 1897 -- d. Jan 30, 1983)
George White Jones (b. Apr 28 1899 -- Sep 28, 1927)
Caesar N Jones (b. Jun 6, 1901 -- Jun 1966)

After becoming the postmaster of Morehead City,William Henry Jones became ill with consumption. His failing health was mentioned in a newspaper article from 1895 that I just recently came across. This news piece provides details regarding an insurance fraud case that was tried in Morehead City. Due to the length of the article, I will share it via a series of upcoming posts.

On to Prompt 37! Have to get caught up.