Jones, Jonas

• DICTIONARY OF CANADIAN BIOGRAPHY ARTICLE: Robert L. Fraser, “JONES, JONAS,” in Dictionary of Canadian Biography, vol. 7, University of Toronto/Université Laval, 2003–. https://www.biographi.ca/en/bio/jones_jonas_7E.html
• DCB profile notes:
  • Lawyer, militia officer, politician, judge, office holder, farmer, businessman, and jp; b. 19 May 1791 in Augusta Township (Ont.), third son of Ephraim Jones and Charlotte Coursol (Coursolles); m. 10 Aug. 1817 Mary Elizabeth Ford in York (Toronto), and they had 11 sons (3 of whom died in infancy) and 3 daughters; d. 30 July 1848 in Toronto.
  • Jonas Jones was raised in an atmosphere of privilege. His father was a loyalist who had risen in wealth and influence after settling in Augusta Township.
  • Jones took easily to politics. His family, along with the Sherwoods and the Buells, dominated Brockville, the district town. With his strong regional base he was elected in 1816 in the riding of Grenville to the seventh parliament (1817–20), and was re-elected in 1820 to the eighth (1821–24) and in 1824 to the ninth (1825–28).
  • When the opportunity arose to leave politics, his law practice, and Brockville, Jones seized it. On 23 March 1837 Lieutenant Governor Sir Francis Bond Head appointed him and McLean to fill two openings on the Court of King’s Bench. Jones quickly resigned his other judgeships.
  • Politically, Jones got on well with Head, who later described him as “the most calm fearless man it had ever been my fortune to be acquainted with,” but his influence on the administration was negligible, even though reform-oriented men such as James Buchanan, the British consul in New York, considered him one of the major figures in the “family compact.”
• Son of Proven United Empire Loyalist listed in Loyalist Directory: https://uelac.ca/loyalist-directory/detail/?wpda_search_column_id=4289
• Find a GRAVE: https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/141515853/jonas-jones