Jones, A. Quinn

A. Quinn Jones was born in Quincy in Gadsden County, Florida, on March 3, 1893. He attended elementary school in Quincy, and moved to Tallahassee to continue his education at Florida A&M College. Jones completed high school and college in seven years at Florida A&M, earning a Bachelor of Science degree in 1915. After graduation, he was encouraged by Florida A&M President Nathan Young, to accept a teaching position at the Sawdust School, a one-room school near Quincy. Between 1916 and 1921, Jones accepted other teaching positions in Marianna and Pensacola. In 1917, Jones married a Pensacola teacher, Agnes M. Smith, and over the next seven years they had four children, Vera, Lydia, Oliver, and A. Quinn Jones, Jr. His wife Agnes Jones passed away in 1928. He married his second wife, Frederica "Freddie" Jones, in 1937.

Pursuing a career in education, Jones earned a Master's in Arts degree in 1920 from Oskaloosa College in Iowa. In 1921, again with the encouragement of President Young, he moved to Gainesville to take the position of principal at Union Academy. The Union Academy was organized in 1866 under the auspices of the Freedman's Bureau, and later operated under the control of the Alachua County School Board. In 1923 the school, with Jones as its principal, moved to a new building located at NW 10th Street and 7th Avenue. It housed both elementary and high school grades, becoming the first African-American high school in Alachua County. Between 1924 and the 1925 school term, the school added senior high school curriculum. At the June commencement in 1925, Lincoln graduated its first group of eight students. Between 1925 and 1926, Lincoln High School became one of the first two African-American schools to attain state accreditation by the State Department of Education (the other being Central Academy in Palatka). The State Department of Education also authorized Lincoln High School to conduct a High School Training course as part of the high school curriculum from 1928 to 1931.

Jones worked towards furthering his education during the years he spent teaching in Gainesville, and in 1935 he received a second Master's degree from Hampton Institute in Virginia. Although he never earned a Ph.D., he completed studies towards the degree at the School of Education at New York University during the summers of 1936, 1937, and 1952. Jones also taught courses for both Florida A&M and Bethune-Cookman College in Daytona Beach during teaching breaks at Lincoln.

As an educator, Jones taught a variety of subjects, such as mathematics, science, language and Latin, and throughout much of his career, he was responsible for educating many of the state's future African-American teachers. Jones continued teaching until 1945, and served as principal until 1956. In 1956, a new Lincoln High School was constructed, and the original school was renamed the A. Quinn Jones Elementary School in honor of its first principal. Jones formally retired from education in 1957.

Jones was a resident of Gainesville for over 75 years, living for most of those years in the same house on the south side of the school that ultimately would bear his name. He was a member of the Greater Bethel African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Church for sixty years, and served as Sunday School Superintendent for the church for over thirty years. He died in Gainesville in 1997 at the age of 104.

Frederica "Freddie" Marie Copper Jones was born December 7, 1903 in Fernandina Beach. She attended Bethune-Cookman High School from 1919 to 1923. She received a Bachelor of Science degree, with a specialization in the subjects of English and the Elementary School Course, from the Division of Education at Florida A&M College in 1931. She was a member of the first graduating class from Florida A&M University when she received a Master of Science degree in 1954. Freddie married A. Quinn Jones in 1937. She was a teacher at Lincoln High School from 1928 until her retirement in 1966. She was a longtime member of the Greater Bethel AME Church, serving as organist for the choir and Sunday school.

Freddie Jones also was a charter member of the Visionaires, an organization of African American women in Gainesville. The Visionaires Club was charted on February 24, 1938 at the home of Mayme Taylor Cook by eight young women for the purpose of fostering civic, cultural, and social affairs in Gainesville. Throughout its history, the club has sponsored projects and participated in activities designed to improve the quality of life for citizens in the community. Over the years, the group has helped to bring cultural and educational affairs such as concerts and art exhibitions to Gainesville. In addition, the group has donated funds to civic and charitable organizations and organized youth outreach programs to foster and encourage leadership among high school students.

From the guide to the A. Quinn Jones Collection, 1901-2007, (Special and Area Studies Collections, George A. Smathers Libraries, University of Florida)