William Augustus Jones (1844-1919) was born in Marshall County, Miss. The eldest of three surviving sons, he spent much of his childhood at Prospect Hill, the family plantation which had been built by his grandfather, William Jones (1783-1855), in 1839. After the death of his father, Rufus Jones (1811-1856), the family moved to a townhouse in nearby Holly Springs. When war broke out in 1861, he enlisted with Company B of the 17th Mississippi Regiment, one of four units which composed Barksdale's Brigade of Mississippians in the Army of Northern Virginia. Serving with this regiment throughout 1861, Jones fought at both First Manassas (21 July 1861) and the Battle of Ball's Bluff near Leesburg, Va. (21 Oct. 1861). He was admitted to Chimborazo Hospital in Richmond for wounds received at the Seven Days' Battles in June 1862, and was discharged two months later. After regaining his health, Jones reenlisted under cavalry commander John Hunt Morgan (1825-1864). He incurred another gunshot wound during an attempted raid at Greeneville, Tenn., on 4 Sept. 1864; he remained a member of the Kentucky Cavalry until the surrender at Appomattox. After the war, Jones established a hardware business in Holly Springs, Miss., with his brother, Egbert Rufus Jones (1848-1917). He married Martha Gillespie Mason (d. 1912), with whom he had four children. In later life, Jones moved to Memphis, Tenn., to be near his sons, and lived there until his death in Jan. 1919.
From the description of William Augustus Jones collection, 1861, 1909, and undated. (Unknown). WorldCat record id: 665170857
