Miscellaneous Records . . .

Source:  Transcribed obituary of Mrs. Elizabeth Sears Jones from unknown newspaper (probably Spartanburg, SC newspaper) dated April 11, 1941

JONES—Mrs. J. C. Jones is claimed by death.  Brief illness fatal to well-known Spartan, native of Anderson, South Carolina.

           Mrs. Elizabeth Sears Jones, 59, wife of James C. Jones, Sr., one of Spartanburg’s best-known residents, died last night at her home, 125 College Street, following a brief illness.

           Mrs. Jones was born April 14, 1881, at Anderson, South Carolina, the daughter of the late John Louis and Missouri Ann Stribling Sears, pioneer residents of that county.

           She was a member of Bethel Methodist Church, and was the oldest member of the Pathfinders’ class of the Church’s Sunday School.

           Her family has resided in Spartanburg since 1925, Survivors include her husband, two daughters, Mrs. Oscar W. Brown, Mrs. Warren O. Furber, both of Spartanburg, and five sons, James C. Jones, Jr., Lt. Murray Bonham Jones of Albemarle, Sgt. Thurmond Glasgow Jones, Sgt. Willie Griffin Jones, and Corp. Johnnie Milton Jones, all of Fort Bragg, North Carolina, and three grand-children, Joe Luther Jones, James Martin Jones, and Elizabeth Anne Jones.

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Source:  Transcribed obituary of Mrs. Elizabeth Sears Jones from “Old Gold and Black”

newspaper, Spartanburg SC, date unknown

MRS. JONES PASSES AT HOME THURSDAY

           Mrs. Elizabeth Sears Jones, 59, wife of Wofford’s Cap’n Jones, died Thursday night at her home, 125 College Street, following a brief illness.

           Mrs. Jones was born April 14, 1881, at Anderson, the daughter of the late John Louis Sears and Missouri Stribling Sears, pioneer residents of that county.

           Mrs. Jones was a member of Bethel Methodist Church and had the distinction of bing the oldest member of the Pathfinders’ Class of the Church’s Sunday School.

           The family has been living in the city since 1925.  For a large part of that time, Mr. Jones has been the faithful and official custodian of Wofford Campus and guardian of the College property, living on the campus with his family.  He is affectionately known to all students as Cap’n Jones, and his loss is felt by the entire faculty and student body.

           Mrs. Jones is survived by her husband, two daughters and five sons, and three grandchildren.  Several of her sons attended and were graduated from Wofford.

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Source:  Transcribed obituary of James C. Jones, Sr., from “Wofford Towers”, Spartanburg, SC, Vol. I, No. 4, Fall 1962.   (NOTE:  Wofford Towers was a student newspaper at Wofford Men’s College, Spartanburg, SC)

“Capt” Jones Passes

           One day last February Captain Jones left the Wofford campus for the last time, and on March 8 he passed away in a Columbia Hospital at the age of 79.  His leaving marked the end of an era at Wofford and left his many friends with a feeling of sadness and loss.

           It was in 1930 that Mr. Jones, affectionately known as “Captain,” first came to Wofford and walked down these same sidewalks and streets, then unpaved, that he was to walk so many times in the years to come.  As night watchman, he walked approximately 100 miles a week until his retirement in 1952—twenty-two years of devoted service to the school and the

people he loved.

           A friendly and kindhearted man, Capt. Jones upheld the rules of the College but retained the love and respect of the students.  And Wofford graduates as they reminisce can remember that when the Captain smiled and raised his hand in greeting they felt that “all was well” and they need not worry.  They remember that it was a good feeling.

           Captain Jones retired in as night watchman in 1952 but he did not retire from the scene.  He continued to patrol the campus during the day, though not officially, for to him this was

hallowed ground and each student and grad was a personal friend.

           During the last years of his life his shoulders were a little stooped; he walked more slowly, and his hands were unsteady, but those of us who have been around awhile will always see him, particularly at Homecoming and Commencement time, walking proud and tall on “his campus” among “his boys.”

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