Joseph Russell Jones (February 17, 1823 – April 11, 1909) was a successful US merchant and politician, a close friend of

Ulysses S. Grant Ulysses S. Grant (born Hiram Ulysses Grant ; April 27, 1822July 23, 1885) was an American military officer and politician who served as the 18th president of the United States from 1869 to 1877. As Commanding General, he led the Union Ar ...

and an acquaintance of

Abraham Lincoln Abraham Lincoln ( ; February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was an American lawyer, politician, and statesman who served as the 16th president of the United States from 1861 until his assassination in 1865. Lincoln led the nation thro ...

Biography

Jones was born in

Conneaut, Ohio Conneaut ( ) is a city in Ashtabula County, Ohio, Ashtabula County, Ohio, United States, along Lake Erie at the mouth of Conneaut Creek northeast of Cleveland. The population was 12,841 at the 2010 Census. Conneaut is located at the far northeast ...

, and his childhood was modest. His father died when he was two, necessitating the young Jones to curtail his formal education. At age 13, his career began as a store clerk. At 25, Jones had risen to become a partner in the mercantile firm of Benjamin H. Campbell in

Galena, Illinois Galena is the largest city in and the county seat of Jo Daviess County, Illinois, with a population of 3,308 at the 2020 census. A section of the city is listed on the National Register of Historic Places as the Galena Historic District. The ci ...

. This success gave Jones the financial means to build one of the grandest homes in Galena. His Italianate villa, Belvedere Mansion, was situated next to the Greek revival mansion of

Elihu Washburne Elihu Benjamin Washburne (September 23, 1816 – October 22, 1887) was an American politician and diplomat. A member of the Washburn family, which played a prominent role in the early formation of the United States Republican Party, he served ...

, who was a prominent attorney and U.S. congressman (1853–1869). The neighbors developed a rich friendship, which was highly beneficial to Jones’ political career. In 1860, Jones was elected to the

Illinois House of Representatives The Illinois House of Representatives is the lower house of the Illinois General Assembly. The body was created by the first Illinois Constitution adopted in 1818. The House under the current constitution as amended in 1980 consists of 118 re ...

. The same year, Ulysses S. Grant (1822–1885) moved to Galena after resigning as a captain in the army. In Illinois, Grant struggled financially as an assistant in his father's leather shop. Grant became friends with Jones and Washburne whose recommendations aided his return to the army when the Civil War began. Jones, as an enterprising businessman, saw financial opportunity in the lack of cotton in the North due to wartime restrictions. His friendship with Grant provided him with the necessary passes to bring Southern cotton to the North where it could be sold for significant profit. Their friendship extended beyond the political domain. Grant aided Jones in his cotton speculations, and Jones in return provided Grant with financial assistance. In 1861, Abraham Lincoln became president and appointed Jones as U.S. Marshall for the Northern District of Illinois. Lincoln consulted Jones, Grant's confidant, to learn if Grant was planning to run against him in the next election. After President Lincoln was assassinated, Jones served as a pallbearer for Lincoln's funeral train procession in Chicago. In 1869, Grant was sworn in as president and nominated Jones as

Minister Resident A resident minister, or resident for short, is a government official required to take up permanent residence in another country. A representative of his government, he officially has diplomatic functions which are often seen as a form of indir ...

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

. In 1875, Jones asked to leave his post in Belgium. He returned to Illinois where Grant made him Collector of the

Port of Chicago The Port of Chicago consists of several major port facilities within the city of Chicago, Illinois, operated by the Illinois International Port District (formerly known as the Chicago Regional Port District). It is a multimodal facility featuring ...

. However, a year later Grant, urged by Generals

John A. Logan John Alexander Logan (February 9, 1826 – December 26, 1886) was an American soldier and politician. He served in the Mexican–American War and was a general in the Union Army in the American Civil War. He served the state of Illinois as a st ...

and

Stephen A. Hurlbut Stephen Augustus Hurlbut (November 29, 1815 – March 27, 1882), was an attorney and politician, who commanded the U.S. Army of the Gulf in the American Civil War. Afterward, he continued to serve as a politician and also as a diplomat. Althoug ...

, asked Jones to resign. This request, perceived as a public disgrace Jones felt at the hands of his old friend, severed their friendship permanently. Jones resumed various business ventures with continued financial success. He died at the age of 86 in Chicago, Illinois.

References

;Sources * George R. Jones ''Joseph Russell Jones'', 1964, privately printed by George R. Jones * Jeffrey Norman Lash ''A Politician Turned General: The Civil War Career of Stephen Augustus Hurlbut'', 2003, Kent State University Press * Chicago Historical Society ''Charter, Constitution, By-laws, Membership List, Annual Report'', 1908

Biography

References

Further reading