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Provenance

Acquired by Rolling Hills proprietor Jeff Bradfield at Green Valley Auctions on February 21, 2020.

Preferred Citation

[identification of item], [box #, folder #], Kenneth L. Jones Papers, 1966-1972, SC 0310, Special Collections, Carrier Library, James Madison University, Harrisonburg, VA.

Acquisition Information

Purchased from Rolling Hills Antique Mall in February 2020.

Bio/Historical Note

Kenneth L. Jones (1905-2004) was an African American business owner and civic leader from Staunton, Virginia. Jones graduated in 1923 from Staunton's Booker T. Washington Junior High School. He received his bachelor of science degree from West Virginia State College. After graduating, Jones worked as an educator in Oklahoma as well as at the Rosenwald School in Waynesboro. He was married to Emma Taylor Jones (1908-1958).

After receiving his funeral director's license in 1945, Jones established Kenneth L. Jones Funeral Home and served as its owner/operator until 1994.

Jones was particularly active in his local community and was a member of numerous civic organizations including the Staunton Interracial Commission, Board of Directors of the United Negro College Fund of Virginia, NAACP, Board of Directors for United Way of Staunton and Augusta County, Staunton School Board (1975-1979), Staunton Mental Health Board, and Staunton Democratic Committee. He was a lifetime member of Alpha Phi Alpha   Fraternity as well as the Mt. Zion Lodge #18. Jones served as the treasurer of the Effie Ann Johnson Day Nursery for thirty years and was a member of the Augusta Street United Methodist Church. Jones was the first African-American person to be elected to Staunton's city council and also served as vice mayor (1968-1972). His awards include NAACP Lifetime Achievement Award, Shenandoah Valley Hit's 1992 Black History Month Male Business Person of the Year, and the Rosenwald Alumni Award for Service.

Jones died December 1, 2004 at the age of 99.

Scope and Content

The Kenneth L. Jones Papers, 1966-1972, comprising photographs and printed ephemera, document Jones's time as a member of Alpha Phi Alpha  , the first intercollegiate historically African American fraternity, and as a civic leader in Staunton, Virginia.

The seven photographs document Alpha Phi Alpha   Fraternity annual conventions and regional meetings including the 1966 southwestern regional meeting in Muskogee, Oklahoma; the 1969 annual convention in Houston, Texas; the 1971 annual convention in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and an undated meeting in Norfolk, Virginia.

The printed ephemera includes a 1966 bulletin from West Virginia State University (Jones's alma mater) and an April 19, 1969 program for a testimonial dinner hosted by the Staunton-Augusta County Branch of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). The program honored Dr. Charles J. Waller, and Jones, who was serving as vice mayor of Staunton at the time, gave one of several testimonies. A certificate of service recognizes Jones's 46 years of membership as a mason in the Mt. Zion Lodge #18.

Separated Material

Souvenir Journal of Mount Zion's First Hundred Years, 1868-1968 (1968) was removed from the collection and cataloged separately.

Subjects and Indexing Terms

• African American Greek letter societies
• African American college students
• Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity
• Booklets
• Certificates
• Local government -- Virginia -- Staunton
• National Association for the Advancement of Colored People
• Photographs
• Printed Ephemera
• Programs (documents)
• Rolling Hills Antique Mall
• Staunton (Va.) -- History
• West Virginia State University