Compiled by Teresa
Martin Klaiber 2023
Arthur
and Charles were two of seven known children of John and Goldie Ellen Walker
Jones. I first wrote about the brothers
in a blog called Fox News in July 2011.
After
serving in World War I, John married Goldie Ellen Walker 29 October 1920 in
Boone County, West Virginia. The Jones
rented and moved where coal mining was hiring.
Charles Jones was born 16 June 1928 in Fayette County, West Virginia. The
family lived awhile in Lawrence County, Ohio, before 1940, when the Jones
family moved to Boyd County where Jones worked building roads under the
WPA. The family rented on Long Branch
for some time as well as in Ashland.
The
Works Progress Administrate began in 1939 and ran until 1943, created for
unemployed by President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s New Deal. Depending on politics the folks that got jobs
through the WPA were either looked down on or applauded. The fact is the community of Garner benefited
with at least two new bridges and the children had food, shelter and an
education while their father gained employment and the county roads were
improved.
Goodman-Paxton Photographic Collection, UK Libraries Special Collections Research Center, Box 19 item 1172, Steel arch on Garner Road
Over
the years I have walked among the graves in Klaiber Cemetery with many
relatives and made new friends with their own stories. I met Lottie Marie Jones Lucas and her
husband Norman Franklin Lucas, on a sunny Memorial weekend over twenty-five
years ago. Both are gone now and I miss
their visits. We stood by Charles grave
as Lottie told how, her brother, Charles,
had been bitten by a dog, while hunting rabbits on Garner, in November
1942. She remembered that he was in school
at Oakview in Ashland but the family had no idea how serious rabies could be
until it was too late. Charles died 11 January 1943 and was buried in Klaiber
Cemetery. To read more about rabies in
Boyd County click the Fox
News link. In all honesty they may not have had the
money for a doctor at that time.
The
youngest Jones child was Arthur Eugene Jones born14 December 1941 in Boyd
County, Kentucky. He was just toddling
when his brother Charles died. In late
February 1944 Arthur contracted measles complicated by pneumonia. There was no vaccine for measles until the
early 1960’s. According to the CDS “nearly all children got measles by the time
there were 15 years of age.” Just 2
years old and 2 months Arthur Eugene Jones died 1 March 1944. The family was living at 2315 Elturu Street,
off of Oakview Road, when they brought Arthur back to Garner to be buried next
to Charles.
Their
sister, Lottie married Norman Franklin Lucas 5 January 1946 in Ashland. Norman’s parents are buried in Klaiber
Cemetery and will be featured at a later date.
Norman and Lottie lived in Columbus, Ohio. Norman passed away in 2004
and Lottie in 2010. After the boys died
Lottie’s parents moved to Rowan County, Kentucky where John tried his hand at
farming. Sadly at the age of 44 John
Jones committed Suicide, 27 June 1948[i]. Goldie lived until 15 March 1983 and died in
Columbus, Franklin County, Ohio.
