A biographical sketch of the late Dr. William Jones, read before the Association of the oldest inhabitants of the District of Columbia

LJl7

A BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH

OF THE LATE

DR WILLIAM JOI^ES,

BEAD BEFORE THE

ASSOCIATION OF THE OLDEST INHABITANTS

DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA,

BY

JOHN B. BLAKE, M. D.,

DECEIIMIBEK. 4, 1867.

'L

WASHINGTON, D. C:

McGILL & WITIIEROW, PRINTEIIS AND STEREOTYPERS.

1867.

Book ^

n

A BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH L-

OF THE LATE

DE. WILLIAM JOIS^ES,

LLl

EEAD BEFORE THE 0^/ /

ASSOCIATION OF THE OLDEST INHABITANTS

OF THE

DISTRICT OP COLUMBIA,

BY

JOHN B. BLAKE, M. D.,

XJECJEiyEBEI?, 4, 1SG7.

WASHINGTON, D. C:

McGILL k WITIIEROW, PRINTERS AND STEREOTYPERS.

1867.

/ '">

BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH.

Dr. William Jones, the subject of this brief Bio-
graphical Sketch, was born April 12th, 1790, near
Rockville, the county town of Montgomery county,
in the State of Maryland. His father, the late Evan
Jones, was a substantial farmer, and much respected
and esteemed by his neighbors and fellow-citizens gen-
erally. He had intended his son William for the same
pursuit which he followed ; but an accidental circum-
stance diverted his attention, and resulted in making a
professional man of him. The late Rev. John Breck-
enridge, a Presbyterian clergyman, kept a classical
school on his farm, near Washington city, now known
as "Harewood," the property of Mr. W. W. Corcoran,
and he was in the habit of performing divine service
at several points in the surrounding country within
convenient distance of his residence. A small Pres-
byterian meeting-house, in the vicinity of the Great
Falls of the Potomac, generally known as "Cabin John
Chapel," was occasionally favored with his ministerial
offices, and after having preached at this chapel on a
Sabbath, and in returning home early the next morn-
ing, he overtook young Jones, who was on his way to
the mill.

He entered into conversation with him, and being
most favorably impressed by the sprightly intellect and
great intelligence of the youth, he ascertained from him
the name and residence of his father, and promised,
when next in the neighborhood, to call and see him. It
was not long before he had an opportunit}^ of redeem-

ing his promise. In his interview with the father, he
urged him to abandon the intention of making his son
a farmer, as he was physically disqualified for the hard
labor of agricultural life, and prevailed upon him to
give the boy a liberal education, with the view of
devoting him to one of the learned professions. It was
agreed between them that William should become a
pupil of Mr. Breckenridge, and as soon as it was pos-
sible to get him ready for leaving home, he was sent
to the academy of the reverend gentleman. The pupils
of this school were the sons of residents in Washing-
ton and Georgetown and the adjoining country, and
many of them have been among our most respected
and valuable citizens. Young Jones grew in favor with
his preceptor by his respectful conduct, his application
to his studies, and his rapid advancement. His school-
mates entertained for him the warmest friendship, re-
sulting from his genial disposition and gentlemanly
bearing towards them. The rivalry of scholarship
engendered no unkind feelings between them, and all
rejoiced at the progress and success of their young
friend. After having been at this school for about
two years, Mr. Breckenridge was elected Principal of
the llockville Academy, which had just been erected,
and having accepted the position, young Jones was
transferred to that institution, that he might continue
under the instruction of the reverend gentleman, who
had manifested such a deep interest in his welfare.
The Rockville Academy soon acquired a high reputa-
tion under the direction of Mr. Breckenridge, and
many of the prominent men of that section of the State
were either prepared for college or wholly educated at
it. One of the only three survivors, who attended
the academy at the same time with Dr. Jones, in a let-
ter recently addressed to the author of this memoir,

gives the following account of his connection with the
school : *' I was entered as a pupil about the year 1808
or 1809, on the day the building was first opened in
which the academy was then and is still kept, and I
think that Jones, who was several years my senior,
was entered about the same time, and we continued in
the academy about two years, or perhaps a little more,
chiefly engaged in learning the Latin and Greek lan-
guages. The school averaged about fifty or sixty in
number, and among them many nearly full-grown
youths. Our teacher was very successful in impress-
ing us with the importance of learning, and in pointing
out the beauties of the authors we were studying, and
in general we were diligent students, and correct in
manners and deportment. There was an annual exam-
ination of the pupils of the academy just before the
commencement of the August vacations, which was fol-
lowed by an exhibition, at which we delivered speeches
and took part in dialogues, or in acting short plays,
which was a gay season, and attracted large crowds,
and among them the beauty and fashion of the sur-
rounding country. The subject of your inquiry (Dr.
Jones) always acquitted himself with the best, whether
in school or at these annual trials. His manners were
agreeable and courteous, for which we, who have also
known him in later life, have alwa^^s found him to be
distinguished."

Mr. Breckenridge, whilst Principal of the Rockville
Academy, continued to discharge his duties as a mis-
sionary, appointed by the Presbytery of Baltimore, and
kept together a little flock he had collected in AYash-
ington; and, in 1810, he resigned his position in the
academy and resumed his residence on his farm con-
tiguous to the city, and commenced the erection of the
building formerly known as the "Little White Chapel

Under tlie Hill," but now as " Bethel Meeting-Honse,"
a celebrated place of worship for colored people. The
chapel was finished and consecrated in 1812, and Mr.
Breckenridge was duly installed as its pastor, and con-
tinued in the discharge of its duties in an acceptable
manner -until September, 1817, when, being admon-
ished by advancing years and feeble health that he
should rest from his labors, he tendered his resignation
of the charge, which however was not accepted until
the follovfing May. From the "Little White Chapel
Under the Hill " sprang the magnificent edifice of the
First Presbyterian Church, on Four-and-a-Half street,
and its large and respectable congregation, of which
Dr. Byron Sunderland is the pastor.

When Mr. Breckenridge retired from the Bockville
Academy, young Jones entered, as a student of medi-
cine, the office of Dr. Wm. Tyler, of Fredericktown,
Maryland, who was one of the most skillful and emi-
nent physicians of the State. By his close application
to his studies, his ready apprehension and rapid pro-
gress, and his deferential and gentlemanly demeanor,
he soon became as great a favorite with Dr. Tyler as
he had been with Mr. Breckenridge. The doctor, in
after years, always regarded him with pride as his
pupil, and the warm friendship existing between them
never suffered an}' abatement. Dr. Jones attended a
course of lectures in the University of Pennsylvania,
and had the advantage of the instruction of the great
lights of the profession — Rush, Physic, Wistar, and
their distinguished colleagues ; and there he manifested
his usual indefatigable assiduity and thirst for know-
ledge. On returning home, during the recess, and
finding that there was a great demand for surgeons in
the army, owing to the then existing war with Great
Britain, he appeared before the " Medical and Chirur-

gical Faculty of Maryland '' for examination, acquitted
himself in the most satisfactory manner, and received
the degree of "licentiate of medicine.'' Thereupon
he applied for an assistant surgeon's appointment in
the army, which was readily granted on the strong
recommendations of character and competency that
accompanied his application, and he was assigned to
duty with the army in and about Washington. The
alacrity with which he discharged his duties, the deep
interest he manifested for his patients, and his skillful
and successful treatment of diseases, soon directed at-
tention to him as a most promising physician, and the
utmost confidence was reposed in him by the officers
and men of the division to which he was attached.
After the capture and evacuation of Washington by
the enemy, the row of brick houses on P street
south, immediately fronting the Arsenal grounds, and
others in the vicinity, were taken possession of by the
Government and used as hospitals for the accommoda-
tion of sick and wounded soldiers. Dr. James H. Blake,
a prominent physician, and mayor of the city, was ap-
pointed by President Madison as visiting medical
intendent of these hospitals, and some dozen or more
assistant surgeons of the army were ordered to them
on duty. Among them was Dr. Jones ; and it was
there that he m.ade the acquaintance of Dr. Blake, who,
on close observation of his personal deportment and
professional skill, formed an exalted opinion of his
worth as a gentleman and phj^sician. When the army
was reduced, in 1815, Dr. Jones was among the num-
ber retained in the service on the recommendation of
the board of officers established to determine the merits
and claims of officers, with the view of securing to the
service those most likely to preserve and promote its
efficiency. On receiving intimation that he would soon

8

be ordered to a distant post, and being about to visit
his home, he called to take leave of Dr. Blake, to whom
he had become very much attached. In the course of
the conversation that ensued between them, the doctor
inquired of him if he contemplated passing his life in
the service, to which he responded that he entertained
no such intention, but, on the contrary, designed to
avail himself of the first favorable opportunity to en-
gage in private practice. Dr. Blake then remarked to
him, "You are aware that I have a very large prac-
tice, and, as I begin to feel the infirmities of age, I am
satisfied it is too burdensome for me, and that 1 ought
to have an assistant ; therefore, if you are disposed at
this time to relinquish your position in the army and
enter into private practice, I will form a partnership
and divide my business with you. But, before receiv-
ing your assent, I should like you to consult your
friends upon the subject." Dr. Jones had no expecta-
tion of such an offer, and was much gratified with the
compliment it conveyed, but said he would act upon
the doctor's suggestion, and confer with his friends be-
fore giving a decided answer. After a short visit to
his home in the country, he returned to Washington,
resigned his commission in the army, and in a few
days the firm of Blake and Jones was announced to
the public. Dr. Jones was well received by the citi-
zens of Washington in his professional and social rela-
tions, and soon ranked among the foremost of the
faculty, and was esteemed in society among the most
respectable of its citizens. His partner died in the
summer of 1819, and he succeeded to and retained the
large practice of the firm.

He was married December 21st, 1821, to Sarah L.
Corcoran, a daughter of the late Thomas Corcoran,
Sr., of Georgetown, a highly respectable and popular

gentleman, who had been the mayor of the town.
Mrs. Jones was an amiable and charming lady, and
sought to accomplish her own happiness by promoting
that of her husband. She departed this life Septem-
ber 24th, 1843, after a long illness, during which he
was most constant and devoted in his attentions to her.

Possessing popular manners, Dr. Jones was selected,
much against his will, as a candidate for the city coun-
cils, and was elected without difficulty. Finding that
the faithful discharge of its duties would interfere with
his professional pursuits, he declined a re-election, and
no persuasion could induce him to relinquish his deter-
mination not to allow his name to be again used as a can-
didate for that or any other office under the corporation.
He confined himself exclusively to his profession, and
from over-work and exposure to inclement w^eather,
night and day, he had several severe spells of sickness,
which were near terminating his mortal existence be-
fore he had attained the meridian of manhood.

On the 10th of March, 1824, a rumor was rife through
the city that a miraculous cure had been wrought on
Mrs. Ann Mattingly, through the intercession of Prince
Hohenlohe, a Catholic priest, at Bamberg, in Germany.
She had been confined to her room for six 3'ears, with
a painful tumor in her left breast, the precise nature of
which could not be determined by her attending, or
the several consulting physicians, who had at different
periods during her illness been called in to consider her
case. Her general health was wretched, and her suf-
ferings intense, and she had become exceedingly ema-
ciated, so much so, that she was perfectly helpless, and
her death was looked for almost daily. Up to the
moment of her wonderful relief from her sufferings,
it was stated, she thought herself dying, when in an
instant all her pains left her, and she arose from her

10

bed, dressed herself, and appeared in good health, the
tumor and all other evidences of her recent illness
having disappeared, with the exception of her emacia-
tion. She was a sister of the late Capt. Thomas Car-
berry, who w^as at that time mayor of the city; and he
and other members of her family, and a number of
intimate friends, among the most respectable residents
in Washington, testified to the truth of these state-
ments. Dr. Jones was the family physician, and had
attended her throughout her sickness. He had advised
the family, that in his judgment and that of the con-
sulting ph3^sicians, the disease was incurable, and that
all that could be done was to administer palliatives to
diminish her pain and afford her slight temporary relief.
A request was made of him for a statement of her case,
with which he cheerfully complied, although no believer
in modern miracles. He had not seen her for five days
before the occurrence of her miraculous recovery, when
Capt. Carberr}' stopped at liis house and assured him
that his patient was wqII. He closed his statement as
follows : "I called, and to my great surprise and grati-
fication, she met me at her chamber door, in apparent
health.'' Hundreds of persons of all religious per-
suasions visited Mrs. Mattingly, and all came away
amazed, and utterly unable to account for her wonder-
ful cure, except upon the hypothesis of the members
of her own faith, that it was a miracle accomplished
through the prayers and intercession of Prince Hohen-
lohe, which those of a different faith were unwilling to
concede. A full and minute account of this reputed
miracle is to be found in the third volume of the works
of the distinguished first bishop of Charleston, the
Right Reverend John England.

In the winter of 1823 and 1824, Wm. H. Crawford,
then Secretary of the Treasury, was nominated by the

11

congressional caucus as the democratic candidate for
tlie presidency, and during the canvass he was taken
dangerously ill, and Dr. Jones was called in as one of
his phj^sicians. Great interest was excited throughout
the country in his case, and the most eminent men of
the profession in Philadelphia and Baltimore were
summoned to his bed-side in consultation. Dr. Jones,
though but comparatively a young man, appeared to
no disadvantage among that array of distinguished
medical talent and skill, and impressed all who partici-
pated in the consultations most favorably of his ability
and knowledge as a physician. His attendance upon
Mr. Crawford brought him into the societ}^ of the lead-
ing statesmen of that day, and lie then acquired a taste
for national politics. John Quincy Adams having been
elected President by the House of Representatives, the
Jackson party was immediately organized in opposi-
tion to his administration, and the contest was excit-
ing and bitter. Dr. Jones espoused the cause of the
hero of N'ew Orleans, and was a member of the noted
Jackson central committee, of which Gen. John P.
Van Kess was president, and Capt. Henry C. IN'eale,
secretary. The committee was composed of gentle-
men among the most prominent citizens of Washington
and Georgetown, and the addresses sent forth from it
told with killing effect throughout the countrj^ upon
the opposite party. Gen. Jackson was triumphantly
elected, and on the 20th of April, 1829, he appointed
Dr. Jones the postmaster of Washington, which situa-
tion he held until the 23d of March, 1839, being a
period of nine years and nearly eleven months. He
was again appointed to the same ofiice Julj- 10, 1841,
and held it until March 31, 1845, a period of three
years and eight months. On March 30, 1858, the
same office was for the third time conferred upon him,

12

and he occupied it until May' 10, 1861, a period of
three years and one month. The whole period of his
incumbency of the office was sixteen years and eight
months, and in all that time he discharged the duties
with an ability and fideUty unsurpassed, and gave sat-
isfaction to the Government and community. In the
distribution of the mails, and forwarding newspapers
and public documents, he showed no favor; friends
and opponents were treated alike, and all had confi-
dence in the fairness with which the office was con-
ducted.

President Jackson held Dr. Jones in high estima-
tion, and reposed in him the utmost confidence. Pres-
ident Tyler entertained the same opinion of him, and
towards the close of his administration remarked to a
number of gentlemen that Dr. Jones and Col. Thomas
H. Blake, then the Commissioner of the General Land
Office, were his only friends who liad the candor and
manliness to tell him that in their judgments he had not
the least chance of a re-nomination for the Presidency.
President Buchanan and Dr. Jones had been long
friends, and from no promptings but his own kind feel-
ings for him and his personal knowledge of his peculiar
fitness for the office, he conferred the postmaster's ap-
pointment upon him.

During the long period Dr. Jones was in public life,
he made the acquaintance of most of the prominent
statesmen of his day, and was on terms of intimacy
with a great number of them. They had confidence
in his judgment and foresight, and admired him for his
frankness and sincerity. He never flattered any one,
but spoke his mind freely; and if in doing so he in-
flicted a wound, however much he might regret it, he
had the approbation of his own conscience for not sac-
rificing truth to policy.

13

Whilst Dr. Jones was in public service, although he
earnestly desired to relinquish entirely the practice of
his profession, there were very many of his old patients
who were unwilling to give him up, and whenever
they needed the services of a physician would send for
him and insist upon his attending them. Owing to
the great confidence in his skill and the consequent
frequent demands for his services, he retained a close
identity with the practicing members of the faculty,
and took great interest in whatever tended to the pro-
motion of medical science and the elevation of the
profession. He was, until within a very late period,
the president of the Medical Society of the District of
Columbia, and also of the Medical Association of the
District of Columbia, and his retirement from both sit-
uations was voluntary, occasioned by a sense of his
inability to attend the meetings with his accustomed
punctuality, owing to advancing years. He practiced
medicine upwards of fifty years, was one of the orig-
inal members of the Medical Society of the District of
Columbia, chartered in 1S19, and was the last survivor
of the number who suggested and organized that re-
spectable and venerable institution. His never-flagging
attention to his patients, and deep solicitude for them,
connected with a ready and accurate diagnosis of dis-
ease and skillful treatment, caused his practice to be
attended with marked success.

Dr. Jones was a member of the Washington Monu-
ment Society, and was exceedingly solicitous for the
completion of that great work, which will commemo-
rate the gratitude of the nation, as well as the virtues
of the world-wide renowned patriot in whose memory
it is to be erected. He was scrupulously punctual in at-
tendance upon the meetings, and took an active part in
their proceedings. That society has publicly expressed

14

in appropriate and feeling terms the sense of the loss it
has sustained in his death. He was also a member of
the Association of the Oldest Inhabitants of the District
of Columbia, and one of its respected and most cher-
ished vice presidents. His regular attendance at its
meetings was a subject of remark, considering his en-
feebled condition, and he manifested the liveliest inter-
est in all of its proceedings. It was a source of great
pleasure to him to mingle with the members of the
association, with most of whom he had been intimate-
ly acquainted for years, and with some for more than a
half century. He had a cordial grasp of the hand and
a cheerful smile for all of them, and his conversation
was of the most lively and interesting character. His
memory of the early residents and incidents of the Dis-
trict was surprising, and he would describe persons
and transactions of years long past with the greatest
accuracy and minuteness of detail. The eulogistic
preamble and resolutions adopted by the society on
the occasion of his death was a just tribute to his
memory, and a fitting expression of the deep sense of
the loss it had sustained.

No one had more devoted friends than Dr. Jones.
He was exceedingly affable, and' his pleasing manners
and genial disposition made him a very attractive ac-
quaintancCc His demeanor showed him to have been
well bred, and, having had the advantages of the best
society, he was an elegant and refined gentleman. A
high-toned honor regulated his intercourse w^ith his
fellow-men, and sterling integrity marked all his trans-
actions. Dauntless courage and rigid adherence to
truth were distinguishing features of his character.
He was strictly moral, and a firm believer in the Chris-
tian faith, the precepts of which he carried into prac-
tice in the daily walks of life. Humane, benevolent,

15

and charitable feelings filled his heart and excited in
him the deepest sympathy for the afflicted, the poor,
and oppressed. He never made a charge for profess-
ional services if he had reason to believe that it
would subject his patient to inconvenience to pay for
them, and only in one case did he ever resort to the
courts for the collection of his dues, and that was under
circumstances that left him no alternative. He was
devoted to his adopted city, jealous of its good name,
and whatever promised to promote its welfare kindled
in him the most intense interest, and he was always
ready to lend a helping hand to the accomplishment of
the object. He saw with pride its recent rapid growth,
and predicted for it a successful and prosperous future.
His native State, and especially his native county,
(Montgomery,) were very dear to him, and he mani-
fested the greatest concern in whatever tended to their
benefit, or in any other manner aftected their interests.
Patriotism was a sentiment with him, and he sided
with his country in every conflict, domestic or foreign,
whether right or wrong. He regarded the Constitu-
tion as the perfection of human wisdom, and the
Union formed by it as a tower of strength. Subordi-
nation of the military to the civil authorities was a
cardinal principle with him, and nothing but to save
the life of the nation would justify a recourse to mar-
tial law ; and to continue the exercise of it after the
emergency had ceased, was. in his judgment, treason-
ably criminal.

Dr. Jones was confined to his room only two or
three days before his demise. He saw his end ap-
proaching, and met it with perfect composure. Self-
possessed to the last moment, he designated his
pall-bearers and gave all necessary directions for his
funeral. Two friends had called in to see him, and he

16 ' / ,

sat up in bed and conversed with them. When about
to recline, he made, without assistance, a comfortable
adjustment of his pillow, and, laying his head upon
it, breathed his last in a few moments without a
struggle.

t " Without a sigh,

A change of feature, or a shaded smile,
He gave his hand to the stern messenger,
And, as a glad child seeks its father's house.
Went home.

It was not meet
Tliat he should longer tarry from that bliss
^ Which God reserveth for the pure in heart."

His exit from life was so sudden and serene, that
those present could scarcely realize that his spirit had
taken its flight to that better land.

Such were the last moments of a truly good man,
with a conscience void of offence, leaving an hon-
ored name that will long be remembered. This event
occurred on the 25th of June, 1867. His funeral v/ as
largely attended by the members of the several socie-
ties to which he belonged, and by his fellow-citizens
generally. A notable feature in the funeral cortege
was the long train of buggies and other vehicles of
physicians. Plis remains were taken to Oak-Hill Cem-
etery, in Georgetown, for burial, and they now repose
by the side of his beloved wife.

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