Paul Willis Jones papers
Collection Overview
Abstract
The Paul Willis Jones papers consists of correspondence, genealogical subject files, project subject files, literary materials, printed materials, and photographs related to the life and activities of Bowling Green Daily Sentinel-Tribune Editor Paul W. Jones.
Dates
- Creation: 1855-2005
Extent
3.53 Cubic Feet (9 letter boxes, 1 half letter box)
Creator
- Jones, Paul Willis (Person)
Scope and Contents
The Paul Willis Jones papers consist of genealogical files, research material, personal documents and postcards compiled by Paul Willis Jones. The collection comprises of 2.6 linear feet of materials. Families represented include: Dickey, Fackler, Harper, Junk and Wroten. The collection contains correspondence, family subject files, historical subject files, committee files, literary productions, pedigree charts, photographs, postcards and the genealogical correspondence and research notes of John Lincoln Dickey.
The genealogical subject files in the collection focus almost exclusively on the Junk family, but materials exist for other allied lines including the Dickey and Wrothen families. There is a large array of pedigree charts and family group sheets for the various families that concisely organize pertinent family information. There are also wide range of personal materials on Paul Jones including biographical, resume, complimentary and honorary materials. The subject files contain an extensive amount of materials related to committee and society records including the Bowling Green Sesquicentennial Committee, Maumee River Advisory Council, Wood County Courthouse Centennial Commission, Wood County Historical Calendar and the Wood County Historical Society. Finally there are materials containing historical information connected to Bowling Green including the First Presbyterian Church, Junto Club, street histories, the courthouse, interurban and the oil boom.
Literary material in the collection mostly include Paul Jones' written works including a Genealogist's Guide to Wood County, Ohio; materials connected his Human Interest History of Wood County, Ohio, with related correspondence, notes and drafts; the Junk Journal; Presbyterians in Bowling Green, Ohio, 1855-1980 and his Master's Thesis Jefferson and the National Gazette. The printed material resources contain two interesting genealogical works the History of the Pioneer Thomas Junk and Descendants and the Historical Outline of the Family Dickie (or Dickey). In the photograph section there are pictures of Paul Jones along with pictures of members of the Junk family. Most interesting are the historical pictures of Wood County including photographs of the train station in Bowling Green, the oil boom and interurban.
The postcard aspect of the collection highlights many shots of the Wood County Courthouse and the Wood County Jail in Bowling Green. There are a large variety of postcards showing views of streets and buildings in Rising Sun, Rossford, Tontogany, Walbridge and Weston all from the early twentieth century. Postcards from both Washington Court House and Granville highlight those towns in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.
The John Lincoln Dickey papers at the end of the collection are a compilation of genealogical correspondence between John Dickey and various family members exploring the Dickey and Peterson genealogies. His research notes pertaining to those and related families are also included in this section.
Biographical / Historical
Paul Willis Jones (1913-2005) was the editor of the Bowling Green Sentinel-Tribune for twenty-seven years and a renowned Wood County, Ohio, historian. He was born on October 28, 1913, in Washington Court House, Fayette County, Ohio, to Walter William Jones (March 21, 1879-May 28, 1958) and Ida Junk (February 28, 1882-July 24, 1974). His paternal grandparents were Nathan Hunt Jones (December 8, 1837-August 1, 1887) and Martha Susan Lichliter (April 28, 1838-1922). His maternal grandparents were Martin Luther Junk (July 5, 1847-April 5, 1933) and Mary Catherine Willis (July 31, 1851-July 10, 1937).
Paul attended school in Washington Court House and graduated from Ohio Wesleyan University in 1936 with a Bachelor's Degree in journalism. Afterwards he married his high school sweetheart Maurine Hasseltine on December 28, 1940. He then joined the journalism faculty at Bowling Green State University in 1941, but with the outbreak of World War II he served in the U.S. Navy from 1943 to 1946. He returned to the University after his military service and continued there until 1953 when he left to become editor of the Bowling Green Sentinel-Tribune; a position he would hold until his retirement in 1980.
Paul was an active member in the community. He was a member of the Blue Pencil Club of Ohio, United Press International Editors Association of Ohio, Northwest Ohio chapter of Society of Professional Journalists, Northwestern Ohio Newspaper Association, Wood County Interfraternity Club, Bowling Green Inter-Service Club Council, Junto Club, Noon Kiwanis Club and Poor Richard Investment Club. Paul's interest in history led him to get a Master's Degree in history from Bowling Green State University in 1961. This fascination led him to serve on the Bowling Green Sesquicentennial Committee, Wood County Courthouse Centennial Commission and the Wood County Historical Calendar Committee along with being a member of the Wood County Genealogical Society and Wood County Historical Society. He also published historical works including: Genealogists Guide to Wood County, Ohio; Presbyterians in Bowling Green, Ohio, 1855-1890; Human Interest History of Wood County, Ohio, and the Junk Journal, a family genealogical publication.
Besides history and genealogy, Paul enjoyed collecting postcards and amassed a large postcard collection focusing on historical pictures of places in Wood County, Ohio, along with Washington Court House, Ohio, and Granville, Ohio. Paul and Maurine had one child, Ann, who married Daniel Austin. Paul Willis Jones died on May 31, 2005, in Bowling Green at the age of ninety-one.
John Lincoln Dickey (1864-1928), was a distant relative of Paul Willis Jones and an avid genealogist. He was born on September 11, 1864, at Bloomingburg, Fayette County, Ohio, to Reverend John Parsons Alexander Dickey (May 4, 1828-February 5, 1899) and Hannah Caroline Peterson (June 4, 1828-April 5, 1893). His paternal grandparents were Alexander Brown Dickey (October 6, 1782-July 13, 1857) and Jane Henry (August 22, 1795-February 7, 1831). His maternal grandparents were Martin E. Peterson (May 14, 1795-March 23, 1868) and Elizabeth Coyner (July 2, 1796-March 3, 1888). John's mother, Hannah Caroline Peterson Dickey, and Paul Jones' great-grandmother, Phoebe Peterson Junk, were sisters; making John and Paul first cousins twice removed.
John Dickey attended West Point and attained the rank of Lieutenant-Colonel. He served as an Aide-de-Camp to the Governor of Iowa and later became a professor of tactics at Griswold College in Iowa before returning to Ohio and starting a family. He married Mary Catherine Evans on June 22, 1892, and together they had two children: John C. Dickey, born in 1898 and Jane K. Dickey, born in 1904. Mary Catherine Evans Dickey was born on September 8, 1867, in West Union, Ohio, and died on February 28, 1909, in Springfield, Clark County, Ohio. Afterwards John remarried to Helen Gertrude Breedlove. John was an active genealogist and corresponded with many relatives about the Dickey and Peterson families. John died on February 13, 1928, at Springfield, Ohio.
Conditions Governing Access
No known access restrictions.
Conditions Governing Use
Researchers using this collection assume full responsibility for conforming to the laws of libel, privacy, and copyright, and are responsible for securing permissions necessary for publication or reproduction.
Language of Materials
English
Arrangement
The collection is arranged into the following series:
- Correspondence, 1966-1994
- Subject files
- Literary productions, 1961-2005
- Charts
- Printed material
- Photographic material
- Postcards
Immediate Source of Acquisition
The collection was donated to the Center for Archival Collections through the cooperation of Maurine Hasseltine Jones in May 2005.
Processing Information
The finding aid was completed by Stephen W. Badenhop, Archival Assistant, in July 2008. The Ohio postcard segment of the collection was added in 2014 and the finding aid updates completed by Eric Honneffer.
Subject
- Jones, Paul Willis (Person)
- Junk family (Family)
- Title
- Guide to the Paul Willis Jones papers
- Author
- Stephen W. Badenhop, Eric Honneffer, Madeleine Williams, Nick Pavlik
- Date
- July 2008, 2014, May 2021, July 2024
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin