Call Number:

Ms. Codex 1735

Repository:

University of Pennsylvania: Kislak Center for Special Collections, Rare Books and Manuscripts

Extent:

0.8 linear feet (1 volume)

Language Note:

The bulk of this account book is written in Welsh, but there are portions in English.

Preferred Citation:

David A. Jones account book, 1864-1866, 1869, Ms. Codex 1735, Kislak Center for Special Collections, Rare Books and Manuscripts, University of Pennsylvania

Date:

1864-1866, 1869 (inclusive)

Creator:

Jones, David A.

Form:

Account books

Abstract:

David A. Jones was a Welsh attorney working in Pottsville, Pennsylvania. This account books documents his professional and household expenses and his income from 1864 to 1866 and in 1869.

David A. Jones, an attorney-at-law in Pottsville, Pennsylvania, was born in Dowlais, Glamorganshire, Cymru (Wales) on May 9, 1842. In December, 1842, he immigrated with his family (parents William D. and Margaret Jones and three siblings) to Minersville, Pennsylvania. His father, who died in 1858, was a fire boss and repair foreman in the coal mines. His mother died around 1846. During the mid 1900s, many coal mining Welsh immigrants made their homes in the Pottsville area.

Jones was educated in the public schools of Minersville before studying law in the office of Judge Edward Owen Parry. In 1864, he was admitted to the Schuylkill County Bar and began practicing law with his main office in Pottsville, but with an additional office in Minersville where he lived. In 1865, Jones married Mary Bedlow (whose father William was a superintendent of mines) and they had nine children: William P., Margaret, Howard H., Elizabeth, Antoinette, David A. (Jr.), Helen, Mary, and Joseph (who died as an infant). Seven of his children earned college degrees and Jones served as a member of the board of school directors of Minersville for more than thirty years. During the Civil War, Jones served as a member of the Pennsylvania Militia.

Works cited:

Schalck, Adolf W., History of Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania ... including a genealogical and biographical record of many families and persons in the county, 1907 (pages 236-237).

This is the account book of David A. Jones, an attorney, who was born in Wales and practiced law in Pottsville and Minersville, Pennsylvania. The entries in this book date from 1864 to 1866 and 1869. Attached to the inside front cover is a lease agreement between Jones and James Silliman, the property owner, for his office in Pottsville from November 1864 to February 1866. The bulk of the entries seem to coincide with Jones' lease in the Silliman building. The contents of this book contain his expenses for office supplies and household needs as well as his income from his legal services. The months written at the top of each page are written in Welsh and the lists are written in a combination of Welsh and English.

According to the flyleaf, Jones recorded income and expenses up to January 1, 1865, but only income thereafter. However, there is a gap from 1866 to 1869; and from May to June, 1869, Jones recorded both income and expenses, largely in English. Examples of expenses include shoeing the horse, carriage repair, house cleaning, butter, lumber, oats, stamps, paper, and sundries. Jones wrote in only the first thirty-five pages of the account book.