Who are we?

The James Jones Family Association is a group of people, some 5,000 strong, all descendents of James Jones, who came to America in 1832.

We gather each July 4th to renew family ties. We play volleyball, softball, enjoy a pot-luck meal and renew the acquaintances of cousins we haven’t seen for a year. Along the way, we find that we share many common interests – the first of these is probably an appreciation of family, and a belief that the family unit is the strength upon which our country was founded.

We know that while we may not see each other again for another 12 months, it is important to have this "touchstone," this knowledge that we belong to something special. And apparently this current generation of Joneses isn’t alone in this feeling. The James Jones family has been meeting once a year for 147 years.

That’s a long time of keeping up with the Joneses!

The James Jones family first gathered on New Year’s Day in 1853 at the Jones farm, one-half mile south of Meade, Michigan. The occasion was the celebration of the first anniversary of the marriage of James and Elizabeth’s first daughter, Elizabeth Ann to James McDonald the previous New Year’s Day.

This gathering was repeated yearly until 1865, when the date was changed to July 4th. The rescheduling was due to the growing number of family members involved, making an indoor meeting in the dead of winter quite impractical.

By this time, the descendants included six daughters and four sons, the five spouses of those children, and eight grandchildren.

For 45 years these informal gatherings took place with only one 4th of July, in 1904, being skipped. In 1910, it was suggested by James McDonald that a legal organization for the family be formed. A committee consisting of James McDonald, Robert and David Jones was formed to carry out the plan.

These annual reunions have continued every year since the formation of the association in 1911. The location varies, one year at a farm home in Meade, Michigan, the next at a park where space and facilities can handle a large gathering. The 1999 reunion, held in Lapeer, Michigan, drew 70 people. Cousins came from as far away as Mexico and New York state.

Also in 1999, the first southern satellite reunion took place at Blue Ridge, Georgia and was attended by 42 people.

Hope to see you at one of them.