Dr. Samuel J. and Charlotte H. Jones
Salado, Bell County, Texas
Marker Inscription
Educators Samuel Jackson (1858-1918) and Charlotte Hallaran (d. 1904) Jones taught at Salado College in 1884-1885. In 1890, the Joneses opened Thomas Arnold High School in the former Salado College buildings. Charlotte died in 1904, leaving five young children, but S. J. Jones remained as head of the private school until 1913. In 1915, Gov. James E. Ferguson, a former student at Salado College, appointed Jones to the University of Texas Board of Regents. Embroiled in the governor's controversy with that board early in Ferguson's second term of office, Jones was removed from his position as a regent in 1917. He died the following year at his daughter's home in Virginia. (2001)
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
Samuel and Charlotte Jones came to teach at Salado College in 1884, and in 1890 opened Thomas Arnold High School in its former buildings, running the private school for over two decades. After Charlotte died in 1904, S. J. Jones carried on as head until 1913. In 1915 Governor James E. Ferguson—a former Salado College student—named him to the University of Texas Board of Regents, only for Jones to be swept out in 1917 amid Ferguson's bitter fight with that board.
Why it matters
The Joneses embody the private academies that carried education in rural Texas, and Jones's ouster ties this small town to one of the state's most notorious political battles over its university.
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Related people
- · Samuel Jackson Jones
- · Charlotte Hallaran Jones
- · James E. Ferguson
Themes & tags
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