Samuel M. Jones

Samuel Milton Jones, a.k.a. "Golden Rule Jones", lived from 1846 to 1904 and served as a Progressive Era Mayor of Toledo, Ohio from 1897 to 1904 (he passed away while still in office). Born in Denbighshire, Wales, Jones emigrated to the United States in 1849. Jones had little education because he had work in order to help his family survive economically. Jones held many jobs in his younger years, the most important of which was the position he accepted at the oil fields of western Pennsylvania, where he gained a good deal of knowledge of the oil industry and was able to accumulate some modest sums. In 1870, Jones used his knowledge and savings to start his own oil firm. After the death of his wife in 1885, Jones moved to Lima, Ohio, in search of oil. He also helped established the Ohio Oil Company which was later bought by Standard Oil Company, making Jones a wealthy man. Jones later moved to Toledo, Ohio, in 1892, where he established the S. M. Jones Company which manufactured tools for the oil industry.

Jones was different than the other businessmen of the time, he paid decent wages that people could support their families on. In return he just asked his workers to work hard, be honest, and follow the golden rule. In 1897 Jones received the Republican nomination for mayor of Toledo. Workers liked his golden rule policy and united behind him, and he won the mayoral election. He strove to improve conditions for the working class of his community. Jones opened free kindergartens, built parks, instituted an eight-hour day for city workers, and reformed the city government. While Jones was not well liked by other businessmen, the average citizen supported him. When his term was over Jones was not renominated by the Republicans. He ran anyway, and, with the support of the people, he won a second term in 1899. Jones died suddenly during his second term as mayor on July 12, 1904. His successor, Brand Whitlock, continued Jones' reform efforts.

Jones is famous in Toledo for his advocacy of the Golden Rule, hence his nickname. He was an important part of American Progressivism. While he was often mistaken for a socialist, he was not.

Jones was referenced in Chapter 14 of "The Science of Getting Rich" by Wallace Wattles.

ee also

List of mayors of Toledo, Ohio

External links

* [http://www.ohiohistorycentral.org/entry.php?rec=218 Samuel M. Jones] at Ohio History Central online encyclopedia
* [http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=10422 Samuel Jones at Find-A-Grave]
* [http://www.toledosattic.org/details.asp?did=53 Exhibit on Samuel Jones]

Persondata
NAME=Jones, Samuel Milton
ALTERNATIVE NAMES=Golden Rule Jones
SHORT DESCRIPTION=Mayor of Toledo, Ohio, 1897–1904
DATE OF BIRTH=1846
PLACE OF BIRTH=Ty Mawr, Denbighshire, Wales
DATE OF DEATH=1904
PLACE OF DEATH=Toledo, Ohio