Jones Funeral Parlor: Record of Deaths and Coffins Bought 1905 – 1936

Galax, Virginia

Prepared by Buford C Wilson January 2004

Introduction

This information is taken from two journals kept by Mr Walter M Jones Sr, for the Jones Funeral Parlor. The journals have been donated to the Jeff Matthews Museum by the family of Walter M Jones Jr.

The Jones family operated a furniture store, R E Jones & Son. They also opened a funeral parlor in 1905. Apparently they bought coffins, caskets, and couches. It appears they also manufactured some of the caskets themselves.

The books are beautifully hand written in the old style writing, but some of the names are very difficult to read. There are several mistakes in spelling that look like typos, but they are just the original spelling. I did not try to edit the books, but tried to copy the information as it appears in the journals.

Many of the entries in the journal tell the name of the deceased person or who the person was. In the later years of the business, the deceased person’s name was often omitted and only the name of the purchaser was listed. In some cases it is possible to determine that the deceased person was a woman, as women’s clothing was purchased at the same time. Some of the entries just don’t give a clue as to the identity of the deceased person.