Phineas Jones

Phineas Jones was an American businessman and Republican politician who represented New Jersey's 6th congressional district in the United States [House of Representatives] for one term from 1881 to 1883.

Early life and family

Jones was born in Spencer, Massachusetts, on April 18, 1819, to Phineas Jones, a soldier in the American Revolutionary War, and Hannah Phillips, a descendant of Rev. George Phillips who settled Watertown, Massachusetts, in 1630.

Early career

He attended the common schools in Spencer and moved to Elizabeth, New Jersey in 1855, where he was a member of the city council of Elizabeth from 1856 to 1860. He moved to Newark in 1860 and engaged in manufacturing and mercantile pursuits.
He was vice president of the New Jersey State Agricultural Society, and served as a member of the New Jersey General Assembly in 1873 and 1874.

Congress

Jones was elected as a Republican to the 47th [United States Congress|Forty-seventh Congress], serving in office from March 4, 1881 - March 3, 1883, but declined to be a candidate for renomination in 1882.

Later life

After leaving Congress, Jones retired from active life and died in Newark on April 19, 1884, the day after his 65th birthday. He was interred in Evergreen Cemetery in Hillside, New Jersey.