North Carolina formed Jones County from Craven in 1779, and named the town of Trenton the county seat in 1784. Willie (pronounced Wiley) Jones, Revolutionary leader and president of the North Carolina Council of Safety, from Halifax is the county’s namesake. Born in 1741 in Surry County, Virginia, Jones moved with his family to Northampton County, North Carolina, just a few miles south of the town of Halifax, in 1753. That same year he was sent to England to be educated at Eton and returned to North Carolina five years later. He was described as a “peculiarly thoughtful and eccentric man.”
Like many prominent men of the era, Jones was a enslaver, plantation owner, and statesman. He represented either Halifax County or the town of Halifax in the North Carolina Provincial Congress in 1774, 1775, and 1776, and later served in the House of Commons and State Senate. Jones married Mary Montfort in 1776, and the couple had thirteen children, only five of which lived to adulthood. After independence was achieved, Jones became an ardent Anti-federalist, opposing the United States Constitution. His last public role was helping determine the location of the new Capitol at Raleigh in 1791. He moved to Raleigh the same year and lived there until his death in 1801. Jones County, Raleigh’s Jones Street, and Jonesborough, Tennessee are named after him. Jones’ other unique claim to fame comes from another well-known Revolutionary personality. When young Scotsman John Paul arrived in the United States, he was shown such kindness by Willie and Mary Jones that he adopted their surname, becoming John Paul Jones, the father of the United States Navy.
Located in eastern North Carolina, Jones County is largely rural and agricultural. The area was home to the Tuscarora people prior to the arrival of Swiss and German, and later English settlers. In its early days the county was heavily dependent on tobacco and lumber production, mostly carried out by the hands of enslaved laborers. The county occupies just under 474 square miles and has a population of nearly 10,000 residents. Aside from the county seat of Trenton, the only other incorporated towns are Maysville and Pollocksville. The county shares boundaries with Craven, Onslow, Duplin, Lenoir, and Carteret counties. Some local attractions include Brock’s Millpond in Trenton and Foscue Plantation just outside Pollocksville.