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Wesley L. Jones papers, 1896-1932

Overview of the Collection

Creator
Jones, Wesley Livsey, 1863-1932
Title
Wesley L. Jones papers
Dates
1896-1932 (inclusive)
Quantity
148.28 cubic feet (353 boxes, 1 folder)
Collection Number
0157
Summary
Papers of a Republican United States Representative for Washington, 1899-1908, and Senator for Washington, 1909-1919
Repository
University of Washington Libraries, Special Collections
Special Collections
University of Washington Libraries
Box 352900
Seattle, WA
98195-2900
Telephone: 2065431929
Fax: 2065431931
speccoll@uw.edu
Access Restrictions

Open to all users.

Request at UW

Languages
English
Sponsor
Funding for encoding this finding aid was partially provided through a grant awarded by the National Endowment for the Humanities.
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Biographical Note

Wesley Livsey Jones was born on an Illinois farm in 1863, just days after his father died while serving in the Union army. Jones became a lawyer, and at the age of 26 he moved his practice to North Yakima (now Yakima). He quickly became involved with the Republican Party and was nominated to run for the U.S. House of Representatives in 1898. The Republican slate in Washington swept the elections, whisking Jones into office. He served in the House for ten years before running successfully for the U.S. Senate in 1908. He described himself a “conservative progressive”; a desire for compromise and an aversion to controversy characterized his political style. When many Republicans bolted to form the Progressive Party in 1912, Jones remained a “regular” Republican but moderated the dispute and helped pave the way for the re-integration of Washington’s Progressives in 1916.

Jones rose to become the Republican whip and served as chairman of the powerful Appropriations and Commerce Committees. Jones unflaggingly promoted federal investment in the Pacific Northwest; he led the development of the Puget Sound Navy Yard at Bremerton, successfully championed several federal irrigation projects in the region, and drafted the Jones Merchant Marine Act of 1920, which stipulated that only American ships could carry cargo between American ports (which made Alaska dependent on Seattle-owned shipping firms). Jones also helped craft the compromise which became the Federal Water Power Act of 1920. Jones staunchly advocated Prohibition throughout his career and sponsored several failed bills to tighten enforcement of the Volstead Act in the 1920s. While this “dry” stance initially increased his popularity, Jones seemed out of touch and puritanical in the late-1920s as Washingtonians increasingly viewed Prohibition as a failure. Jones ran for a fifth term in 1932, but was hampered both by deteriorating health and by association with an unpopular party headed by the unpopular President Hoover. Just as a Republican landslide had swept him into Congress thirty-four years earlier, a Democratic landslide swept him out in 1932 and replaced him with the liberal Homer Bone. Jones died less than three weeks after his defeat.

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Content Description

Primarily consists of correspondence from Jones’s time in the Senate, 1908-1932. Material from his tenure in the House of Representative is sparse. Also includes subject files, clippings, news releases, and speeches and writings. Of special interest is documentation on Prohibition, federal investments in the Pacific Northwest, and the Merchant Marine Act.

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Use of the Collection

Restrictions on Use

Creator's literary rights not transferred to the University of Washington Libraries.

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Administrative Information

Arrangement

Arranged in 2 accessions:

  • Accession No. 0157-001, Wesley L. Jones papers, 1896-1932
  • Accession No. 0157-002, Wesley L. Jones letters, 1918, 1920

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Detailed Description of the Collection

 

Names and SubjectsReturn to Top

Subject Terms

  • Prohibition

Personal Names

  • Jones, Wesley Livsey, 1863-1932--Archives

Geographical Names

  • Washington (State)--History--1889-
  • Washington (State)--Politics and government--1889-1950

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Subject Terms

  • Personal Papers/Corporate Records (University of Washington)


2007 (Last modified: 12/4/2017)

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