Edgar Jones (Nashville, TN)
Edgar Jones (February 18, 1838 – May 15, 1930)
Biography
- Name: Edgar Jones
- Birth: February 18, 1838 Aberdeen, Mississippi
- Death: May 15, 1930 Nashville, Tennessee
- Spouse: Susan Saunders Cheatham (1846-1928) (Married 1866)
Edgar Jones was born in Aberdeen, Mississippi on February 18, 1838. He moved with his mother and siblings to Nashville after his father, Caleb, was killed in the Mexican-American War in 1847, at the Battle of Vera Cruz. He was educated by his uncle, Alfred Hume, who was the founder of the Nashville public schools.
Edgar began his banking career in 1856 as a clerk with the Northern Bank of Tennessee in Clarksville, Tennessee. In 1857, another uncle, William Hume, offered him the clerk's position at the Planters Bank of Clarksville. In February, 1862, after the fall of Ft. Donelson, he brought, with Mr. Dempsey Weaver, the bank's books and valuables by carriage to the Planters Bank of Nashville, where he stayed in employment until the bank closed in 1865. In 1865 he, Dempsey Weaver, and William Wells Berry organized the Third National Bank of Nashville, and on June 16, 1865, they were granted charter 1296, and opened for business in the old Planters Bank building at the corner of Union and College streets (now Union and 3rd Ave N) in downtown Nashville. Edgar was elected cashier of this new institution. Edgar married Susan Saunders Cheatham in Nashville in late 1866. Susan was the daughter of Edward Saunders Cheatham and Jane Ellen (Foster) Cheatham. Edward was twice the Speaker of the Tennessee State Senate, and Cheatham County, Tennessee is named after him.
In 1884, Third National merged with the American National Bank of Nashville, charter 3032, and Edgar was promoted to vice-president of that bank. After the president of American National was killed in a horse and buggy accident, Edgar was appointed as president of American National on August 31, 1888. On March 25, 1891, he resigned as president of American National in order to organize a new bank and trust, and on July 20, 1891, the Union Bank & Trust opened for business with Edgar Jones as it's president. On January 12, 1909, Edgar resigned his position and retired as president, and on October 4, 1911, Union Bank & Trust merged with American National.
Edgar had purchased a home for himself and his wife just south of Nashville. He and Susan were married December 4, 1866. This homestead is known as the Glen Oak mansion, and Edgar amassed a few hundred acres surrounding his house. He donated 20 acres of this land to secure a new university, and those 20 acres became part of the original site of Vanderbilt University's medical school. After he left the Union Bank & Trust, he formed a real estate company to subdivide 85 additional acres of his land, in this area of town known today as the Hillsboro Village. The Glen Oak mansion is now on the National Register of Historic Places at 2012 25th Ave S, and is where Susan Cheatham Jones died on February 1, 1928 and is also where Edgar Jones died on May 15, 1930, at the age of 92 years. He was buried in Mt. Olivet Cemetery, in Nashville.
Bank Officer Summary
During his banking career, Edgar Jones was involved with the following bank(s):
- Third National Bank, Nashville, TN (Charter 1296): Cashier 1865-1884
- American National Bank, Nashville, TN (Charter 3032): President 1888-1891
References
- Bio written up by Greg Culpepper from Ancestry.com and Newspapers.com articles.
- https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/94974728/edgar-jones
- Banks & Bankers Historical Database (1782-1935), https://bbdata.banknotehistory.com