PRESERVING THE LIFE AND LEGACY OF CONGRESSMAN ED JONES

PRESERVING THE LIFE AND LEGACY OF CONGRESSMAN ED JONES

MARTIN, Tenn. – Ed Jones, a 10-term U.S. representative for Tennessee’s 7 th and 8 th Districts,

worked his way through college by showing cattle. He graduated from the University of

Tennessee Junior College, a predecessor to the University of Tennessee at Martin, in 1932 before

earning a degree in agriculture from UT’s flagship campus in Knoxville. The Yorkville native

later used his love and understanding of the agriculture industry to become the state’s

commissioner of agriculture and later support national agricultural and conservation initiatives

during 20 years of service in the U.S. House of Representatives.

Now, his granddaughter, Meghan Kinnard Hardee, and her husband, Geoffrey, as well as

Meghan’s mother (and Jones’ daughter), Dr. Jennifer Kinnard, and the John Tanner family are

working to preserve Jones’ legacy for future generations of researchers, historians and

politicians. (Tanner filled Jones’ seat in the U.S. House of Representatives and served from

1989-2011).

“The legacy of Ed Jones is very complex, but it’s also a fantastic example of the American

dream,” said Geoffrey. “(He is) the poor son of a sharecropper who works hard and shows cows

so he can afford to go to college, who becomes commissioner of agriculture and a U.S.

congressman. … He really didn’t care about the power. He and (his wife,) Llew, tried hard to

avoid Washington (D.C.) life and society. They didn’t go out at night. They went to bed early,

and they came home to Yorkville as soon as they could. He only went to Congress to serve the

people and the farmers.”

Jones, a Democrat, was elected to represent Tennessee’s 8 th Congressional District in 1969 after

the death of Robert “Fats” Everett left the seat vacant. He spent the next nine congressional

sessions representing the state’s 7 th (1973-82) and 8 th Districts (1969-72, 83-88) before retiring in

1988.

In his resignation speech, Jones cited wanting to spend more time with his granddaughter, Meg,

as one of his motivating factors for leaving his post as U.S. representative. For this reason and

many others, the Hardees hope to honor his life’s work by helping others learn from his

accomplishments.

“This isn’t just a sentimental project. We want Grandaddy’s legacy to remain useful to future

generations,” said Meghan.

The project includes several phases, including the digitization of records from both Jones and

Tanner, the creation of a documentary film about Jones’ life and the publication of a biography

written by the Hardees.

The digitization project will make both Jones’ and Tanner’s records available for researchers

around the world in order to preserve the legacies of both men and highlight the historical impact

of Tennessee’s 8 th Congressional District.

The University of Tennessee at Martin serves as a central hub for this project, and staff members

at the university’s Paul Meek Library will begin digitizing Jones’ extensively archived collection

as soon as the necessary equipment has been purchased.

“Last spring, we started counting paper just so we would have a general idea of how large the

(Ed Jones) collection is … and there’s over a million pieces of paper,” said Karen Elmore, senior

library assistant in special collections. “When I talk to people and I say, ‘Ed Jones,’ they say, ‘I

remember when he was on the radio every Saturday morning,’ or ‘My parents used to get his

newsletter.’ So we’ve decided that’s what we’re going to start with, and then hopefully we’ll get

into some of the pictures of when constituents went to Washington.”

The documentary film is being produced in part by UT Martin students and alumni under the

direction of the Hardees, thus providing valuable real-world experience to budding historians and

journalists from Jones’ alma mater.

“We didn’t want this to be a big Hollywood production,” said Geoffrey. “We wanted it to be a

local production that ties back to this university, and we wanted to make sure students were

involved in that process.”

Ashleigh Burton, a UT Martin alum from South Fulton, and Julia Ewoldt, a current student from

Savannah, are working with the documentary’s production team, and Georgia Brown, a current

student from Martin, is serving as a student research assistant for both the book and film projects.

The biography, titled “Grassroots Politickin’ – The Life and Legacy of Ed Jones,” is being

published through UT Press and includes contributions from well-known names such as former

Tennessee governor Don Sundquist and former President Jimmy Carter, as well as memories and

information submitted by Jones’ local friends, family members and constituents.

“Grandaddy owed his education to UT Martin and to UT Knoxville. Without the firm foundation

that having these schools in Tennessee offered him, he would have never achieved the level of

success that he did, and he would never have been able to help so many people,” said Meghan.

“That’s why we’ve chosen UT Martin as a place to invest and share our blessings. I know

Grandaddy would want us to do this because he cared so deeply about the people of West

Tennessee. Geoffrey and I are convinced that UT Martin is vital to the success of this region, and

-more-

LIFE AND LEGACY, Page 3

being good stewards of his legacy and the gifts we’ve been given means planting seeds here that

will see this region thrive as it moves into the future.”

Jones passed away in December 1999 at the age of 87 and was posthumously inducted into the

Tennessee Agricultural Hall of Fame in 2011. Proceeds from the sale of Jones’ biography will

benefit UT Martin and the Ed and Llew Jones Legacy Fund, which finances student scholarships

and guest speakers, among other initiatives.

The digitization project is funded by gifts from the Hardees, Dr. Jennifer Kinnard and the John

Tanner family as well as a grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

For more information on the Ed Jones legacy project or to contribute stories to the

autobiography, contact Geoffrey Hardee at gahardee@gmail.com or search “Grassroots

Politickin’ – The Life and Legacy of Ed Jones” on Facebook.com.