At left, one of Trenton’» shaded streets mokes it typical of mony leisurely eastern Corolino to»ns. At right is the old home of
Senator F. M. Simmons, no» owned by John Pork of Rolcigh.
Stories About Old Homes,
Old Families, Old Schools
It has been said that Jones is one of
the most old-fashioned counties in
North Carolina. If you mean old-
fashioned manners and old-fashioned
hospitality residing in literally old-
fashioned houses, you'll be mighty
right.
The story of the historic homes in
Jones would fill a book. The Kooncc
place or Eagle Nest Farm, has been
mentioned in the main story. Over
towards Pollocksvillc off of route 58
stands the Waller home with its dis¬
tinctive divided chimney. The house,
dating from near the Revolution, was
in the family of Ada Barry Strong for
153 years before Mr. and Mrs. Harry S.
Waller acquired it. Their son is county
tax collector.
Sen. Furnifold Simmons' home is
also between Trenton and Pollocks¬
villc. John Parks of Raleigh, who mar¬
ried into the family, now owns the
farm.
Three or four miles north of Pol¬
locksvillc on U.S. 17 stands the tra¬
ditionally haunted Foscuc place. It
seems that local Negroes regard all of
the county's older homes as spooked.
This one was the first brick dwelling
in Jones, and most of the building ma¬
terials were imported from England.
It must have seen some high society
when Leon Simmons' mother was
growing up there. At present, the house
is tenanted by Bobby and Linwood
Meadows. Mr. Simmons' paternal
THE STATE. APRIL 14. 1962
grandfather also owned a fine three
story home, for which he hand-picked
the timber. Located in the Oak grove
area, the house was spared by Sher¬
man's army, which otherwise ruined
the plantation. Claude Banks lives and
farms there now.
Notable Citizens
A family name significant in both
the past and present of Trenton is
that of Brock. Furnifold Brock was a
state Senator from the district in the
generation before last, and his six chil¬
dren inherited the Brock Mill Pond.
Mrs. F. Brock was a Foscuc. First
cousin to Furnifold and son of Isaac
Brock was the late J. K. Brock, former
postmaster of Trenton. Mis soil Don¬
ald P. Brock is county attorney, and in
addition to regular practice, is currently
engaged in compiling a packet of in¬
formation on Jones. Such a project has
long been needed, since the county
has no official historian and the facts
scattered among the old-time popula¬
tion may soon be lost.
Another prominent citizen of Jones
with the unusual name of Furni¬
fold was Senator Furnifold Simmons.
Simmons descended from one of the
Palatine families and has a son living
in Pollocksvillc. He served in U.S.
C ongress from 1900 to 1930. a rec-
cord term, and revolted against the
Democratic Party when it nominated
Al Smith in 1928.
To enumerate all of the old families
of Jones would cover page after page
of fascinating history and intricate re¬
lationships. There is probably not a
single proud name in the county which
has not. at some time or other, linked
itself with that of an equally distinctive
ancestry. The untangling of all these
family trees would be an intriguing
task for some interested native with a
scholarly turn of mind.
There are very few newcomers in
Jones County, and some that came
have stayed and done well. An out¬
standing example is John Larkins, who
served in the N. C. State Senate for
over twenty years, was Democratic
Party Chairman and National Commit¬
teeman. ran for governor in I960
and in 1961 was appointed to a federal
Judgeship. Judge Larkins came to
Trenton in 1930 after graduating from
Wake Forest and practicing law in
Charlotte. He had married an Ons¬
low County girl. Pauline Murrill,
whose mother was an old friend of
Mrs. Lina Foscue of Trenton. Mrs.
Foscuc convinced the couple that Tren¬
ton would be a good place for a young
lawyer to live, and offered the Larkins
an apartment in her home until they
could get settled. Lawyer Larkins also
served as an ex-officio Chamber of
Commerce for a number of years, an¬
swering the many letters of school chil¬
dren and others which came to the
County scat.
Schools
Prior to the Civil War there were
no schools in Jones other than those
connected with the churches. A few of
( Continued on page 28)
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