Transcriber note: This entire section was exerpted from the below mentioned reference. Please note that the date of this article was 1973.

The Famous Jones Diamond The "Jones Diamond" is a product of West Virginia having been found in the town of Peterstown and county of Monroe. It has been described by many expects as one of the finest blue-white diamonds ever discovered and has been estimated by some experts as having a value of more than $100,000.00 although it has never actually been appraised.
The famous diamond may properly be referred to as "The Grover Jones Diamond," "The Punch Jones Diamond," or "The Horseshoe Diamond." The Grover Jones and Punch Jones names were derived by virtue of the fact that the stone was discovered by Grover Jones and son, "Punch" Jones, while pitching horseshoe. The "Horseshoe Diamond" name obviously resulted from the fact the stone was knocked from the ground while the two were pitching horseshoes.
Much irony surrounds the "Jones Diamond." William "Punch" Jones, co-finder of the diamond, worked his way through college during the depression while a small fortune apparently rested in a tool shed behind the modest home in which he was born. During the time his father, Grover Jones, Sr., struggled as a county school teacher to provide for his large family. The further irony is that William "Punch" Jones never lived to enjoy the benefits which should come from being a co-finder of such a diamond. He entered World War II in 1941 and was killed in action in 1945, leaving the stone on display in the Smithsonian Institute at Washington, D.C. where it rested.
The family of Grover Jones, Sr., is as fascinating as the story of the "Jones Diamond." Seventeen children were born to Mr. and Mrs. Jones of which the first sixteen were all boys. In 1940, the Grover Jones family was invited to the New York World's Fair and were featured there. While being in New York, they were guests of the then President of the United States, Franklin D. Roosevelt, were introduced on National Broadcasting Company, and met the governor of New York and Mayor of New York City. Many business opportunists saw a chance to reap financial benefits due to the numerical size of the family and the consecutive male births and invited Mr. Jones to tour the United States with his family, but Mr. Jones, thinking that his family was being exploited, refused to do so and returned with his family to the hometown of Peterstown, West Virginia.
This stone has been displayed at the West Virginia State Fair, Lewisburg, West Virginia. It was felt that since the diamond was found in southern West Virginia, only forty-five miles from where the fair is held, that the opportunity should be given for West Virginians, as well as interested parties from other states, to view the stone which has brought west virginia fame, as well as the small town of Peterstown, West Virginia.
A state marker located in Peterstown gives a concise history of the diamond:

Home of the Jones Diamond
An alluvial diamond weighing 34.48 carats, largest to date found in North American was discovered here in April 1928, by William P. "Punch" Jones and his father Grover C. Jones, Sr., while pitching horseshoes in the home yard of Mrs. and Mrs. Grover C. Jones. "Punch" was later killed in combat during World War II. Mr. and Mrs. Grover C. Jones still retain ownership of the diamond.

The Children of Grover C. Jones and Annie Buckland Jones
The names of the seventeen children of this couple in order of birth are: William P. Jones, who paid the supreme sacrifice during World War II in Europe on April 1, 1945; Robert, Roanoke, Virginia; Richard B., Peterstown, WestVirginia; Thomas, Peterstown; John, Leckie, West Virginia; Paul L., Peterstown; Woodrow W., Galion, Ohio; Tad, Peterstown; Willard W., Peterstown; Pete, Galion, Ohio; Rufus, Peterstown; Grover C., Peterstown; Buck, Peterstown; Franklin D., Peterstown; Leslie H., Wheeling, West Virginia; Giles M., Peterstown; Charlotte Ann, Huntington, West Virginia.
The only deceased member of this family is William P. Jones who is interred in the cemetery in Peterstown.

Mr. and Mrs. Grover C. Jones reside in Peterstown and also ten of the children are in this community.
Charles B. Motley, Gleanings of Monroe County West Virginia History (Radford, Va: Commonwealth Press, Inc., 1973) 122-124.

This page hosted by Get your own Free Home Page

This page updated last on February 14, 1998 Copyright © 1997, 1998 Gina Rose All Rights Reserved Unauthorized Use for Commercial Purposes Prohibited