M. Jones Taxi

Green Book Entry/Entries
M. Jones--1209 E. Queen St.
Green Book Category
Taxis
Years Listed
1939-1941, 1947-1955
Region
Coastal Plain
County
Wilson

 

Although listed in the Green Book from 1939-1941 and 1947-1955, M. Jones Taxi first appears in directory records around 1930 and was no longer in operation by 1940. The address provided for the taxi service in the Green Book was 1209 E. Queen Street. It was listed in the Green Book as “M. Jones -- 1209 E. Queen St.” under Taxis” in 1939 and under “Taxicabs” after 1940.1

North Carolina native Mack Jones became an independent taxi chauffeur - or taxi driver - around 1930. Jones first operated the business from his home at 1204 E. Queen Street in Wilson, but had moved a few doors down to 1209 E. Queen Street by the time his business appeared in the Green Book in 1939.2

Mack Jones married Bessie Greene on July 26, 1920. The couple had one child, Ruth, born in 1921, and lived at 1213 Queen Street early in their marriage. Mack and Bessie separated prior to 1940. In 1940, Bessie and Ruth both worked as hangers at a tobacco factory and resided at 1209 E. Queen Street in Wilson. Orlander Brown (also a tobacco worker)  moved into Bessie’s home on Queen Street around 1941, and the couple married in 1946.  Mack moved to Durham; in 1940, he worked as a laborer and was a lodger in the home of Alice Taylor at 608 St. Joseph Street.3

Essay by Brandie K. Ragghianti, 2019

Notes

  1. Victor Green, 1939 Green Book, 33; Green, 1940 Green Book, 36; Green, 1941 Green Book, 36; Green, 1947 Green Book, 65; Green, 1948 Green Book, 63; Green, 1949 Green Book, 57; Green, 1950 Green Book, 63; Green, 1951 Green Book, 54; Green, 1952 Green Book, 54; Green, 1953 Green Book, 54; Green, 1954 Green Book, 54; Green, 1955 Green Book, 54. 
  2. Hill’s Wilson (Wilson County, N.C.) City Directory, 1930 (Richmond, VA: Hill Directory Company), alphabetical listing, pp. 158, 320; 1930 United States Census, Wilson, Wilson County, NC, digital images s.v. "Mack Jones,” accessed from www.ancestry.com.
  3. Mack Jones and Bessie Greene, Wilson, Wilson County, February 26, 1920, North Carolina Marriage Records, 1741-2011, accessed from www.ancestry.com; Mack Jones and Bessie Greene, Wilson, Wilson County, July 26, 1920, North Carolina Marriage Records, 1741-2011, accessed from www.ancestry.com; Thurmon Turner and Ruth Jones, Emporia, Greensville County, September 22, 1940, Virginia Marriage Records, 1936-2014, accessed from www.ancestry.com;  Mack Jones (child Ruth Jones), 1921, Wilson, Wilson County, North Carolina Birth and Death Indexes, 1800-2000, accessed from www.familysearch.org; Hill’s Wilson (Wilson County, N.C.) City Directory, 1925 (Richmond, VA: Hill Directory Company),alphabetical listing, pp. 142, 144; 1940 United States Census, Durham, Durham County, NC, digital images s.v. "Mack Jones,” accessed from www.ancestry.com; 1940 United States Census, Wilson, Wilson County, NC, digital images s.v. "Berine Jones,” accessed from www.ancestry.com; Bessie Brown and Orlander Brown, Wilson, Wilson County, September 30, 1946, North Carolina Marriage Records, 1741-2011, accessed from www.ancestry.com; Hill’s Wilson (Wilson County, N.C.) City Directory, 1941 (Richmond, VA: Hill Directory Company), alphabetical listing, pp. 63, 144, 377; Hill’s Wilson (Wilson County, N.C.) City Directory, 1947 (Richmond, VA: Hill Directory Company), alphabetical listing, pp. 77.