Reprinted for the Pittsylvania Historical Society and Chatham First from the original edition, published 1983 by Langhorne Jones, Sr., Chatham, Virginia. 30pp. 5.5 x 8.5 inches. Softcover, saddle stitched. Mitchells Publications Catalog #PHS007 — currently unavailable at Mitchells, but see below: alternate source Shadetree Rare Books. (Please note that this collectible publication is “old stock,” and may show some effects of its long storage, such as slight discoloration of the cover and corrosion of the fasteners.)
Tales About People in a Small Town is described as follows by the author in the preface to the book:
“Having lived in the town of Chatham for 83 years, I have known many of the residents of the town and county. I have heard a lot of humorous stories about them and some have been published in the Star-Tribune. Many persons who have read them have urged me to have them compiled so they could be kept for the future. This pamphlet contains many of them and it is hoped will give some pleasure to those who read them.”
The reprinted book is offered by the Jones family as a fundraiser for Chatham First and the Pittsylvania Historical Society.
Judge Langhorne Jones, Sr., was born on the Ides of March 1902 in Chatham, Pittsylvania County, Virginia, on the same night the business district of the town burned. Therefore his birthday was remembered by all. (See “The Chatham Fire of 1902 and the Birth of Langhorne Jones.”) He was the first child of John Martin and Mary Emma Whitehead Jones, both born of parents from old Pittsylvania County families.
His early education began in the back yard of his parents' home in Chatham in a private school taught by Miss Elmire Starbuck, who had also taught President Taft. Later he enrolled in Chatham Training School (now Hargrave Military Academy) and then attended Hampden-Sydney College and the University of Virginia School of Law. He began law practice in 1926 in Chatham and continued for 31 years prior to his appointment to the judgeship of the 22nd Circuit Court in 1957. Judge Jones sat on the bench for 16 years until he retired in 1973, and afterwards as needed for five additional years. He took pride in the fact that none of his decisions was ever overturned by the Virginia State Supreme Court.
He served in many professional, church, and civic offices, and as a member of Virginia's House of Delegates (1932-1933).
This website is sponsored by Mitchells Publications, Chatham, Virginia.