Horace M. Jones was born in Neenah, Wisconsin on February 11, 1859.  His wife, Alice E. Johnson, was born in Greenville, Wisconsin in 1859. They were married in Princeton, Wisconsin, on September 21, 1876 and resided in New Mexico for eleven years before moving to Fargo in 1887.  Mr. Jones was a postal carrier for more than thirty years; being one of Fargo's earliest mail carriers.  Mr. and Mrs. Jones had three children: Horace M. Jones, Jr. (March 1, 1900-October 12,1918), Mrs. Luella Spicer (b. February 1893), and Mrs. Irene Edgar (b. October 1886), who was a bookkeeper at Dakota Drug, and later moved to Florosa, Florida with her mother.  Horace M. Jones, Jr. enlisted in the U.S. Army on June 21, 1918.  He was stationed at Jefferson Barracks, Missouri, and Camp Crane, Pennsylvania, where he served in the medical department.  He died on October 12, 1918 from a relapse of pneumonia while home on furlough.

The correspondence is contained in eight files. The letters to family contains twenty seven letters written by H.M. Jones Jr. from June 21 to September 11, 1918.  The letters written by Horace are a testament to the homesickness felt by an average eighteen year old soldier while away from home.  The letters from the U.S. War Department are from the Camp Crane Infirmary to Mr. and Mrs. Jones regarding Horace's pneumonia and subsequent operation, dating from July 22 to August 28, 1918. 
 

Military  Personal and Family Papers