The Adventures of Captain Jemmy Jones
Born in Wales in about 1830, James “Jemmy” or “Jimmy” Jones was “one of British Columbia’s most noted characters whose celebrity extended down to Washington, San Francisco, and Mexico.”1 He left Wales at an early age to search for his father who he located working in a coal mine in Pennsylvania. His adventurous spirit led him overland to Salt Lake with a group of Mormons. From there he went to California in 1849, part of their great gold rush. After a few years he ended up at Bellingham working in a coal mine. Eventually he earned enough money to purchase his first vessel, the schooner Emily Parker.2
With this vessel he entered the trading business between Puget Sound and Vancouver Island. This venture was short lived. In 1856 this schooner caught fire and sank off Clover Point near Victoria.3
He then had another vessel built, the Wild Pigeon. This vessel was also a short-lived affair. One stormy December day in 1858, when leaving Victoria Harbour with at least eight passengers on board, the vessel capsized. Fortunately, no lives were lost. “Great credit is due to Whitehall boatmen for their promptitude in rescuing them from their dangerous situation” reported the January 1, 1859 British Colonist.
The next vessel he built was the schooner for the coastal trade. It went into service in 1859. During a wind storm in October 1861, the was forced onto an island in Baynes Sound, where it filled with water and sank. Captain Jones and his five-man crew swam to shore. The schooner’s mast and sails were removed, it was raised, and then it was repaired. The was a very fast vessel and made a few record speed runs, around the coast. One record run was between Victoria and Nanaimo in 1862 with a load of coal. Jones made the trip in twenty-eight hours — a time that was never equaled with a sailing vessel. In 1863 Captain Jones sold the to Mr. William Duncan, a missionary at Metlakatla, near Prince Rupert, for $1,500.
