The Jones family moved to Jacksonville and, then, Mandarin, Florida in the late 1800's. Kathy's greatgrandfather, Walter Jones, was the postmaster and proprietor of the Mandarin Store. The store was first located at the steamboat landing in Mandarin. As roads were built and improved and vehicular traffic increased, another store was built on Mandarin Road.
His daughter, Agnes Jones, followed in his footsteps. From the time she took over from her father to her retirement in 1965, Miss Aggie was a central part of the Mandarin community. Her "general store" carried a wide variety of dry goods, groceries, including fresh meat (which Miss Aggie would cut and prepare), and a selection of other supplies (5 cent Cokes, Moon Pies and much more). Miss Aggie was the source of local (and sometimes national) news. She did most of the work herself - buying, stocking shelves, pumping gas, selling groceries and dry goods, and managing the post office. She ocassionally received help from her sisters, her brothers, her nephews and, later, one of her great nieces.
The store is now owned by the Mandarin Museum and Historical Society and was designated as the Walter Jones Museum in 1994.
Donations for the renovation of the store or for the preservation of Mandarin may be made to the Mandarin Museum and Historical Society.
For more information on Historic Mandarin (once the summer home of Harriet Beecher Stowe), please refer to: