For his determination to secure a local visit by a Revolutionary War hero, Samuel Williams Jones (1791-1855) has become the subject of a newly-published biography written by a team of Siena students.
The Marquis de Lafayette was much admired by Americans for his role in securing liberty for the new nation. In 1824, the last surviving Continental Army general began a nationwide tour, and Jones, a Schenectady alderman, wanted very much for him to visit his city, which he did the following year.
Students from the New York State History honors class taught last spring by Jennifer Dorsey, Ph.D., professor of history, researched Jones’ diary to learn about his daily life and his views about his community and country. Jones felt that citizens were no longer patriots and that the new leaders of the country were not as virtuous as the Founders.
Their resulting article, “On the Road to Democracy,” was published in the Winter 2025 edition of the New York Archives. To help reach younger audiences, the magazine just launched New York Archives Jr. and the team’s research was also featured in its inaugural edition. Listed as co-authors are Victoria Welsh ‘24, Sarah Brock ‘25, William Gibney ‘26, Rachel Hayes ‘25, Jonathan Levin ‘25, Olivia Pause ’25 and Caroline Tanahy ‘25.
The class worked closely with the Schenectady County Historical Society to learn about Jones’ life and times. Archives is always on the lookout for articles that will appeal to a general audience of history enthusiasts, and Dorsey, a member of its editorial board, thought the students’ work would fit the bill.
The Society has just processed Jones’ diary and letters and made them available to researchers. Archivist Marietta Carr felt there might be something there for the class to use in learning the mechanics of researching and writing a biography.
“The students came out of this writing project with more confidence as researchers, knowing they have the capacity to do the work of biography,” said Dorsey. “Through this article, they are teaching an audience of New Yorkers about this individual and his time.”
Levin’s favorite part of the project was realizing that “you don't necessarily need to be an icon to be a part of history.
“Samuel Jones was a career politician – respected, but not famous. Yet, he was instrumental in bringing two very important men to Schenectady [Lafayette and President Martin Van Buren]. Jones' journal is a treasure. For me, at least, he is a hero. He is a small story in the big story of New York state history.”
Welsh shared that she enjoyed crafting the narrative of Jones' life.
“We had so much evidence to sort through and a lot of it was contradictory, and as a result we spent a lot of time deciding who we thought Jones was,” she said. “It was eye opening for me to see in practice how history is shaped by its storytellers.”
Tahany said her biggest realization from this project was that “such great local history would have never been discovered if it were not for the local archival sites.
“It was an awesome and eye-opening experience to uncover a local figure who played such a big role in Schenectady and met some extremely well-known historical figures.”
