John Paul Jones
Father of the US Navy
Family
• He was born July 6, 1747 in Kirkbean,
Scotland.
• His father was also named John Paul and was a
gardener. His family was working class.
• He had six siblings named William, Elizabeth,
Janet, Mary Ann & two others that died as a
baby.
• John Paul Jones was the youngest of the
children.
Education/Training
• John Paul had very little education.
• At the age of 13, he became an apprentice seaman
and served on many ships in the West Indies trade
including the slave trade.
• He quit the slave trade because he thought it was
not nice and returned home on a ship named
John.
• In1768, the captain of the ship died and John Paul
took over command of the ship. He was a captain
from that time forward. He was only 21.
Coming to America
• While Captain of the Betsy, he killed a man in
self-defense.
• To avoid trial, he left and came to the America
colonies in 1775.
• He changed his name to John Paul Jones.
• He inherited his brother’s, William, property in
Fredericksburg, Virginia.
War Achievements
• In 1775 he offered his services to the new
Continental Navy and became a First Lieutenant.
• In 1776 he was the first to raise the national flag on
a ship of war, the Alfred. This was one month
before General Washington raised the national
flag.
• In 1778 John Paul Jones was in command of the
Ranger when the French was the first to recognize
the American flag with a 9 gun salute.
War Achievements
• John Paul Jones had a bold strategy to take the fight to
the British coast so the British could not send as many
ships to the colonies. He won many battles.
• On September 23, 1779, the most famous sea battle
began. The Bon Homme Richard and the Serapis
fought. The Bon Homme Richard had much damage.
• The Captain of the Serapis asked John Paul Jones if he
was ready to surrender.
• John Paul Jones gave his famous quote. “I have not yet
begun to fight.”
• John Paul Jones and the Bon Homme Richard went on
to win the battle.
After the War
• John Paul Jones was awarded the gold medal,
the only naval officer from the Continental
Navy.
• John Paul Jones was appointed as a diplomat to
negotiate and settle the prize money claims
from the War.
• He was invited to enter the Russian military in
their fight against the Turks.
Death
• In 1792, President George Washington signed a
petition to grant John Paul Jones American
citizenship. Jones did not know this because he
died in 1792 in Paris, France.
• His body was preserved in an alcohol filled lead
casket and buried in Paris.
• In 1899 our French Ambassador started looking
for his forgotten grave. In 1905 they found his
grave.
• In 1906, services were held to rebury John Paul
Jones in the US Naval Cemetery.
Father of the US Navy
• John Paul Jones knew how to build a strong
naval force.
• He set high standards and developed solid
training for his seaman.
• He never quit when things got tough.
• He took the fight to the enemy.
• His determination and unwillingness to
surrender has set the standard for today’s
Navy.
Bibliography
• "John Paul Jones." Patriots from American Revolution. n.p., n.d.
Web. 31 Jan. 2012. <http://www.sonofthesouth.net/revolutionarywar/patriots/john-paul-jones.htm>.
• "John Paul Jones." bio true story. n.p., n.d. Web. 7 Feb. 2012.
<http://www.biography.com/people/john-paul-jones-9357409>.
• Conrad, Dennis M. "John Paul Jones." Biographies in Naval
History. n.p., n.d. Web. 5 Feb. 2012.
<http://www.history.navy.mil/bios/jones_jp_conrad.htm>.
• Bradford, James C. "John Paul Jones." The World Book
Encyclopedia. 2009.
• Tibbits, Alison D. John Paul Jones Father of the American Navy.
Berkeley Heights, NJ: Enslow Publishers, Inc., 2002. Print.