Samuel Porter Jones
Lately I have had the pleasure to work on a documentary about Samuel Porter Jones. Sam Jones was a lawyer, a drunkard and finally a preeminent evagalist. Legend has it that Riverboat captain, Thomas Green Ryman and friends attended a sermon by Sam Jones with the intention of driving him out of town, but upon hearing Sam’s sermon, Ryman decided to build a tabernacle for Sam to hold revival meetings. This place in Nashville, Tennessee was later named the Ryman Auditorium. 
Jeff Wyatt Wilson of Wilson Independent Studios, a friend and great filmmaker, has several important rolls on this project and has kindly gotten me involved. Check out his site to see the trailer of his awesome latest film, Any Day Now and other cool film work.
A couple of weeks ago we shot at a church in Cartersville, Georgia that was built in the mid 1800′s. The photo is in the back of the church by a very old graveyard. Last week I built a replica of an 1850′s style blackboard that turned out well and is in the background of the bottom photograph with Sam Jones as a boy at school. (The boy is actually Jeff’s son, Gideon Wilson)
A random quote from Sam P. Jones:
“The tune of America is pitched to the dollar.”
I’m interested in this because my grandmother was the Rev. Sam Jones niece. Her father, the Rev. Joe Jones, Sam’s brother, was also a Methodist minister in the Cartersville area.
That is Great! I talked to Jeff and he mentioned you got in touch with him. So hopefully you will be able to add something to the documentary!
I am Benham Jones Sims, III and Joe Jones was my great great grandfather.
I too, am interested. My name is Benham Jones Sims, III and my great great grandfather was Joe Jones.