Although he has been a resident of Mississippi for only three years, Edward Jones has made the buildings found in the southwest part of the state a central focus of his work.

Jones was born in Helena, Arkansas in 1917. When he was four years old, his family joined the migration of southern African Americans to northern cities, moving to Chicago. Jones grew up in the city and lived there for fifty years. He held many different types of jobs. One of his most notable was selling newspapers outside of the New Michigan Hotel, the headquarters for legendary Chicago crime boss Al Capone.

Jones began building miniature buildings in 1963, after seeing the work of a model builder from Colorado. He started off making simple structures, such as small brick houses and bungalows. After three or four years of learning the art form, Jones began selling his models to friends and acquaintances.

In 1982 Jones moved to St. Louis to take care of his mother. At this point, he was retired and began devoting more time to his artwork.

Jones came to Mississippi in 2001, moving in with his daughter who lives in Claiborne County. Since coming here three years ago, he has been busy creating a number of replicas of local homes and buildings, including the house at Richmond Hills Plantation in Jefferson County, numerous shotgun houses, and the Gibson House in Port Gibson. Jones has had his work displayed at the Mostly African Market in Natchez and at the Attic Gallery in Vicksburg. In 2003, he was selected as one of ten artists whose work was featured in the Port Gibson Bicentennial Invitational Art Exhibit.