[5] Jonesville was a small but thriving center of local commerce in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, but like most towns in the central Appalachian region, it fell into gradual economic decline as the coal boom ebbed in the latter half of the twentieth century.

By the end of the century much of the commercial real estate in its downtown area was either unoccupied or underutilized.

Jonesville Drug, one of the oldest surviving downtown businesses, relocated to the old Chappell's Dairy site on the west end in 2004.

The Dickinson-Milbourn House and Jonesville Methodist Campground are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

[8] According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 1.1 square miles (2.8 km2), all land.

The Federal Bureau of Prisons United States Penitentiary, Lee is located 8 miles (13 km) east of Jonesville.