Born in Williamsburg in the Colony of Virginia, Jones graduated from the College of William and Mary in 1760.
He returned to Northumberland County, Virginia and became physician general of the Middle Military Department in 1777.
His son and namesake, Walter Jones (1775-1861) practiced law in Washington most of his life and reportedly argued more cases before the U.S. Supreme Court – over 300, including McCulloch vs. Maryland - than any other attorney in American history.
The younger Jones was also a member of the Columbian Institute for the Promotion of Arts and Sciences, a prestigious society which counted among its members former presidents Andrew Jackson and John Quincy Adams and many other prominent men of the day, including well-known representatives of the military, government service, medical and other professions.
This article incorporates public domain material from the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress