Celebrity Graveland

October 20, 1913 – February 19, 1998

Banjo player and country music icon, Louis Jones, earned the nickname “Grandpa” at the unlikely age of 22 when he was performing on early-morning radio shows in Boston. A guitar player and singer, the young Jones had made his way to Massachusetts by way of his home in Kentucky and a stint in Ohio. His pre-dawn grumpiness led to the nickname…which Jones not only accepted, but made his entire on-stage persona going forward.

Grandpa Jones delighted audiences for nearly 7 decades with his rousing banjo playing, old-timey ballads and affable stage presence. He mastered the banjo and became a popular performer. Early in his career, he bounced from town to town playing live radio shows. He briefly served in the U.S. Army during World War II and, in his mid 30s, he found his way to Nashville.

In Nashville, Jones found a home on the stage of the Grand Ole Opry, where he would perform for the rest of his career. His act lent itself well to television and that proved useful not only at the Opry, but also segued to him being cast on the now-classic country music variety show, Hee Haw. Jones was a member of the Hee Haw cast for 225 episodes over the course of the show’s 20+ year run. On the show, he performed alongside greats like Minnie Pearl, David “Stringbean” Akeman, Buck Owens, Roy Clark, and his wife of more than 50 years: Ramona Riggins.

Jones with fellow country-comedy legend, Minnie Pearl

In 1973, Jones made headlines off the stage when he discovered his neighbors – “Stringbean” Akeman and his wife, Estelle – had been murdered. Jones testified at the trial of the murderers.

After a show at the Opry in January of 1998, Grandpa Jones suffered a series of strokes that left him bedridden in a Nashville nursing home. He died the following month at the age of 84. In addition to being a member of the Grand Ole Opry, Jones was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1978.

Burial

Luton’s United Methodist Church Cemetery – Goodlettsville, TN

Specific Location

Grandpa and Ramona Jones are buried up the hill at the back of this small churchyard cemetery. Just at the tree line.

This entry was posted on August 5, 2024 at 8:59 am and is filed under Luton's United Methodist Church Cemetery with tags Comedians, Country Musicians, Grand Ole Opry, Hee Haw. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.