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Benjamin Franklin Jones was the husband of Malinda Warren Jones living in Itawamba Co., MS.

Malinda was 8 or 9 months pregnant when she saw a rider coming with a black-edged letter in his hand. She knew it was news about her husband who was fighting somewhere near Mechanicsburg,MS(close to Vicksburg).
She got so excited when she saw him that she jumped over a wooden gate to get to him. He had news that Ben had died in Alton Prison after being captured June 4, 1863 at Mechanicsburg and stricken with smallpox a disease that had taken over that prison. He died July 23, 1863.

The people of the town of Alton, IL had requested that they not keep disease ridden prisoners there, so they moved them to an island in the Mississippi River called, "Sunflower Island" where in 1842 Abraham Lincoln fought a duel with James Shields. After prisoners started being kept there, they renamed it, "Smallpox Island". Benjamin must have died before that because he is buried in the town of Alton, IL. His name should be on the granite monument that contains over a thousand names of Rebel prisoners who died while imprisoned there. What a shame that Malinda never saw him again.

Malinda is also the g g aunt of Elvis Presley on his father, Vernon's side. Her brother, William D. Warren was Elvis's g g grandfather.

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