Lillian E. Jones

Lillian E. Jones Museum: A Gift

Lillian loved her home and all the things she had collected over the years - many of them on her trips around the world, and she wanted to share these things with others. Lillian decided to leave the house to be used as a museum, later she decided that it should also be a cultural center, to allow it to be used for other purposes. After her death, the Huntington Bank, her executors, decided the house would be given to the City of Jackson. By City Ordinance, the Jackson City Museum Board was formed. It consisted of four people named in Lillian’s will and three appointed by the mayor with the approval of City Council. The board oversees all aspects of the property and sees that it is used as a museum and cultural center. The museum was to be opened within five years from the time the board was formed, or it would revert to the trust. This deadline was met.

The purpose as stated in the constitution is “To establish a historical and cultural museum and to encourage preservation and collection of archival materials and artifacts indigenous to Jackson County.”

Lillian left the museum with a trust fund. A large portion of the money she left is held in trust, with only the interest used for day to day operations. She also left $25,000 for repairs to get the house ready to open as a museum.