William Kenefick Jones was born on October 23, 1916, in
Joplin, Missouri. He was raised in
Kansas City, Missouri, where he graduated from Southwest High School in 1933. In 1936, while in college, he joined the
U.S. Marine Corps Reserves, attending the
Platoon Leaders' Class in
San Diego, California, during the summers. He graduated with a
bachelor's degree in 1937 from the
University of Kansas. During the
Battle of Tarawa, the 1/6 under the then-Major Jones, "engaged more of the enemy in hand-to-hand combat on Betio than any other unit". During rehearsals for the Tarawa landing, the 1st Battalion practiced landing from
rubber boats, thus earning Jones the title of "Admiral of the Condom Fleet." For the actual landing, 1/6 Marines were carried toward their assigned beach by
LCVP landing craft towing their rubber boats. At the reef line, they transferred to the rubber boats and began a 1,000-yard paddle to Green Beach. Once ashore, Jones' Marines began a drive down the island under heavy enemy fire. He earned a
Silver Star and a field promotion to lieutenant colonel for his "gallantry in action" in November 1943 at Tarawa. His citation reads in part: :''...he exposed himself to withering shellfire to organize and direct a mortar platoon and elements of his headquarters company in a brilliantly executed counterattack against Japanese troops who had broken through his battalion's lines.'' He fought with valor in
Battle of Saipan, for which he received the
Navy Cross. His citation reads: :
...when companies under his command landed out of position on three separate beaches, LtCol. Jones braved heavy enemy mortar, artillery and small-arms fire to proceed from unit to unit and reorganize and direct their disposition in seizing the designated target. Under his competent leadership, the battalion repeatedly turned back Japanese counterattacks during the ensuing two days and, on the night of June 16, bore the brunt of a hostile tank attack in which 24 Japanese tanks were destroyed... After Tarawa, he fought at
Tinian and
Okinawa.
1945 to 1952 Jones returned to the States in July 1945 and was assigned to head the Tactics and Techniques Section, of
The Basic School. Then from May 1947 until June 1948, he served as the Chief of the Infantry Section, Junior School. He then served briefly in Washington, D.C. During this period, after the war, Jones authored, under the pseudonym "Base Plate McGurk", a series of articles providing advice to young officers. The articles were published in the
Marine Corps Gazette, then compiled in a book and published by the
Gazette in 1948.{{cite news|accessdate=February 6, 2017 |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/local/1998/04/18/marine-corps-gen-william-jones-dies/5083776e-b069-41f0-9b9d-ebcb7ce338fb/ |title=Marine Corps Gen. William Jones Dies He was buried with
full military honors in
Arlington National Cemetery. He was survived by his wife, Charlotte Jones, a daughter, and two sons. His son, Hugh M. Jones, preceded him in death in 1965. ==Awards and decorations==