Jones enlisted in the Navy from Maryland in 1846 and was assigned to the Union sloop-of-war United States Ship (1862). He retired in August 1885. On January 15, 1865, the North Carolina Confederate stronghold of Fort Fisher was taken by a combined Union storming party of sailors, marines, and soldiers under the command of Admiral David Dixon Porter and General Alfred Terry.
He received the Medal of Honor for his actions during the Second Battle of Fort Fisher on January 15, 1865. The President of the United States of America, in the name of Congress, takes pleasure in presenting the Medal of Honor to Coxswain Thomas Jones, United States Navy, for extraordinary heroism in action while serving on board the United States.S. TICONDEROGA during attacks on Fort Fisher, North Carolina, 24 and 25 December 1864. And 13 to 15 January 1865.
