Donna Gregory’s Extraordinary People: The historian behind Wilmington’s WWII Heritage City honor

WILMINGTON, NC (WWAY) — At 91 years old, Wilbur Jones is still working to preserve the history that shaped his life and the city that raised him.

Jones, a Navy veteran, historian and lifelong Wilmington resident, is the latest honoree in Donna Gregory’s Extraordinary People of the Cape Fear. His decades-long work has helped safeguard Wilmington’s World War II legacy, including saving the historic Hannah Block USO Building and securing federal recognition for Wilmington as the nation’s first World War II Heritage City.

Jones was born in 1934 and grew up in Wilmington during World War II, an experience he says left a lasting impression.

“My generation is called the silent generation,” Jones said. “We were born in the middle of the Depression, the Great Depression, and then World War Two came along. It shaped my life, my attitudes, my outlook, my love of country and my desire to serve my country.”

He vividly remembers the moment the war began, hearing the news interrupt a football game on the radio.

“Eventually we found out that the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor, Hawaii,” Jones said. “The next four years, it was a radical change for us children.”

As a child, Jones spent time at the Wilmington USO, where service members passed through the city on their way to and from the war.

“I remember my father would bring me down here, I’d be rubbing shoulders with soldiers and marines and sailors,” he said. “Maybe they would give me a little insignia or a cap or something like that.”

That early exposure to service helped inspire Jones to join the Navy. He went on to serve nearly three decades, plus years of duty at the Pentagon, before returning home to Wilmington.

Back home, Jones turned his focus to preservation. When the Hannah Block USO Building faced demolition, he joined forces with Hannah Block herself to save it.

“A group of us got together with Hannah Block and saved the building,” Jones said. “Got the city to commit money to refurbish it and restore it to what it looked like during World War Two.”

His efforts did not stop there. In 2007, Jones began pushing for national recognition of Wilmington’s role during the war, eventually testifying before congressional committees.

“One chairman asked me, ‘Why should it be Wilmington? Why should Wilmington be the first?’” Jones recalled. “I said, ‘Congressman, because it was our idea. We thought of it. We did the work. And we deserve it.’”

That work paid off in 2020, when President Donald Trump visited the Battleship North Carolina and announced Wilmington had been designated America’s first World War II Heritage City.

“That was the proudest day of my life,” Jones said. “I’m a naval officer. I stood up immediately. I flashed him a real quick hand salute and he looked down at me and returned my salute. I have those screenshots. I will have them forever.”

Now a widower, Jones says he continues working each day, driven by a sense of purpose.

“I wake up in the morning and turn on the laptop and go to work,” he said.

Much of that work is now focused on planning events connected to America’s upcoming 250th anniversary in 2026. Jones is helping organize commemorations tied to Wilmington’s military and home-front history, including World War II veteran gatherings, educational forums, heritage exhibits, commemorations at the Battleship North Carolina and Fort Fisher, and events at the Hannah Block Historic USO.

Jones hopes the anniversary can serve as a moment of unity.

“I hope that America 250 realigns everybody to how important it is to be an American, our history, how much we have done for the world,” he said. “Its goal should be to try to reawaken Americans to how important it is to be American.”

At an age when many would choose to slow down, Jones shows no sign of stopping, continuing to serve both his country and the community that shaped him.

You can learn more about Wilbur Jones here.

You can nominate someone for the Extraordinary People segment here.

All honorees get a year of free car washes from Tommy’s Express Car Wash.