Paul Jones began making whiskey in Georgia in 1865. In 1866 he moved to Louisville and acquired Four Roses, among other brands.

In 1889, Jones purchased the J G Mattingly & Bro. distillery (RD #2, 5th District) in Louisville for $125,000 at public auction. It ran as J G Mattingly Co., with Jones as President, until the plant was sold to the Trust in 1902.

In 1922, Paul Jones & Co. bought out Frankfort Distillery Inc. The latter controlled a distillery in Frankfort but, more importantly, was one of the few companies granted a permit to sell liquor for medicinal purposes during Prohibition. Paul Jones & Co. now assumed the Frankfort Distilleries Inc. name to retain the valuable medicinal sales license.

By 1928, stocks of pre-Prohibition whiskey had dwindled and the company contracted the Louisville-based A Ph. Stizel distillery to supply them with spirits.

When Prohibition was repealed in 1933, Frankfort Distilleries Inc. took over the old Stitzel plant and built a new one (Four Roses) in Shively. By the late 1940’s, the distilleries and brands had been taken over by Seagrams.