occasion he apostrophized the rich men of the community and reproached them for their grasping miserliness. 'Why,' said he,'you men could be tolled to hell by laying a nickel every ten feet along the path!' Such phrases, which in many cases are almost vulgar, give an air of sensation to his meetings…” In 1885, he headlined a revival in Nashville, Tennessee, where he converted Thomas Green Ryman, who, along with Jones built the Union Gospel Tabernacle, later named the Ryman Auditorium (home to the Grand Ole Opry) after Ryman's death. In 1886, at his own expense, he had a large open-air structure called "The Tabernacle" built for interfaith meetings. Until his death in 1906, he held services there each September, bringing to his hometown the co-workers who assisted him in the great revivals he held throughout the country. Meanwhile, Jones raised funds for the Methodist Orphan Home in Decatur, Georgia. He went on to preach not only across the South, but also in New York City, Boston, Cincinnati, St. Louis, Los Angeles and Canada. Over the years, it is estimated that Jones preached to three million Americans. In his sermons, Jones preached that alcohol, dances, and the theater, were sinful. He became known for his admonition, "Quit Your Meanness." As an example of his preaching, once in an evangelistic Campaign in San Antonio, Texas, Jones hollered that the only difference between San Antonio and hell was that there was a river running down the middle of it. Personal life Jones married Laura McElwain of Kentucky. They resided at Roselawn, a mansion in Cartersville, Georgia. By 1895, the two-story house had been lifted up with an enormous first floor added underneath. Also on the property were a schoolhouse, greenhouse, smokehouse, a large carriage house, tennis court and small houses for servants. They had seven children, though one died as an infant. Death and legacy On October 15, 1906, the eve of his 59th birthday, Jones was returning home from a revival when he died. His body was first laid at the rotunda of the Capital in Atlanta. He was buried at Oak Hill Cemetery in Cartersville, Georgia. At the time of Jones’ death, the sanctuary of what was then named Cartersville Methodist Episcopal Church was in the process of being completed. After a unanimous vote, the congregation officially changed the name of the church to Sam Jones Memorial Methodist Church (now