Dan Jones (August 4, 1810 – January 3, 1862) (often referred to as Captain Dan Jones) was an influential Welsh missionary of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Jones is well known for having heard the "final prophecy" of Joseph Smith, Jr., namely, that Jones would fulfill a mission to Wales before he died. Jones was born in Halkyn, in the county of Flintshire, north-east Wales, the sixth of Thomas Jones and Ruth Roberts’s eight children. When he was sixteen years old, Jones became a sailor. On January 3, 1837, Jones married Jane Melling, a childhood friend from Halkyn. In 1840, Jones and his wife emigrated to the United States, where Jones became captain of the Ripple, a steamship on the Mississippi River. The Ripple primarily carried passengers between New Orleans and St. Louis. After the Ripple struck a rock and sank, Jones captained the Maid of Iowa, which could transport approximately 300 passengers. During his travels on the Mississippi River, Jones heard of the Mormons, who had recently settled in Nauvoo, Illinois, a city on the river. Jones sought out the Latter Day Saints to learn about the new religious movement.