FREDERICK MCKINLEY JONES (1893-1961)Frederick McKinley Jones was a prolific early 20th century black inventor who helped to revolutionize both the cinema and refrigeration industries. Between 1919 and 1945 he patented more than sixty inventions in divergent fields with forty of those patents in refrigeration. He is best known for inventing the first automatic refrigeration system for trucks.
Jones’s pioneering designs for mobile refrigeration units led to the formation of the Thermo-King Corporation (Minneapolis) in 1935 and revolutionized the field of transport refrigeration for trucks, railcars, and ships. His invention radically altered American consumer’s eating habits; now people could eat fresh produce across the United States during the middle of summer or winter. Frederick Jones also developed an air-conditioning unit for military field hospitals and a refrigerator for military field kitchens.
Jones was one of the most prolific Black inventors ever. Frederick Jones patented more than 60 inventions, but is best known for inventing a practical automatic refrigeration system for long-haul trucks died on February 21, 1961.
*Photo Courtesy Minnesota Historical Society
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