Guide to the Lois M. Jones Papers

Biography of Lois M. Jones

Lois Jones was a graduate student at The Ohio State University who led the first all-female expedition to Antarctica in 1969. Her team set up camp and spent several weeks in Antarctica's McMurdo Dry Valleys region, collecting samples and otherwise conducting geological fieldwork. Her trip was funded in part by a grant from the National Science Foundation, and carried out under the US Navy's 'Operation Deep Freeze'. Ms. Jones is widely credited with being the first woman to have reached the south pole. Her team's success assuaged established concerns regarding the employment of female scientists for fieldwork in hostile environments, and ultimately paved the way for broader participation of women in scientific research. Following her polar expedition, Jones spent eight years (1969-77)teaching at the University of Georgia, followed by sixteen years as a petroleum geologist for Conoco Inc. (now ConocoPhillips Co.), before finally retiring after a brief tenure at Kansas State University. Jones' name is borne, through her personal endowments, by the Lois M. Jones Fellowship Fund in Geological Sciences, and the Lois M. Jones Endowment for Cancer Research Fellowship. She died in March of 2000 at the age of 65.

Scope and Content

The Lois M. Jones Papers consist of 18,275 35mm slides that document her research as a scientist with the Institute of Polar Studies (now called the Byrd Polar Research Center). The collection also includes personal slides that document various vacations and family events.

Statement of Arrangement

Restrictions on Use

The Lois M. Jones Papers are available for use in the reading room of The Ohio State University Archives Building, 2700 Kenny Road, Columbus, Ohio 43210. The reading room is open to the public, 9am-4:30pm, M-F. Appointments are preferred. Please contact the polar curator at 614-688-8173 or e-mail kissel.4@osu.edu.

Restrictions on Access

The Lois M. Jones Papers are open to public research under the
rules and regulations of The Ohio State University's Byrd Polar Research Center Archival Program.

Indexing Terms

The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the library's online public access catalog.

Persons:

Preferred Citation

[Box number, folder number, slide id number], Lois M. Jones Papers, BPRCAP.2013.7, Byrd Polar Research Center Archival Program, The Ohio State University.

Acquisition Information

The Lois M. Jones Papers were in storage at the Byrd Polar Research Center until 2013, when they were transferred to the Archival facility.

Processing Information

Archives staff removed the slides from the metal slide boxes in which they were received. All slides were sleeved in acid free enclosures. Materials were organized according to the containers in which they were received.

Detailed Description of The Collection