African Americans | Page 37

Frederick McKinley Jones and drafting team

Frederick McKinley Jones and drafting team, c.1960. Image is from the Frederick Jones papers (1910–[196-]), Mansucripts Collection, Minnesota Historical Society, St. Paul.

Frederick McKinley Jones

Frederick McKinley Jones standing next to a truck outfitted with a mobile refrigeration unit, c.1950.

In 1939, Frederick McKinley Jones patented the world’s first successful refrigerated transportation system. At the time, he was working for the Minneapolis-based company U.S. Thermo Control. Two years later, he released an improved version, the Model C, which revolutionized the agriculture and military industries.

Prince Honeycutt in his Fergus Falls shop

African American barber Prince Honeycutt in his Fergus Falls shop, c.1900.

Attorney J. Frank Wheaton

J. Frank Wheaton, c.1913. Image is from the Minneapolis Twin City Star, September 5, 1913.

J. Frank Wheaton

John Frank Wheaton, c.1900. Photograph uploaded by Ancestry.com user LisaRoy 123.

John Frank Wheaton

John Frank Wheaton, c.1899. Photograph by Zimmerman, Charles A.

Wheaton, John Francis (1866–1922)

John Francis (J. Frank) Wheaton, a Twin Cities lawyer and orator, became the first African American elected to serve in the Minnesota legislature in 1898. A target of racial prejudice throughout his life, Wheaton believed in the political process as a means to improve the state’s civil rights laws.