Lewis Wade Jones
Encyclopedia
Lewis Wade Jones was a sociologist and educator. He was born in Cuero, Texas
, the son of Wade E. and Lucynthia McDade Jones. A member of the Omega Psi Phi
fraternity
, he received his A.B.
degree from Fisk University
in 1931, and followed it with postgraduate study as a Social Science Research Council Fellow at the University of Chicago
in 1931-1932.
Jones returned to Fisk, where he continued to work closely with Charles S. Johnson
, as a research assistant, supervisor of field studies, and instructor in the Department of Social Sciences from 1932 to 1942. In 1949 the two co-wrote A Statistical Analysis of Southern Counties; Shifts in the Negro Population of Alabama.
Jones was a Julius Rosenwald Foundation Fund Fellow at Columbia University
, where he was awarded an M.A.
degree in 1939 with the thesis "Occupational Stratification Among Rural and Small Town Negroes before the Civil War and Today." He earned his Ph.D.
in 1955.
Before the recording project at Fort Valley
, where he was a member of the summer faculty, Jones, along with Johnson and John W. Work III collaborated with the Archive of American Folk Song on the Library of Congress
/Fisk University
Mississippi Delta Collection (AFC 1941/002). This project was a two-year joint field study conducted by the Library of Congress and Fisk University during the summers of 1941 and 1942. The goal of the partnership was to carry out an intensive field study documenting the folk culture of a specific community of African Americans in the Mississippi Delta
region. The rapidly urbanizing
commercial area of Coahoma County, Mississippi
, with its county seat in Clarksdale
, became the geographical focus of the study.
Almost immediately following Jones's March 1943 recordings at Fort Valley, he served for three years in the United States Army
, and became a reports analyst for the domestic branch of the Bureau of Special Services, Office of War Information. He was associate editor of the Negro Yearbook in 1952 and contributed articles to journals.
Jones spent much of the remainder of his career at Tuskegee Institute School of Education, as assistant professor of sociology
, director of research for the Rural Life Council, research coordinator, and professor. He was a consultant to a variety of organizations, including the Opportunities Industrialization Centers, the Bureau of Social Science Research, and the U.S. Department of Labor.
On August 13, 1966, he married Queen E. Shootes, a home economist.
At the time of his death, Lewis Jones was a professor of sociology and director of the Tuskegee Institute Rural Development Center.
Cuero, Texas
Cuero is a city in DeWitt County, Texas, United States. The population was 6,571 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of DeWitt County. It is also unofficially known as the "turkey capital of the world"...
, the son of Wade E. and Lucynthia McDade Jones. A member of the Omega Psi Phi
Omega Psi Phi
Omega Psi Phi is a fraternity and is the first African-American national fraternal organization to be founded at a historically black college. Omega Psi Phi was founded on November 17, 1911, at Howard University in Washington, D.C.. The founders were three Howard University juniors, Edgar Amos...
fraternity
Fraternities and sororities
Fraternities and sororities are fraternal social organizations for undergraduate students. In Latin, the term refers mainly to such organizations at colleges and universities in the United States, although it is also applied to analogous European groups also known as corporations...
, he received his A.B.
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
degree from Fisk University
Fisk University
Fisk University is an historically black university founded in 1866 in Nashville, Tennessee, U.S. The world-famous Fisk Jubilee Singers started as a group of students who performed to earn enough money to save the school at a critical time of financial shortages. They toured to raise funds to...
in 1931, and followed it with postgraduate study as a Social Science Research Council Fellow at the University of Chicago
University of Chicago
The University of Chicago is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was founded by the American Baptist Education Society with a donation from oil magnate and philanthropist John D. Rockefeller and incorporated in 1890...
in 1931-1932.
Jones returned to Fisk, where he continued to work closely with Charles S. Johnson
Charles S. Johnson
Charles Spurgeon Johnson was an American sociologist, first black president of historically black Fisk University, and a lifelong advocate for racial equality and the advancement of civil rights for African Americans and all other ethnic minorities...
, as a research assistant, supervisor of field studies, and instructor in the Department of Social Sciences from 1932 to 1942. In 1949 the two co-wrote A Statistical Analysis of Southern Counties; Shifts in the Negro Population of Alabama.
Jones was a Julius Rosenwald Foundation Fund Fellow at Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
, where he was awarded an M.A.
Master's degree
A master's is an academic degree granted to individuals who have undergone study demonstrating a mastery or high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice...
degree in 1939 with the thesis "Occupational Stratification Among Rural and Small Town Negroes before the Civil War and Today." He earned his Ph.D.
Ph.D.
A Ph.D. is a Doctor of Philosophy, an academic degree.Ph.D. may also refer to:* Ph.D. , a 1980s British group*Piled Higher and Deeper, a web comic strip*PhD: Phantasy Degree, a Korean comic series* PhD Docbook renderer, an XML renderer...
in 1955.
Before the recording project at Fort Valley
Fort Valley
Fort Valley may refer to:* Fort Valley, Georgia, United States* Fort Valley, Virginia, United States...
, where he was a member of the summer faculty, Jones, along with Johnson and John W. Work III collaborated with the Archive of American Folk Song on the Library of Congress
Library of Congress
The Library of Congress is the research library of the United States Congress, de facto national library of the United States, and the oldest federal cultural institution in the United States. Located in three buildings in Washington, D.C., it is the largest library in the world by shelf space and...
/Fisk University
Fisk University
Fisk University is an historically black university founded in 1866 in Nashville, Tennessee, U.S. The world-famous Fisk Jubilee Singers started as a group of students who performed to earn enough money to save the school at a critical time of financial shortages. They toured to raise funds to...
Mississippi Delta Collection (AFC 1941/002). This project was a two-year joint field study conducted by the Library of Congress and Fisk University during the summers of 1941 and 1942. The goal of the partnership was to carry out an intensive field study documenting the folk culture of a specific community of African Americans in the Mississippi Delta
Mississippi Delta
The Mississippi Delta is the distinctive northwest section of the U.S. state of Mississippi that lies between the Mississippi and Yazoo Rivers. The region has been called "The Most Southern Place on Earth" because of its unique racial, cultural, and economic history...
region. The rapidly urbanizing
Urbanization
Urbanization, urbanisation or urban drift is the physical growth of urban areas as a result of global change. The United Nations projected that half of the world's population would live in urban areas at the end of 2008....
commercial area of Coahoma County, Mississippi
Coahoma County, Mississippi
-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 30,622 people, 10,553 households, and 7,482 families residing in the county. The population density was 55 people per square mile . There were 11,490 housing units at an average density of 21 per square mile...
, with its county seat in Clarksdale
Clarksdale, Mississippi
Clarksdale is a city in Coahoma County, Mississippi, United States. The population was 20,645 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Coahoma County....
, became the geographical focus of the study.
Almost immediately following Jones's March 1943 recordings at Fort Valley, he served for three years in the United States Army
United States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
, and became a reports analyst for the domestic branch of the Bureau of Special Services, Office of War Information. He was associate editor of the Negro Yearbook in 1952 and contributed articles to journals.
Jones spent much of the remainder of his career at Tuskegee Institute School of Education, as assistant professor of sociology
Sociology
Sociology is the study of society. It is a social science—a term with which it is sometimes synonymous—which uses various methods of empirical investigation and critical analysis to develop a body of knowledge about human social activity...
, director of research for the Rural Life Council, research coordinator, and professor. He was a consultant to a variety of organizations, including the Opportunities Industrialization Centers, the Bureau of Social Science Research, and the U.S. Department of Labor.
On August 13, 1966, he married Queen E. Shootes, a home economist.
At the time of his death, Lewis Jones was a professor of sociology and director of the Tuskegee Institute Rural Development Center.