By Karen Gulley, Environmental Health County Manager
Can you imagine where we would be without a safe way to transport food and medicine across the miles? An African American inventor by the name of Frederick McKinley Jones designed the first reliable mobile refrigeration system that allowed fresh food to travel great distances without spoiling and was used for preserving blood and medicine for army hospitals. His invention led to the ability to ship frozen foods and, in turn, the rise of supermarkets. Frederick Jones became the co-founder of Thermo King, a huge company known for efficient refrigeration transportation.
His ideas improved–not only food safety–but cinema, race cars, boats, and medical equipment. At the time of his death on February 21, 1961, he held 61 patents and was the first Black inventor to receive the National Medal of Technology.
Cobb & Douglas Environmental Health Blog 