Daniel W. Jones Jr.

Daniel W. Jones Jr. of Watertown MA. passed away peacefully on October 8th, one month shy of his 103rd birthday. Throughout his life, Dan wanted to capture the spirit of his time and preserve the foundational images of our national historical memory. He was the family photographer, a spell-binding raconteur, a hilarious mimic, an empathetic friend, uncle, a surrogate-father figure to many, and deeply loyal and loving to all who had the privilege to know him.

Born in Saint Louis, Dan was raised in Newport, Rhode Island. He was a proud graduate of Saint Mark's School from which he graduated in 1938. He entered Harvard University that same year, but took a leave of absence in 1942 to serve as a Communications Officer on the staff of Rear Admiral Giffen, serving aboard battleships in both the Atlantic and Pacific Theater. It was in this role that Mr. Jones gained incredibly detailed knowledge of some of the most sensitive areas of naval intelligence in both theaters and often regaled friends and family members with stories from this period of his life.

After graduating from Harvard in 1947 with a degree in American History, Dan apprenticed for three years under prominent theatrical and commercial photographers, leading to a position as Director of Research for Special Projects at N.B.C. From 1952-1974 he helped research and produce 34 nationally televised documentaries, including the acclaimed Victory at Sea, and others on a wide range of subjects, from the Red Scare to Lincoln's life and Presidency, to the role of the frontier in the American cultural imagination. Dan was always enamored with images and how they fit into a larger narrative and many of the stories he loved to tell came from the extensive research he did during this period.

In 1975, Dan left for the Peabody Museum at Harvard, returning to the University he loved to work as a photo archivist, protecting the photographs and films he viewed as critical to the maintenance of our country's historical and cultural memory. While he retired in 1986, Dan continued to work with the Peabody Museum well into his eighties, conferring with colleagues about how best to cultivate, manage, and protect archival photographs and films. During his final twenty years, Dan spent his days enjoying his time with friends and family, surrounded by newspapers, books, and photographs.

He will be buried in a private ceremony at St. Mary's Church in Portsmouth, Rhode Island and a celebration of his life will be scheduled at a later date.