Professor Sir Ewart Ray Herbert Jones (16 March 1911 - 7 May 2002) was a Welsh organic chemist and academic administrator, whose fields of expertise led him to discoveries into the chemistry of natural products, mainly steroids, terpenes and vitamins. His work also led to the creation of the Jones oxidation.[1]
Jones was born in Wrexham in 1911, and attended Grove Park School before gaining entry to University College of North Wales, Bangor, where he gained a first degree in chemistry in 1932.[2]
He grew up in the small village of Rhostyllen, Whales with his evangelical family. Between July 1924 and March 1927, his sister died of tuberculosis, his grandmother died and his father drowned himself. After such a tragic period of time, he was schooled in Wrexham, Whales. He entered the University College of North Whales in 1929, hoping to concentrate in physics. However, he left the University with an honors degree in Chemistry. He was invited to stay at the University by the head of the department, J.L. Simonsen, and stayed there for two years.
At the age of 36, Jones accepted the Sir Samuel Hall Professorship of Organic Chemistry at Oxford University. After joining the Heilbron group in Manchester, Jones was introduced to acetylene chemistry which eventually led to his work with vitamin A. Later in life, he worked with the Halsall group, specifically with the hydroxyhopanone molecule. After experimenting with different reagents, he discovered the Jones oxidation.[3]