Fletcher R. Jones

Who was Fletcher R. Jones?

Fletcher Roseberry Jones was an American businessman, computer pioneer and thoroughbred racehorse owner.

Born in Bryan, Texas, he was the third of three children of an impoverished Depression era family. He graduated from Allen Military Academy in 1949, then studied at university for two years, but did not graduate. His interest in mathematics led to jobs in the fledgling computer departments at aviation companies. Married in 1951, he was transferred to California by his employer, North American Aviation Corp. After time at the company's offices in Columbus, Ohio, Jones and his wife and two small children settled in Los Angeles where he managed a North American Aviation computer center.

In 1959, Fletcher Jones went into business with Roy Nutt, a widely respected computer programmer who had been working for United Aircraft Corp. The two founded a software services company named Computer Sciences Corporation, when Jones, who ran the business and marketing end of things, obtained a contract from Honeywell that gave their business profitability and respect within the industry. In 1961, the company made a major move into the space industry when they obtained a contract to support NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory's Flight Operations Facility. Within four years of its founding, CSC became the largest software company in the United States. Taking their business public with an IPO listed on the American Stock Exchange, Jones and Nutt and became multi-millionaires. By the end of the 1960s, CSC was listed on the New York Stock Exchange and had operations in Canada, the United Kingdom, Germany, Italy, and in The Netherlands.