Thomas Sutton Jett (1910-1989) received the national level Pugsley Medal in 1963 "for his leadership of the National Capital Parks Region of the NPS during a difficult period of expansion and growth, when many complex projects were undertaken." He was born in “George Washington country” Reidsville, Virginia. He received a degree in economics from the College of William and Mary in 1932.
He began his career with the NPS in 1933 as assistant historian at Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania National Military Park. While in that position, he attended Johns Hopkins University, where he did graduate work in American History in 1936-37. He then left Fredericksburg for a tour of duty at Fort McHenry National Monument.
His next assignment brought him to Washington in 1938 as chief historian for the restoration of the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal. The restoration was accomplished with labor provided by the CCC. The 22-mile section of the canal had been abandoned in 1924 and purchased by the federal government for $2 million in 1938.
With the reorganization of the area’s parks into a region of the NPS in 1962, Jett became the first regional director and remained in that position until his retirement in 1968.
He was a vigorous promoter of park beautification projects that enjoyed broad public backing when First Lady, Lady Bird Johnson, expressed an interest in the revitalization of the region’s parks.
When he retired, NPS director, George Hartzog commented, “Under Sutton Jett’s leadership, the management structure of the National Capital Region has been greatly strengthened by a reorganization that assigned greater responsibility and authority to five regional superintendents.