The earliest photographic representation of a black presence at MIT is that of Jones' Lunch. Blacks were most evident on campus in roles as cooks, waiters, and janitorial staff, along with the all-black porter service that was attached to certain buildings, mostly residence halls.

During the mid-1870s, a black caterer named Jones owned and operated the small cafeteria located at one end of the gymnasium in the Boston campus. This was the first eating establishment at MIT, having come about after much student lobbying. Jones' Lunch offered MIT professors, students, and their guests hot, cooked meals at a reasonable cost. The restaurant's popularity grew to the point that by 1877 it was also serving members of other local college communities. Jones' Lunch, however, did not survive the Institute's move from Boston to Cambridge.

A large number of our students live on the lines of the railroads leading into Boston, and find it convenient to remain in town all day...I am fully satisfied that it is the duty of the Institute to maintain this restaurant as a means of promoting the health of students, and of reducing their necessary expenses.

John D. Runkle, President's Report of 1874