Lowell Jackson Thomas was born in Woodington, Ohio on 6 April 1892. Thomas showed an interest in journalism from a young age, and it was through this interest that Thomas planned a "See America First" campaign in which he planned to film and photograph the lands of America and share his experiences with the people back home. But with the declaration of war in 1917, Thomas had credentials arranged for him to travel to the war fronts in Europe so that Thomas could gather information and return home to create presentations to rally the American people to the war effort. When World War I ended, Thomas went to Germany where he spent several weeks gathering information about the revolt that followed the war. By the late 1920s, Lowell and his wife, Francis, finally settled down. In 1927, Thomas signed a contract with Doubleday and Company to write six books. Realizing he needed assistance, Thomas entered into what turned out to be a lifelong partnership with Prosper Buranelli who wrote and edited numerous books, articles and scripts with him. On 29 September 1930 Lowell Thomas became a radio broadcaster who for fifteen minutes Monday through Friday highlighted the daily news for the American public. Thomas's distinctive voice and ease and comfort behind the microphone made him a natural. He would broadcast "Lowell Thomas and the News" for 46 continuous years, first on the NBC and then on the CBS radio network. The Sun Oil Corporation and then Procter and Gamble were to become major sponsors of Thomas's broadcast. It was not long before Thomas was asked to become the voice of the Fox Movietone News. Thomas began to join private clubs where men of power and influence met and was often asked to become President or a member of the Board of Directors. Among the influential clubs Thomas belonged to in his lifetime were The Explorers Club, Adventurers' Club, Advertising Club, Dutch Treat Club and the Bohemian Club where Thomas would attend Caveman Camp with his good friend of many years, former President Herbert Hoover. In 1949, Thomas became one of the few Westerners allowed entry into Tibet. By the end of the 1950s Thomas turned to a much smaller medium, television. Similar to his early travelogue days, Thomas traveled to exotic places in the world and created entertaining and informative one hour long television shows about where he had been. Thomas led a full and active life into his eighties. Despite the death of Frances in 1975 and the end of his regular news broadcast in 1976, Thomas continued writing drafts of his autobiography with the help of his editor, Lawrence Elliott. The Lowell Thomas Memorabilia Collection consists of 5 mediums containing personal items, memorabilia and published works: textual materials, graphic materials, objects, moving images, and sound recordings.

The Lowell Thomas Papers encompasses a wide range of materials documenting the life, family, and professional career of Lowell Thomas. These materials include correspondence, administrative and financial documents, manuscripts, printed materials, photographic materials, motion picture films, audio recordings, and memorabilia.