diff --git a/lib/jkqtplotter/jkqtpdatastorage.cpp b/lib/jkqtplotter/jkqtpdatastorage.cpp
index 1552b03056..1a20e0646d 100644
--- a/lib/jkqtplotter/jkqtpdatastorage.cpp
+++ b/lib/jkqtplotter/jkqtpdatastorage.cpp
@@ -315,6 +315,12 @@ JKQTPDatastore::~JKQTPDatastore() {
     clear();
 }
 
+////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
+bool JKQTPDatastore::hasColumn(size_t i) const
+{
+    return columns.find(i)!=columns.end();
+}
+
 ////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
 JKQTPDatastore::ColumnIterator JKQTPDatastore::begin()
 {
@@ -1159,6 +1165,17 @@ QList<QVector<double> > JKQTPDatastore::getData(QStringList *columnNames, const
     return res;
 }
 
+////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
+QVector<double> JKQTPDatastore::getData(size_t column, QString *columnName) const
+{
+    QVector<double> res;
+    if (hasColumn(column)) {
+        if (columnName) *columnName=columns.value(column).getName();
+        columns.value(column).copyData(res);
+    }
+    return res;
+}
+
 
 ////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
 void JKQTPDatastore::saveDIF(const QString& filename, const QSet<int>& userColumns, const QString& floatformat) const {
diff --git a/lib/jkqtplotter/jkqtpdatastorage.h b/lib/jkqtplotter/jkqtpdatastorage.h
index 28442c4527..5fad0fa6c1 100644
--- a/lib/jkqtplotter/jkqtpdatastorage.h
+++ b/lib/jkqtplotter/jkqtpdatastorage.h
@@ -387,6 +387,9 @@ class JKQTP_LIB_EXPORT JKQTPDatastore{
         /** \brief class destructor, destroys all subordered JKQTPDatastoreItem objects */
         ~JKQTPDatastore();
 
+        /** \brief determines whether a column  with the given ID exists */
+        bool hasColumn(size_t i) const;
+
         /** \brief returns an iterator to the first data entry in the \a i -th column in the JKQTPDatastore \see JKQTPColumn::iterator */
         JKQTPColumnIterator begin(int i);
         /** \brief returns an iterator behind the last data entry data in the \a i -th column in the JKQTPDatastore \see JKQTPColumn::iterator */
@@ -1326,6 +1329,13 @@ class JKQTP_LIB_EXPORT JKQTPDatastore{
          */
         QList<QVector<double> > getData(QStringList* columnNames=nullptr, const QSet<int>& userColumns=QSet<int>()) const;
 
+        /** \brief return contents of a given column as QVector<double>
+         *
+         * \param column column to copy
+         * \param columnName if \c !=nullptr this will afterwards conatin the column title
+         */
+        QVector<double> getData(size_t column, QString* columnName=nullptr) const;
+
         /** \brief save contents of datastore as <a href="http://www.fileformat.info/format/dif/egff.htm">DIF file (data interchange format)</a>
          *
          * \param filename the file to create