Archives:Sources in Electrical History 2: Oral History Collections in U.S. Repositories
Preface
Sources in Electrical History 2: Oral History Collections in U.S. Repositories is the second in a series of guides published by the IEEE-Rutgers Center for the History of Electrical Engineering. It joins the first volume, Archives and Manuscript Collections in U. S. Repositories (published by the IEEE in 1989), in providing a ready reference of primary sources to the researcher of the history of electrical, electronic, and computing technologies. This volume summarizes the contents of over 1,000 taped interviews, stored in 64 repositories, as well as listing basic information about the interviews, such as the interviewee, the interviewer, the date and place the interview was conducted, the length of the interview, and details about the existence of a transcript and index for the interview.
Many of the interviews listed in this volume were conducted as single components of large oral history projects. These projects are surveyed in the first 57 entries of this guide. In these entries, the motivation for the project, a list of the people interviewed who are relevant to electrical technology, and a summary of the subjects covered is provided. In some cases, when enough information about a single interview conducted in association with a project was available, a separate entry for that interview is listed. These are found in the main body of the guide, organized in alphabetical order by name of the interviewee. The name of the project is given above the name of the interview subject. The balance of the entries are for interviews with figures of note in electrical history, conducted by independent scholars for their own research and deposited in a welcoming repository. These are also listed alphabetically, by interviewee.
Each entry in the guide, whether for a single interview or a project, is assigned its own entry number. This number is the first data field, preceding the large, bold name of the interviewee. The two indexes refer to entries by their entry number. Hence, the number 347 in the subject index means interview number 347, which is on page 45. Entry numbers are assigned in ascending numerical order, but their sequence is not continuous. There are several gaps in the numbering of the entries. For example, although entry number 347 follows number 346, it is itself followed not by number 348, but by number 349. There is no entry number 348. This unusual system is an artifact of the editing process and should not hinder the easy use of the guide.
Please note: Interviews listed in this guide may not be open to researchers.
There are many reasons why access to an interview might be restricted; some interviews are closed, or partially closed, at the request of the interviewee, some are closed because permission forms have not been signed or processing is incomplete, some interviews may have other conditions on their use. These conditions change, however, and in preparing this guide we hoped to not withhold mention of interviews that, while currently unavailable, might be open in the future. Any researcher interested in examining an oral history listed in this guide must consult the archivist at the repository in question to determine whether the interview is available. There are other good reasons to call an archive before visiting. Information about business hours, special costs, or other facts relevant to a planned research trip can help the researcher avoid wasting time. Also, advance notification gives the archive's staff time to retrieve off-site materials, obtain permissions, and make other advance preparations. Archives are often unable to assist the unannounced researcher. The repository index at the end of this volume gives addresses and phone numbers of the repositories cited in this guide.
Sources in Electrical History 2: Oral History Collections in U.S. Repositories was prepared over a span of several years by the staff of the Center for the History of Electrical Engineering. The fundamental work of researching this book was primarily the job of Edward Sowders. Helping him with this, and with the compilation and composition of the results, were Joyce Bedi, Debra Braskett, Charles M. Dwight, Ronald Kline, and Craig Semsel. Editing, indexing, and proofreading of the manuscript was the responsibility of William Aspray, Michael Ann Ellis, Andrew Goldstein, David Morton, and Christine Skwiot. Andrew Goldstein prepared the pages for printing. Generous support for the center came from IEEE, Rutgers University, the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, the IEEE Foundation-Life Members Fund, the IEEE Foundation-General Fund, the Electro-Mechanics Company, The Environmental Research Institute of Michigan, the KBR Foundation, Sematech, the Microwave Theory and Techniques Society of the IEEE, and the Friends of the Center for the History of Electrical Engineering.
See also: Sources in Electrical History, vol. 1: Archives and Manuscript Collections in U.S. Repositories
Projects
A-E
1
APOLLO-SOYUZ TEST PROJECT
Rice University, Tex.
Dates of Interviews: 1974-76
Topics include aspects of the Apollo-Soyuz Test Project relating to electrical technology and engineering.
2
NIELS BOHR LIBRARY PROJECT
Niels Bohr Library, New York
The Bohr library has an extensive collection of interviews pertaining to physics and physicists. Many of the physicists interviewed had important roles in the development of such things as masers, lasers, computers, and semiconductors. Interviewees include John Bardeen, Nicolaas Bloembergen, Walter Brattain, Gregory Breit, Vannevar Bush, Lee A. DuBridge, John G. Kemeny, Benjamin Lax, W.K.H. Panofsky, Arthur L. Schawlow, Edward Teller, Charles H. Townes, and Merle A. Tuve.
3
BURROUGHS B 5000 CONFERENCE
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-98
Interviewers: Bernard A. Galler, Robert F. Rosin
Date of interview: 6 September 1985
Place: Marina del Ray, Calif.
Length of interview: 6 hrs.
Transcript: 193 pp.
In this collection, individuals responsible for the development from 1957 through the 1960s of the Burroughs 5000 computer series discuss it in a conference sponsored by the American Federation of Information Processing Societies (AFIPS) and the Burroughs Corporation. In the first two sessions, a group of managers, engineers, and consultants discuss the technical aspects of the B 5000 and 5500. Topics include the 5000's predecessors, particularly the ElectroData 101, B 201, B 205, and B 220; factors influencing the decision to produce the B 5000; reasons for designing the machine for ALGOL rather than FORTRAN; and the effect of that decision on the computer's development and sales. The group reviews the MCP operating system, PERM, Polish notation, descriptors, stacks, the BALGOL compiler, and other innovations of the computer. In the second session, the group discusses the commercial development of the B 5000, including the effect of the administrative organization on the project, the relations between hardware and software engineers, the interaction of project personnel and upper-level management, field marketing, and customers, the COBOL processor, the head protrack disc system, the operating system, ALGOL, and documentation of the computer. In the third session managers, sales personnel, and customers of the B 5000 discuss Burroughs's product line before the 200 and 5000 series computers, sales training and marketing reaction to the B 5000, acceptance of B 5000s at the Ohio Oil Company and Stanford University, and rejection by the University of Michigan, and reasons for not marketing the B 5000 overseas. Burroughs's presidents Raymond Eppert and Ray MacDonald are also discussed. The participants in this conference were Robert S. Barton, Henri Berce, George A. Collins, Bobby A. Creech, David M. Dahm, Benjamin A. Dent, James Ford, James Hale, John Hale, Erwin A. Hauck, Joseph T. Hootman, Paul D. King, Norman L. Kreuder, William R. Lonergan, Duncan MacDonald, F. Brad MacKenzie, G. Clark Oliphant, Ralf W. Pearson, Lloyd Turner, and Richard Waychoff.
4
COMMITTEE FOR ENVIRONMENTAL INFORMATION
University of Missouri
Interviewer: William Sullivan
Dates of interviews: Dec. 1981 - Jan. 1982
Length of interviews: 3 cassettes, 2 reels
Partial transcription
This is a collection of four interviews with members of a group of concerned citizens and scientists who formed the Greater St. Louis Committee for Nuclear Information, which in April 1958 became the Committee for Environmental Information. Their goal is to collect and evaluate information on nuclear tests, weapons, and energy. In the 1960s the group expanded its interests to include other environmental issues, such as air and water pollution, solid waste recycling, pesticides, aerosols, and chemical warfare. The four interviewees are Michael Friedlander, Dan Bolef, John Fowler, and Barry Commoner.
5
COMMUNICATIONS WORKERS OF AMERICA
University of Iowa
Dates of interviews: 1977-1983
Length of interviews: 220 hrs.
Transcript: 2,400 pp., indexed
This is a collection of interviews with early members of the Communications Workers of America, focusing primarily on efforts to build their union. The individuals who were interviewed for this project are Tom Adair, Al Atkinson, Morton Bahr, Farrell Beaver, Joseph Anthony Beirne, Melvin Bers, Helen Berthelot, Ben Blankenship, Ken Blount, Lavie Bolick, Willard Brown, Marie Bruce, Helen Carmody, John Carroll, Douglas Chisholm, Mabel Cooney, Gus Cramer, John Crull, Lonnie Daniel, Al Di Prospere, William Dunn, Joe Dunne, George Du Val, Muriel Edwards, William Edwards, Curtis Fletcher, Ed Follis, Nancy Franks, Madge Giles, George Gill, Clarence Good, D. K. Gordon, Arne Gravem, Paul E. Griffith, Claude Gwin, Richard Hackler, Mary Hanscom, Al Herrington, Stanely Hubbard, Ken Hutchinson, Louis Knecht, Charles V. Koons, Art Le Fevre, Frank Lonergan, Sylvia McCollum, D. L. McCowen, June McDonald, J. L. Mahady, Mae Mann, W. E. Martin, James Massey, Eugene Mays, George Miller, Pat Morgan, Martha Moudy, Earl Moye, George Myerscough, Norma Naughton, James Orr, Jules Pagano, Jane Palmer, Audrey Patterson, Ed Peil, Robert Pollock, Ben Porch, La Roy Purdy, Horace Rairdon, John Risser, Tom Ryan, Walter Schaar, Jacob J. Schacht, Sam Simms, James Smith, Anthony W. Stein, Scott Stephens, George Strick, Frank Thernes, Harvey Tweedy, Fred Waldeck, William Walsh, Glenn Watts, J. W. Webb, T. E. Webb, Philip Welsh, and Nelle Wooding.
6
COMPUTERS AT MIT
MIT, Mass.
Dates of interviews: 1976-77
Length of interviews: 19 cassettes
Transcript
This is a collection that covers the early history of computers at MIT. Topics include Project Whirlwind, Project MAC, and the Artificial Intelligence Laboratory. There are interviews with John W. Carr, III, Robert R. Everett, Jay W. Forrester, Harold L. Hazen, and Alan J. Perlis, who were participants in Project Whirlwind. There is also a transcript from the seminar entitled "Attitudes Towards Artificial Intelligence" with Philip Morrison, Jerome Lettvin, and Joseph Weizenbaum.
7
CONNECTICUT WORKERS PROJECT
University of Connecticut
Transcripts
These interviews cover a broad range of topics, concentrating on the social impact of electrical technologies. Interviewees and general topics include: Alton P. Aldrich (an electrician in the early 1920s), Pamela Bates (a computer programmer) Philip Bellico (who worked with computer-tape machines at Hamilton Standard Co.), Allan Bossoli (a warehouse worker at Siemens and Halske Company), Michael Broderick (electrician in the construction industry) Russell W. Brown (discussing computer assisted engineering), William Carey (a typographer) David Downs (submarine engineer), John Driggs (an air traffic controller), James Dubois (a projectionists), Georgia Engram (a graphic artist), William Gomez (a machine operator), George Graeber (an electrical engineer), Sandy Grange (a secretary), Gail C. Gregoire (a computer clerk), Raymond Gregoire (a turret lathe operator), Robert M. Grills (an engineer at the Electric Boat Co.), John Harrity (a machinist who discusses computer tape machines), Thomas Healey (a machinist who discusses numerically controlled machines), Kimberly Kwort (a secretary who discusses word processing machines), J. C. Lyon (an engineer at the Electric Boat Company), Saul Nesselroth (a labor professor), Adeline Pappas (a production worker who does electrical soldering), Edward Patterson (discussing computerized machine tools), Tony Pelosi (a tool and model maker), Claire Pluff (union local president), Martin Poulin (a machinist), Cynthia Purdie (a group leader on an electronics assembly line), Mark Rayel (who discusses machine tools), Carl J. Ricci (a machine repairer), Lorraine Rovero (a solderer, and electronics assembler), Frank Sacramone (who discusses the making of machine tools), George T. Sanders (a worker in newspaper printing with experience in Linotype machines), George Scott, (an.employee of the Electric Boat Co.), Joann Sienkiewicz (a Naval architect and marine engineer who discusses computers), Judith Soucie (an electronics assembler at the Siemens Company), Greg Stoltz (a mechanical engineer), five anonymous telephone workers (no.1, a keypunch operator; no. 2, a tester/installer and frame man; no. 3, a customer service representative; no. 4, a repairman, cable splicer, and lineman; and no. 5, an operator), Ivan Tetreault (a Linotype and teletype machinist), John Tierney (a mechanical engineer at the Electric Boat Co.), Walter Tisdale (a mechanical engineer at the Electric Boat Co.), Esther Tracey (a keypunch operator and administrator), Joseph Vitkus (a machinist involved in lathe operation), and an anonymous watch and gyro assembler.
8
DARPA INFORMATION PROCESSING TECHNIQUES OFFICE PROJECT
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn.
Interviewers: Arthur Norberg, Judith O'Neill
Dates of interviews: 1990
The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) has been the largest U.S. funder of computer research. DARPA grants have traditionally supported hardware-oriented research concentrating on interactivity (timesharing, networks, graphics, and artificial intelligence). Interviewees (with Babbage Institute call numbers in parentheses) include Paul Baran (OH-182), Allan Blue (OH-173), Bruce G. Buchanan (OH-230), Vinton G. Cerf (OH-191), Wesley Clark (OH-195), F. J. Clark (OH-162), Stephen Crocker (OH-233), William Crowther (OH-184), Charles A. Csuri (OH-180), Jack Bonnell Dennis (OH-177), Robert M. Fano (OH-165), Edward William Feigenbaum (OH-157), Howard Frank (OH-188), Frank Heart (OH-186), Charles Herzfeld (OH-208), Robert E. Kahn (OH-192), Leonard Kleinrock (OH-190), J. C. R. Licklider (OH-150), Stephen Lukasik (OH-232), John McCarthy (OH-156), Alexander McKenzie (OH-185), Marvin Lee Minsky (OH-179), Allen Newell (OH-227), Nils J. Nilsson (OH-155), Ronald B. Ohlander (OH-175), Severo Ornstein (OH-183), Douglas T. Ross (OH-178), Jack Ruina (OH-163), Jules I. Schwartz (OH-161), Robert Lee Simpson (OH-187), Ivan William Sutherland (OH-171), Robert William Taylor (OH-154), Keith Uncapher (OH-174), David Walden (OH-181), Franklin H. Westervelt (OH-199), Terry Winograd (OH-237), Patrick Henry Winston (OH-196), Charles A. Zracket (OH-198).
9
JAMES B. DUKE PROJECT
Columbia University, N.Y.
Date of interview: 1966
Transcript: 2,907 pp., indexed
The James B. Duke Project chronicles the personality and career of James B. Duke (1857-1925) and the origins and development of the Duke Endowment. Some interviews include discussion on the development of the Duke Power Company and various other business ventures designed to advance the Piedmont region of North Carolina. Also discussed is the rapid industrialization of the region during the early twentieth century following the provision of dependable power. The individuals who were interviewed for this project are Mildred Baldwin, Bernard Baruch, Clarence E. Buchanan, E. R. Bucher, Charles A. Cannon, Norman Cocke, Wilbert C. Davison, Mary Few, John Fox, Bennett Geer, Mary Glassen, Edward S. Hansen, Philip B. Heart, Christy Hibberd, Leon E. Hickman, Tom F. Hill, Roy A. Hunt, Thomas D. Jolly, Marvin Kimbrell, Carl Lee, Mrs. E. C. Marshall, Grier Martin, Robert Mayer, Mr. and Mrs. E. R. Merrick, Thomas L. Perkins, Rufus P. Perry, Richard Pfaehler, John L. Plyler, Grady Rankin, Watson S. Rankin, Charles S. Reed, William Robinson, Frank W. Rounds, Jr., Mary Semans, Hersey Spence, Kenneth C. Towe, C. T. Wanzer, Edward Williams, Mrs. John Williams, and Bunyan Snipes Womble.
10
THOMAS ALVA EDISON PROJECT
Columbia University, N.Y.
Dates of interviews: 1972-73
Transcript, index
This is a collection of interviews with family members and associates of Thomas Alva Edison that illuminate his character, personality, and motivation. Interviewees discuss the appearance and arrangement of the family home and the laboratory in West Orange, N.J., and recall specific projects carried on in the laboratory. The collection also includes earlier recordings prepared by the Edison National Historic Site. The individuals who were interviewed for this project are Harold S. Anderson, Edward K. Cary, John C. F. Coakley, John C. F. and Thelda Coakley, Edward J. Daly, Charles W. Durr, Theodore Edison, Karl Ehricke, Samuel Gardner, Thomas Halstrom, William H. Hand, A. E. Johnson, P. Kasakove, Roderic Peters, Madeleine Edison Sloane, Norman R. Speiden, Ernest L. Stevens, and Lillian P. Warren.
11
EISENHOWER ADMINISTRATION
Columbia University, N.Y.
Date of interview: 1962
Transcript, index
This project contains testimony from individuals who played major roles in the Eisenhower administration. The list of participants includes engineers, and portions of the interviews concern technology. Interviewees include William F. Knowland (member of the Joint Committee on Atomic Energy), Neil H. McElroy (who discusses the development of missiles and satellites during the 1950s), John S. D. Eisenhower (who discusses Dwight D. Eisenhower's views on missile satellite development and Sputnik), Lewis L. Strauss (who discusses nuclear power plants), James J. Wadsworth (who discusses the Atomic Energy Commission, and his Atoms for Peace speech), Arthur V. Watkins (involved in water development projects along the Colorado River), and Edward L. Beach (recalling the Atoms for Peace movement).
12
EISENHOWER LIBRARY COLLECTION
Eisenhower Library, Kansas
Dates of interviews: 1967-78
Transcripts
The Eisenhower presidential library has a number of holdings related to the electrical history. Several interview subjects were involved in the federal regulation of public utilities, or had some connection to nuclear power. Interviewees include George D. Aiken (U. S. Senator from Vermont, member of the Joint Committee on Atomic Energy), Allen V. Astin (Director of the National Bureau of Standards from 1952 to 1961, discusses proximity fuses, radio telemetry, the famous battery additive scandal, Sinclair Weeks, the Radio Standards Laboratory, research activities of the NBS, Dr. Edward Condon, satellites, and the Radio Propagation Laboratory), John W. Bricker (member of the Joint Committee on Atomic Energy, and the Atomic Energy Commission), Wallace R. Brode (member of the Atomic Energy Commission), Noobar R. Danielian (U.S. Commerce Department official from 1939-43, discusses the electrical power portion of the St. Lawrence Seaway project, and the Federal Power Commission), Elmer Bennett (who discusses the Pacific Gas and Electric Company), Richard Cook (deputy general manager of the Atomic Energy Commission from 1954 to 1958), Clarence A. Davis (who discusses the electric power business, hydroelectric power, Columbia basin dam projects, public power projects, and the Tennessee Valley Authority), James M. Gavin (who discusses satellite development during the 1950s), Andrew J. Goodpaster (who discusses Radio Free Europe), Wilson F. Harwood (Assistant Director of the National Science Foundation, who covers the Battery Additive Case, the National Bureau of Standards, and the Atomic Energy Commission), Katherine G. Howard (who describes relations between the Atomic Energy Commission and its chairman, Lewis Strauss), Jesse C. Johnson (an advisor of the U.S. delegation to International Conferences on Peaceful Uses of Atomic Energy in Geneva in 1955 and 1958), Arnold R. Jones (Vice Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) from 1957 to 1966), George B. Kistiakowsky (member of the President's Science Advisory Committee), John A. McCone (chairman of the Atomic Energy Commission), Edward P. McGuire (who discusses satellites), Don Paarlberg (involved in rural electrification), Howland H. Sargeant (a radio broadcasting executive who worked at Radio Liberty and Radio Free Europe), Robert C. Seamans, Jr. (who had a role in communications satellite programs), David M. Shoup (chairman of the Atomic Energy Commission from 1958 to 1960 who also discusses the nuclear power plant at Camp Pendleton, California), Theodore Streibert (who discusses his Radio Free Europe, television, and his role as Vice President of Time-Life Broadcasting, Inc.), Nathan F. Twining (who discusses Sputnik and man-made satellites), and Mr. and Mrs. Abott Washburn, (Abott was commissioner of the Federal Communications Commission from 1974 to 1982).
13
ELECTRIC UTILITIES IN TEXAS
University of North Texas
Interviewers: Ronald E. Marcello, James Riddlesperger
Dates of interviews: 1972-1975
In this series of interviews, Texas politicians and attorney discuss various aspects of public policy in Texas, including legislation relating to public power utilities. Interviewees include Fred Agnich, Kay Bailey, Ben Bynum, Bill Clayton, Ron Clower, Tom Creighton, Dewitt L. Hale, O. H. Harris, Eddie B. Johnson, Grant Jones, James Kaster, Oscar Mauzy, Chris Miller, Walt Parker, and Charles Wilson. Another interview with Paul Kilday, a judge, concerns the creation of the Atomic Energy Commission.
14
ELECTRONICS ENTREPRENEURS
University of California, Berkeley
Interviewer: Arthur L. Norberg
Dates of interviews: 1973-78
Transcript
This is a series of interviews with electronics entrepreneurs. The topics discussed include San Francisco Bay area amateur radio, radio pioneering, and the founding and development of various electronics companies in northern California. These companies include the Ampex Corporation, Eitel-McCullough, Inc., Fisher Research Laboratories, Heintz and Kaufman, Incorporated, and the Lenkurt Electric Company. Research activities are also discussed, and those mentioned include those of the Federal Telegraph Company, Dalmo-Victor Company, and Litton Engineering Laboratories. The individuals who were interviewed for this project are Kurt E. Appert, Harold H. Buttner, William W. Eitel, Gerhard R. Fisher, Charles P. Ginsburg, Ralph Heintz, Jack A. McCullough, Norman Moore, Tomlinson L. Moseley, David Packard, Alexander M. Poniatoff, and Roy Woenne.
F-N
15
FARM HOLIDAY ASSOCIATION
Southwest State University, Minn.
Interviewers: H. Warren Gardner, David L. Nass, Maynard Brass
Dates of interviews: 1972-73
Transcript
This is a set of interviews with the members of the Farm Holiday Association, who discuss its history and activities during the Great Depression. The interviews also include information on the Minnesota Valley Electric Light and Power Cooperative, the Rural Electrification Administration, and New Deal legislation.
16
FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION
Columbia University, N.Y.
Date of interview: 1978
Transcript: 303 pp.
This is a series of interviews on the Federal Communications Commission during the 1950s and early 1960s, focusing on issues, policies, and personalities. The individuals who were interviewed for this project are Frederick W. Ford, E. William Henry, Robert E. Lee, Newton Minow, and Frank Stanton.
17
FEDERATION OF TELEPHONE WORKERS OF PENNSYLVANIA
Pennsylvania State
Interviewers: Various
Dates of interviews: Summer 1975
Place: University Park, Pa.
Transcript
During the summer of 1975 group interviews were conducted at the Pennsylvania State University, University Park, with members of the Federation of Telephone Workers of Pennsylvania. The interviewees are James Bartholomew, Harry Conlin, Ray Fleagle, Steve Holzer, Jean Kurtz, Anthony Lemansky, Lawrence Lightbody, John Money, Inez Morahito, Thomas Payne, James Pierce, David F. Quinlan, Carl Raitano, Regis Rice, Pete Treible, Joseph Toner, Cosmo Violi, and William Wallace.
18
JAMES LAWRENCE FLY PROJECT
Columbia University, N.Y.
Date of interview: 1967
Transcript: 655 pp., indexed
This is a collection of interviews with friends and associates of James L. Fly (1898-1966), who recall his life and particularly his chairmanship of the Federal Communications Commission from 1939 to 1944. The interviewees involved in this project are Thurman Arnold, Edward Brecher, Marcus Cohn, Thomas Corcoran, Norman Corwin, Benedict Peter Cottone, Charles R. Denny, Clifford J. Durr, William C. Fitts, Jr., Abe Fortas, Fred W. Friendly, Lucien Hilmer, Rosel H. Hyde, Leonard H. Marks, Neville Miller, Charles S. Murphy, John Lord O'Brian, Harry Plotkin, Paul A. Porter, Joseph Rauk, James Rowe, Peter Shuebruk, and Telford Taylor.
19
GENERAL ELECTRIC EMPLOYEES
Mercyhurst College, Pa.
Date of interviews: 1976
Place: Pennsylvania
Length of interviews: 24 tapes
This collection consists of 24 taped interviews (four of which are anonymous) with Erie General Electric employees conducted in 1976. The employees are asked about their ethnic background, why they chose to work for General Electric, the type of work they do, and especially about their involvement with trade unions. The individuals who were interviewed for this project are Frank Blewett, Thomas Brown, Sophie Buchholzer, Ted Buczek, Anna Doutt, Norman Doutt, Emery Gidos, Joseph Heberlein, Hattie Kaczmerak, Shade Marshell, Phillip Moskalczyk, James Pepicello, Thomas Rafter, Michael C. Somokae, Everett C. Whipple, and William Winn.
20
GEORGE GREEN PROJECT
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn.
Interviewer: George Green
Dates of interviews: circa 1980
Green, a professor at the University of Minnesota, assembled these videotaped interviews on the topic of computing in American business. Interviewees include Uta Merzbach, curator of computing at the Smithsonian Institution (OH-28), John L. Rankine, (OH-32), Thomas Parke Hughes, a professor of history (OH-2) Herman Heine Goldstine (OH-19), active in the early development of computing at Aberdeen Proving Ground, the University of Pennsylvania, the Institute for Advanced Study, and IBM, and Paul Armer, (OH-1) of Rand Corp. and AFIPS.
21
HEWLETT-PACKARD COMPANY
Hewlett-Packard, Calif.
Length of interview: 75 hrs.
Transcripts: 1700 pp.
This is a collection of 50 interviews concerned primarily with the early history of the Hewlett-Packard Company, including products, working conditions, and company events, philosophy, and practices.
22
Mark C. Honeywell Collection
HONEYWELL, INC.
Carnegie Library, Ind.
Length of interviews 35 hrs.
People interviewed or discussed in interviews include Wayne Adams, Mr. and Mrs. Roy Derickson, Darrell Hamilton, Mrs. Mark C. Honeywell, Charles R. Keppel, Adrian Leland, D. L. Leland, Morris K. Magner Jr., Melvin "Bud" Martin, Roland J. McDaniel Sr., Mrs. Michael McNarney, Alonzo Mullendore, Marian Nixon, Marvin Pettiford, Gene Ranstead, August Rumpf, Mr. and Mrs. James Sailors, Carl Schwab, Gerald R. Smith, Harold Sweatt, Elbert Wibel, and William H Woods.
23
IEEE MIT RAD-LAB ORAL HISTORY PROJECT
IEEE, N.J.
Interviewers: William Aspray, John Bryant, Andrew Goldstein, Frederik Nebeker
Date of interviews: June-August, 1991
Place: Boston, Mass.
Length of interviews: approximately 55 hrs.
Transcripts: incomplete
Engineers, scientists, administrators, and office staff discuss the large-scale radar development effort at the MIT Radiation Laboratory during World War II. Interviewed were: Henry Abajian, Royal Allaire, Kenneth T. Bainbridge, Edythe Baker, M. A. Chaffee, Britton Chance, Lee L. Davenport, Howard Doolittle, Art Fong, Bert and Kathryn Fowler, Virginia Gerdes, Ivan Getting, Dorothy Gillette, Fred J. Heath, Joan Leamy James, Lawrence Johnston, Robert Kyhl, Benjamin Lax, Frank Lewis, Louis F. Moose, Russell O'Neal, E. C. Pollard, Robert Pound, Edward Purcell, Norman Ramsey, Randal Robertson, Denis Robinson, Nathaniel Rochester, Ragnar Rollefson, Chandos Rypinski, Ted Saad, Catherine F. Scott, Samuel Seeley, Chalmers Sherwin, Virginia Powell Strong, Leo Sullivan, Gerald Tape, Helen L. Thomas, George Valley, Herbert Weiss, and Jerome Wiesner. Common subjects were radar systems, magnetrons, klystrons, science and the military, science and industry, engineering education, research and development, and working women.
24
IOWA LABOR HISTORY ORAL PROJECT
Iowa Historical Society
Dates of interviews: 1977-83
Transcript
This project consists of over 1000 interviews in numerous collections. Of these, there are more than 100 interviews in five collections with members of electrical or electrical-related unions. The relevant collections are those of the Communications Workers (26 interviews), the Electrical Workers (53 interviews), the Operating Engineers (8 interviews), and the Printing Unions (29 interviews). No specific information about individual interviews is available.
25
KLYSTRON DEVELOPMENTS
University of California, Berkeley
Interviewer: Arthur L. Norberg
Dates of interviews: 1974, 1977
Transcript
Topics discussed in this collection include the design of the Klystron tube, research in radar during World War II, the electrical engineering departments of MIT and Stanford University, and especially such staff members as William Hansen and Frederick Terman.
26
LAWRENCE BERKELEY LABORATORY
University of California, Berkeley
Interviewers: Arthur L. Norberg, Graham Hale
Dates of interviews: 1975-78
Transcript
This is a collection of interviews with William M. Brobeck, Owen Chamberlain, A. Carl Hemholtz, Malcolm G. Henderson, John J. Livingood, Edward J. Lofgren, Wallace B. Reynolds, Glen T. Seaborg, David H. Sloan, Robert L. Thornton, and Herbert F. York--all of whom had connections with the Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory. Topics discussed include early physics and chemistry research at the Laboratory in a search for high energies and new elements, alterations in and building of new machinery including the 60" and 184" cyclotrons and the Bevatron, research during World War II at the Laboratory and in Oak Ridge, Tennessee on magnetic separation of uranium isotopes, and relations of the Laboratory with the physics department at Berkeley.
27
LOS ALAMOS SCIENTIFIC LABORATORY
University of California, Berkeley
Interviewer: Arthur L. Norberg
Date of interviews: 1976
Transcript
This is a collection of interviews with Norris Bradbury, Darol K. Froman, John H. Manley, J. Carson Mark, Raemer E. Schreiber, and Cyril S. Smith in which the establishment of the Laboratory during World War II, the administrative structure of the Laboratory, various aspects of research on the atomic and hydrogen bombs, the relationship with the University of California and the Atomic Energy Commission, and competition with the Lawrence Livermore Laboratory are discussed.
28
MEDICAL PHYSICS AT BERKELEY
University of California, Berkeley
Interviewer: Sally S. Hughes
Date of interviews: 1979
Transcript
This is a collection of interviews with James L. Born, John H. Lawrence and Alexander V. Nichols in which research at Donner Laboratory and at the University of California at Berkeley, nuclear medicine, accelerator biophysics, heavy-particle cancer therapy and lipoprotein studies, the structure of the Laboratory and interaction of research groups, post-WWII establishment of the Division of Medical Physics, and radiation research at Crocker Laboratory from 1939 to 1962 are discussed.
29
MEMPHIS LABOR DISPUTE, 1978
Shelby County Library, Tenn.
Date of interview: 1978
Transcript
This collection includes a 90-minute tape on the history of the WREC radio station.
30
MINNESOTA POWER LINE CONSTRUCTION ORAL HISTORY
University of Minnesota
Dates of Interviews: 1977-79
Transcript
This is a collection of fifty interviews dealing with the construction of a high-voltage electric power-line across farmland in western Minnesota. The interviews include the viewpoints of both opponents and proponents of the line, and contain information on electric energy usage, decisions about power line location, construction policies, and the place of electric power in U.S. energy policy.
31
MISSISSIPPI POWER COMPANY ORAL HISTORY PROGRAM
Mississippi Power Co.
Dates of interviews: 1984-1988
Transcript
This series of 11 interviews has been compiled by the Mississippi Power Company. Mississippi Power, founded in 1925, serves 23 counties in the southeastern part of the state. Interviewees include Lucy Erwin, William Jolley Carr, James Samuel Eaton, Allen Arno Mills, Victor James Daniel, Jr., Ishmael Howard, Francis W. Lull, Jr., Allan John Watson, Jr., Adele Winona Latimer, John Thomas Turnipseed, John Pearson Stephens, and Hollis Ray Brown.
32
NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION COMPUTING AND COMPUTER SCIENCE PROJECT
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn.
Interviewers: William Aspray, Andrew Goldstein, Frederik Nebeker
Dates of interviews: 1990
The U.S. National Science Foundation has been a major funding agency for computer research. The general thrust of the NSF has been to fund basic research, generally in the form of research grants to individuals or small groups. These interviews (with Babbage Institute call numbers in parentheses) concentrate on the administrative history of the Foundation. Interviewees include W. Adrion Richards (OH-211), Bruce Barnes (OH-213), John Charles Cherniavsky (OH-223), Thomas Gallie (OH-222), Arthur Grad (OH-216), Harry Hedges (OH-221), Thomas A. Keenan (OH-217), John R. Lehmann (OH-219), Peter Lykos (OH-214), Andrew R. Molnar (OH-234), Granger Morgan (OH-224), Val Tareski (OH-225), Alvin Thaler (OH-220), Frederick Weingarten (OH-212).
33
NEBRASKA HISTORICAL SOCIETY COLLECTION
Nebraska Historical Society
Dates of interviews: 1963-1987
The interviews in this collection cover a variety of topics, and several are wholly or party relevant to the history of electricity or electronics. W. H. Beaver, Martin Douhan, Douglas Butler, Glen Gingles, Charles Gray, Jack Hanssen, Pricilla Hoy, Robert Jensen, George Kister, Gardner Moore, James Platz, Johnn Rall, E. H. Snyder, Gerry Wiebe, and Emanual Wishnow each discuss early radio in Nebraska. Jess Williams talks about music on early radio. Two interviews are related to the "Watchful Citizen" radio program produced by KFMQ, Lincoln. The first is a segment from the program featuring Senator Clifton Foster (who discusses public power in Nebraska). The second is a panel discussion on public utilities with Terry M. Carpenter, Clarence David, Clifton Foster, and Ray Schacht. An interview with Charles Gray concerns an early radio station in David City, Nebraska. Elmer Peterson talks about generators in Valley County, Nebraska. In a group interview entitled "Alfred Poska, et al.," Poska and his colleagues recall individuals involved in early radio broadcasting in Nebraska. Stations they mention include KFAB, KOIL, KJAG, and KFOR. Subjects interviewed include Robert R. Jensen, Helen Jensen, Jane Sunder, Bill Baldwin, Alene McKinney, John Kendall, Helen Kendall, and Enid Baldwin.
P-R
34
PACIFIC NORTHWEST BROADCASTING
Washington State
Interviewer: Hugh Rundell
Dates of interviews: 1976-78
Transcript
The Pacific Northwest Broadcasting Oral History Project consist of a series of interviews with various radio broadcasting pioneers from the region. A variety of subject matters are covered based on individuals' experiences in radio and television broadcasting. The individuals who were interviewed are Leo Beckley, Al Bond, Jack Clarke, Homer Pope, Robert Priebe, and James Wallace.
35
FRANK POLKINGHORN PROJECT
IEEE, N.J.
Interviewers: Frank Polkinghorn, Norval, Dwyer, Mark Heyer, Al Pinsky, George T. Royden, Kenneth Van Tassel, Julian D. Tebo
Dates of interviews: 1968-1976
This series of interviews covers a number of disparate topics within electrical engineering. Interviewed are: Harold Beverage (radio), Lloyd Espenschied (AT&T), Leonard Fuller (Federal Radio Co., in California), Frank Godsey (Westinghouse) Alfred N. Goldsmith (radio and television), Thomas T. Goldsmith (television research), Clarence Hickman (Bell Telephone Laboratories), James Hillier (electron microscopy), Albert S. Hoagland (digital storage for computers), Karl Honaman (Bell Telephone Laboratories, head of the School for War Training and the Publication Department at Bell Laboratories), Arthur C. Keller (sound reproduction), Archie King, Harold B. Law (television), Ernst A. Lederer (vacuum tubes), Humboldt W. Leverenz (television), Warren P. Mason (filter development at Bell Telephone Labs), Joseph Maxfield (sound motion pictures), Julian Z. Millar (radio researcher at Western Union), Charles W. Mueller (transistor research), Russell S. Ohl (semiconductors), Harry F. Olson (sound reproduction), Harold O. Peterson (radio), Jan Rajchman (ferrite core computer memories), George T. Royden (early radio), Peter C. Sandretto (aviation radio), Philip Smith (antennas and transmission lines), Ellery W. Stone (early radio, ITT), Fred J. Vogel (transformers), Paul K. Weimer, Edwin L. White (early radio), Irving Wolff (radio detection), and Vladimir Zworykin (television).
36
THE POWER LINE PROJECT COLLECTION
University of Minnesota
Dates of interviews: 1967-78
Transcript
In 1972 the Cooperative Power Association and the United Power Association began discussing the feasibility of building a power plant in North Dakota to transmit energy along a 400 kilovolt direct current line to their Minnesota customers. In 1975 construction of the plant was begun in North Dakota, and at that time groups began forming to oppose the construction of the high voltage power lines. This project involved interviewing numerous people involved in the power line issue. A substantial collection of printed documents related to the power line is also part of the project.
37
PRINCETON MATHEMATICAL COMMUNITY IN THE 1930s
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn. and Princeton University, N.J.
Interviewers: William Aspray, Albert Lewis, Frederik Nebeker, Evar Nering, Karen Parshall, Terry Speed, Albert Tucker
Dates of interviews: September 1975-June 1985
Length of interviews: approximately 55 hrs.
Transcript: 602 pp., name index
Members of the Princeton mathematical community in the 1930s, in their discussions of the institutional and social context of the development of an eminent mathematical research and graduate-education center, mention personalities and topics relating to electrical history such as National Research Council Fellowships, Aberdeen Proving Grounds, computability in mathematical logic, the Ballistics Research Laboratory, the Moore School of Electrical Engineering at the University of Pennsylvania, the Institute for Advanced Study, the Army Specialized Training Program at Princeton University, linear programming, game theory, the Fire Control Research Project at Princeton, the ENIAC computer, Oswald Veblen, Alan Turing, Kurt Göedel, John von Neumann, G. A. Bliss, Enrico Fermi, Herman Weyl, Stan Ulam, W. V. O. Quine, Haskell Curry, E. L. Post, and Marvin Minsky. Interviewed were (interview call number follows the name): John Bardeen (PMC-1); Valentine Bargmann (PMC-2); George W. Brown and Alexander Mood (PMC-3); Robert Cameron (PMC-4); Alonzo Church (PMC-5); Leon W. Cohen (PMC-6); Joseph Daly and Churchill Eisenhart (PMC-7); William L. Duren, Nathan Jacobson, and Edward J. McShane (PMC-8); Churchill Eisenhart (PMC-9); William Flexner (PMC-10); Merrill Flood (PMC-11); Alfred Leon and Ilse Foster, Derrick and Emma Lehmer, and Frances Morrey (PMC-12); John Giese (PMC-13); James Wallace Givens; Abraham H. Taub, and Angus E. Taylor (PMC-14); Herman Goldstine (PMC-15); Robert E. Greenwood (PMC-16); (PMC-17); Israel Halperin (PMC-18); Leon Henkin and Albert Tucker (PMC-19); Banesh Hoffman (PMC-20); Robert Hooke (PMC-21); John Kemeny (PMC-22); Stephen C. Kleene and J. Barkley Rosser (PMC-23); Jack Levine (PMC-24); Deane Montgomery (PMC-25); Malcolm Robertson (PMC-26); Robert Singleton (PMC-27); Ernst Snapper (PMC-28); Albert Tucker (PMC 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40); John Tukey (PMC-41); Robert Walker (PMC-42); Hassler Whitney (PMC-43); Eugene Wigner (PMC-44); and Shaun Wylie (PMC-45).
38
PROJECT APOLLO
Johnson Space Center
Dates of interviews: 1957-72
Transcripts
In addition to extensive correspondence, committee, group, panel, and contractor reports, special collections and photographs, this collection contains 327 oral history interviews with Apollo Program participants. Some of these discussions are on topics relevant to electronics and electrical engineering. The tapes and transcripts are held by the Johnson Space Center. Interviewees include Gene Abbey (General Precision, Inc. simulators), Don Atwood (AC Electronics , guidance and navigation systems), Richard Battin (guidance and control apparatus at MIT), Chuck Bixler (General Electric), Dan Blake (Link Simulators), R. O. Burmood (Collins Radio Company contracting), Gordon Butler (Collins Radio Company contract administration), Aaron Cohen (guidance and navigation), Ron Decrevel (Bell Aerospace Corporation, lunar simulators), Harold Dodge (IBM computers), Charles Stark Draper (guidance and navigation, guidance and control work at MIT), Stanley Faber (Apollo simulators), Charles Fitzgerald (Link Simulators), Charles Frick (Philco-Ford), Barry Galman (General Electric), David W. Gilbert (Apollo guidance and navigation), Harry J. Goett (Philco-Ford), Glen Goodwin (Apollo guidance, control, and trajectories), Ted Hammes (lunar module environmental control), Gordon Hardy (Saturn V rocket control and guidance), David G. Hoag (Apollo guidance and navigation), George Holden (bio-instrumentation and biosatellites), Lincoln Hudson (Honeywell, Apollo stabilization and control equipment), Karl F. Jackson (AiResearch Div., Garrett Corporation, Apollo environmental control systems), Vytautas, Klemas (General Electric, optics), Walker Kupfer (Apollo guidance and navigation systems), R. W. Lawton (General Electric), William A. Lee (Raytheon's involvement with the Apollo Program), Henry Lessing (Apollo reentry guidance), Riley D. McCafferty (training and simulation), Dick McKnight (Link Simulators), Cliff Meldrum (Link Simulators), Edward S. Miller (General Electric), John E. Miller (Apollo guidance and navigation apparatus), Donald L. Muller (General Electric), John Nugent (Apollo inertial subsystems), Jim O'Connell (Link Simulators), William W. Petynia (environmental testing), R. F. Pickering (Collins Radio), Ralph Ragan (Apollo guidance and navigation apparatus), Joseph Smith (bio-instrumentation and bio-satellites), Richard L. Taylor (Link Simulators), William D. Thompson (Apollo guidance and navigation), Oreland A. Thornsjo (Apollo stabilization and control equipment), Milton B. Tregeser (Apollo guidance and navigation), Dick Vale (Collins Radio, Apollo communications equipment), Ladislaus W. Warzecha (General Electric), Joseph Welch (Apollo guidance and navigation systems), Rodney Wingrove (Apollo reentry guidance and trajectories), C. H. Woodling (Apollo astronaut training and mission simulation), Howard Wright (Grumman Corp., lunar module electronics), Arthur F. Wulfsberg (Collins Radio, communications for the Apollo Program), and Harold C. Yost (AC Electronics, Apollo guidance and navigation).
39
PROJECTS GEMINI AND MERCURY
Rice University, Tex.
Dates of interviews: 1958-71
Transcript
In addition to design notes, correspondence, status reports, mission files, and photographs, this collection contains 261 interviews covering the period from 1966 to 1970. Some of these discussions are on topics relevant to electronics and electrical engineering. The collection also contains audio tapes of Gemini postflight conferences and television interviews. The Gemini collection contains interviews, videotapes and reel-to-reel tapes covering such subjects as astronaut debriefings, air-to-ground communications, and mission simulations.
40
PUBLIC RADIO
Washington State
Interviewer: Burt Harrison
Dates of Interviews: 1977-78
Transcripts
The Public Radio Oral History Project papers consist of a series of interviews with pioneers of public radio. These interviews were conducted by Burt Harrison, former manager of KWSU radio, during a period from 1977 to 1978 under a contract from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. The individuals who were interviewed for this project are Jack Burk, Martin P. Busch, Hugh Cordier, John C. Crabbe, John DeCamp, Richard Estell, Albert P. Fredette, Lee Frischknecht, Lawrence Frymire, Betty T. Girling, John Gregory, William Harley, Ruane B. Hill, Robert L. Hilliard, Robert C. Hinz, Richard B. Hull, Albert Hulsen, Kenneth Kager, Lucinda Kindred, Harold B. McCarty, Carl Menzer, James S. Miles, Allen Miller, James M. Morris, Robert A. Moot, Frank W. Norwood, Morris S. Novik, Burton Paulu, Donald R. Quayle, John A. Regnell, James Robertson, Jerrold Sandler, Frank Schooley, Sam Scott, Martha and Walter Sheppard, John D. Summerfield, Patricia L. Swenson, Ralph Titus, I. Keith Tyler, Robert E. Underwood, John Witherspoon, and Elizabeth Young.
41
PUBLIC TELEVISION'S ROOTS
Wisconsin Historical Society
Interviewer: James Robertson
Dates of interviews: 1979-82
Transcript
This collection contains 93 tape records and four boxes of transcripts from interviews with 55 individuals. This program, funded primarily by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, focuses on the early history of public television broadcasting in the United States.
42
RADIO ORAL HISTORY COLLECTION
Sangamon State University, Ill.
Interviewer: William Ortman
Place: Springfield, Ill.
Transcript
This is a collection of interviews with Glen Farrington, Al Germond, Shelby Harbison, Jim Jordan, J. Martin Kay, Jim Palmer, Bob Pennington, A. W. Pistorius, Dan Rion, Doug Seigel, Cal Shrum, Spizz Singer, Kenneth E. Spengler, and Bill Wheeler, relating to the history of radio in Springfield, Ill. and the effect of television on radio.
43
RADIO PIONEERS
Columbia University, N.Y.
Dates of interviews: 1950-
Transcript, index
This is a comprehensive record of the early history of radio, as told by engineers, station and network executives, government officials, writers, directors, and performers. The interviewees discuss scientific matters including types of sending apparatus, early experiments with wireless, radio antennas, wireless and radio transmitters, the Alexanderson alternator, early experiments with television, transmitters for radio stations, mobile radio units, problems of engineering in network broadcasts, manufacturer's laboratory research, and the effects of World War II on radio engineering. The growth of the radio business from the days of amateurs is described through accounts of manufacturing apparatus for the radio market (Westinghouse Electric Co., General Electric Corp., and the Radio Corporation of America), wireless telegraphy and telephony on the Great Lakes, operating methods in early radio stations, establishing and financing a radio station in the 1920s, persuading advertisers to buy radio time, responses of and to the radio audience, broadcast ethics, and the impact of television with its new business and performing methods. The growth of networks and network competition with local stations is detailed in accounts of the development of the National Broadcasting Company, the Red and Blue networks and the outgrowth of the American Broadcasting Company from them, the Columbia Broadcasting System, Mutual Broadcasting System, American Telephone & Telegraph Company, and the stations of General Electric and Westinghouse. Radio's relations with the government are dealt with in accounts of the Washington Conference assigning international wavelengths (1927), the Federal Radio Commission, the Federal Communications Commission, radio law and legislation, government regulation and comparisons of radio in the U.S., Great Britain, and Canada, the British Broadcasting Corporation, patent licensing and the Department of Justice (1932), U.S. censorship in World War II, and postwar problems. The problems of programming and the evolution of types of radio programs are described, particularly musical programs, the use of music on radio, early radio acting, talent scouting, audience participation programs, children's programs, and information and public service programs. News reporting is discussed, including matters such as news analysis, sports reporting, the rivalry between the press and radio, radio columns and columnists, the Association of Radio News analysts, and an account of reporting the Spanish Civil War by H.V. Kaltenborn. Specific details are provided on the history of Stations WWJ (Detroit), and WBEN (Buffalo), the development of a classical music station (WQXR-NY) and a municipal station (WYNC-NY), and on such programs as "Amos n' Andy," "Information, Please," "Town Meeting of the Air," and "The Voice of Firestone." Impressions are given of David Sarnoff, conductors Walter Damrosch and Fred Waring, NBC program manager Bertha Brainerd, electrical engineer Frank Conrad, Henry Ford, William S. Aylesworth, Al Jolson, lawyer Owen D. Young, and others. The individuals who were interviewed for this series are Ernst Frederick Werner Alexanderson, Ed Allen, Frank Atkinson Arnold, Walter Ransom Gail Baker, Harry Ray Bannister, Howard Barlow, Patrick Henry Barnes, Joseph M. Barnett, Gustave A. Bosler, Everett L. Bragdon, Harry P. Breitenbach, William Wilbur Brown, Lyman Lloyd Bryson, Orestes Hampton Caldwell, Joseph D. Cappa, Phillips Carlin, Thomas Edward Clark Chasins, Norman Corwin, Louis Cowan, Thomas H. Cowan, Roderick Cupp, Lee De Forest, Richard K. Doan, Glen Dolberg, Lloyd Espenschied, Walter Chew Evans, Edgar Felix, John Earl Fetzer, Fred Friendly, Robert Fuller, Wayland Fullington, John Gambling, George Gingell, Harry Goodman, Dorothy Gordon, Ben Grauer, Gordon Gray, Gordon Greb, Rosaline Greene, Wilton Gunzendorfer, Raymond Frederick Guy, Joseph Anthony Haeffner, Kolin Hager, Richard F. Hanser, William E. Harkness, Herschell Hart, Laurence Ashley Hawkins, William Saxby Hedges, John E. Hill, Lawrence LaMotte Holland, Herbert Clark Hoover, Albert Wallace Hull, E. P. H. James, Eddie Janis, Arthur Judson, William J. Kaland, H. V. Kaltenborn, Ken Kennedy, Alfred Henry Kirchhofer, Kirk Knight, Chester Henry Lang, Leon Lichtenfeld, Donald B. Little, Edgar J. Love, Ruth Lyons, Stanley Rutter Manning, Carlton Morse and Michael Rafetto, Ray Newby, Paul Oliphant and F. C. Sowell, Dorsey Owings, John F. Patt, Daniel Petrie, James A. Pike, Elton M. Plant, Herbert Ponting, Robert L. Pratt, Harry Rasky, Philip H. Reisman, Lord John Reith, Gruce Robertson, Otis E. Robinson, William N. Robson, Manuel Rosenberg, J. Harold Ryan, Abel Alan Schechter, William Edmund Scripps, Robert L. Shayon, John L. Slaton, Robert Smiley, Ira D. Smith and Fred J. Hart, Sigmund Spaeth, Jeff Sparks, Davidson Taylor, Sybil True, Edwin Lloyd Tyson, Clyde D. Wagoner, James Truman Ward, Gene Waters, Irving Reid Weir, Grover A. Whalen, Rex G. White, William Cummings White, Mark Woods, and William R. Yates.
S-T
43a
SCHENECTADY GENERAL ELECTRIC IN THE 20TH CENTURY
SUNY-Albany, NY
Interviewers: Elizabeth Griffin, Gerald Zahavi
Dates of interviews: 1991-
Transcript
The Schenectady General Electric in the 20th Century Project contains over 60 interviews, totaling more than 120 hours, with employees of General Electric's Schenectady facility. Interviews will be open to researchers after the summer of 1993.
44
SKAGIT COUNTY HISTORICAL MUSEUM
Skagit Historical Society, Wash.
Transcripts
The Skagit County Historical Museum oral history collection includes eleven interviews related to the Skagit River & West Coast Telephone Company, the Everett Telephone Company, the Seattle City Light, the West Coast & General Telephone Company, the early Bell Telephone Company, the Summit Park, Bell & Independent Telephone Company, the Skagit Valley Rural & Continental Telephone Company, the Western Union Telegraph, Pass Lake, and Electric Light Plant production.
45
SKYLAB
Rice University, Tex.
Dates of interviews: 1974-77
Transcript
This is a collection of documents and oral histories about Skylab. Some of these discussions are on topics relevant to electronics and electrical engineering.
46
AFIPS-SMITHSONIAN COMPUTER HISTORY PROJECT
Smithsonian Institution, D.C.
Transcript, index
This collection was compiled jointly by the American Federation of Information Processing Societies (AFIPS) and the Smithsonian Institution's National Society of American History. Henry S. Tropp and Uta Merzbach were the AFIPS and Smithsonian directors respectively. The approximately 200 interviews in this collection were conducted between 1969 and 1970 with engineers, scientists, mathematicians and others directly involved in the development of computers and computing. Approximately half of the interviews are open for research. Interview subjects include, among others: Forman Acton, Charles Adams, Howard Aiken, Gerard Allard, John Alrich, Franz Alt, Group Argonne, Paul Armer, John Atanasoff, William Atchison, Isaac Auerbach, Jean J. Bartik and Frances E. Holberton, Walter Bauer, Allan Beek David Feign and Ted Hertz, Mort Bernstein, Julian Bigelow, Gertrude Blanch, Richard Bloch, James Bradburn, J.G. Brainerd, George W. Brown, Gordon S. Brown, Robert Burns and I. Bernard Cohen, Howard Campaigne, Robert Campbell, Richard G. Canning, Edward W. Cannon, James Cass, Richard Clippinger, John Coombs, Lynn Couret, Perry O. Crawford, John H. Curtiss, Joseph R. Desch and Robert E. Mumma, Arthur H. Dickinson, Robert C. Dietzold and Bernard Holbrook, Stephen H. Dodd, Richard D. Dotts, Donald E. Eckdahl, Robert D. Elbourn, Harlan Elkins, Gerald Estrin, Robert Everett, William Farrand William Downey and Ernie Brashear, Louis Fein, Alfred Fenaughty, George Forbes, Cameron Forrest, Jay W. Forrester, Stanley Frankel, Ken Garrison, Murray A. Geisler, Stanley Gill, E. L. (Ted) Glaser and Fred Way III, Harold Goheen, I. J. Good, C. C. Gotlieb, Jackson Granholm, Irwin Greenwald, Sidney Greenwald, Herbert Grosch, Fred Gruenberger, William F. Gunning, Glenn E. Hagen, Maurice H. Halstead, Leon Harmon, Harold Haxen, Paul Herget, Henry Herold and Jack Mitchell, Grace Murray Hopper, Robert Horn, Bernard Horwitz, Alston S. Householder, Bernard Howard, Bernard Howard and Harold Skramstad, Cuthbert C. Hurd, Harry Huskey and Mrs. Harry Huskey, David R. Israel, Mario L. Juncosa, Josef Kates, Roy Koufold and Walt Edwards, James R. Killian, Jr., Les Kilpatrick, Paul King, Russell A. Kirech, Irving Korn, Norman Kreuder, Sandy Lanzarotta, Harry T. Larson, Sam Legvold, Derrick Lehmer, Lovell C.A. Henry, John Lowe, John McPherson, Don Madden, Ethel Marden, Richard Martin, Daniel R. Mason, John Mauchly, Myron J. Mendelson, Donald H. Menzel, Nick Metropolis, Frederick G. Miller , Roger Mills, Owen Mock, Philip Morse, Paul Morton, Vincent Neisius, Eldred Nelson , G. Neovius, Max Palevsky, R.D. Parker, Robert Patrick, Byron E. Phelps and Werner Buchholz, Montgomery Phister, Harry Polachek, John Postley, Emmett Quady, Rabinow Jacob, Jan Rajchman, Norman J. Ream, Irving S. Reed, Mina Rees, Ida Rhodes, Rex Rice, Nathaniel Rochester, Stanley Rogers, Milton Rosenberg, Paul Rosenthal, Morris Rubinoff, John M. Salzer, Arthur L. Samuel, H.H. Sarkissian, Roger E. Schuette, Robert Serrell, Ralph J. Slutz, Joseph Smagorinsky, C.V. L. Smith, Samuel Snyder, Richard Sprague, Floyd Steele, George Stibitz and E. G. Andrews, Jack A. Strong, Richard Tanaka, Norman Taylor, Gregory Toben with Jim Smith Dave Montgomery and Roy Harper, John Todd, John Todd and Olga Taussky-Todd, Erwin Tomash, Mark Torfeh, Irven Travis, Keith Uncapher, Arthur von Hippel, Frank Wagner, An Wang, Willis H. Ware, Joseph Weizenbaum, Wieselman Irving, C. Robert Wieser, Arthur Wild, Maurice V. Wilkes, James Wilkinson, Charles Williams, Philip Wolfe, Way Dong Woo, Ben D. Wood, William Woodbury, John W. Wrench, Jr., Patrick Youtz, Everett Yowell, Heinz Zemanek, and Konrad Zuse.
47
SPACE ASTRONOMY PROJECT
Air and Space Museum, D.C.
Interviewers; David H. DeVorkin, Joseph Tatarewicz, Martin Harwit, Allan Needell
Dates of interviews: 1981-1983
Transcripts
This series of interviews is primarily concerned with space astronomy, including the design and implementation of various instruments, the careers of several physicists, and the administration of the scientific organizations involved. Many of the interviews concern topics relevant to electrical or electronic engineering, especially those related to instrumentation and rocketry. In the following list of interviews mentions the topics of discussion that are related to electrical history. Jules Aarons was a research physicist from 1946 to 1955 in various U.S. Air Force laboratories. Topics include the use of V-2 rockets, solar studies, and the Naval Research Laboratory [NRL]. A joint interview with Reuben H. Gablehouse and Fred Dolder covers the Ball Brothers contracts for early orbiting solar observatories from the late 1950s to the late 1960s, telemetry problems, and their work on Skylab. William Baum, a physicist at the Naval Research Laboratory, discusses the development of spectroscopy research at NRL, especially research in UV radiation. William Behring, a physicist, discusses solar spectrographs. Thor Bergstralh talks about his work at Ford Aeroneutronics and the Aerospace Corporation. Arthur D. Code, an astronomer, focuses on the development of ultraviolet stellar spectroscopy, the Orbiting Astronomical Observatory. Frank D. Drake, a radio astronomer, worked in planetary radio astronomy. William G. Fastie was a physicist at Johns Hopkins. He discusses his colleagues August H. Pfund and Robert W. Wood. Lorence Fraser worked in instrumentation at various government labs. He covers his work on the proximity fuse, radar, and missile guidance. Herbert Friedman was a director of upper air research at NRL. Robert Frosch, a physicist, was Administrator of NASA. Thomas Gold was an astronomer at the Center of Radiophysics and Space Research. Leo Goldberg, an astronomer at the University of Michigan, talks about the use of V-2 rockets after World War II to obtain solar spectra. NRL researchers Martin O. Harwit and Henry Kondracki worked on the development of an infrared Aerobee rocket payload. Another interview with Martin Harwit discusses his career in considerably more detail. Ralph Havens discusses his work at NRL, Lockheed, and Ford and his research in rockets. Albert R. Hibbs was a theoretical physics at JPL with an interest in planetary and lunar exploration. Noel Hinners discusses his tenure at NASA in various administrative positions. Hans E. Hinteregger was a physicist at the Air Force Cambridge Research Labs who was involved in ultra-violet research and rocket research. Charles Y. Johnson was a Naval Research Laboratory physicist from 1946 on. He discusses his interest in V-2 rocket science. Francis Severin Johnson worked at NRL as a physicist from 1946 to 1955, and at Lockheed from 1955 to 1962. He concentrates on missile guidance. Adolph Jursa is interviewed. Ernest H. Krause was a physicist at NRL, Lockheed, the System Research Corp., and Ford Aeroneutronics. He discusses wartime research, the Rocket Sonde Branch, cosmic-ray research, and the Atomic Energy Commission. Gerry Neugebauer worked with infrared astronomy, spectroscopy, instrumentation, and radiometry. Werner M. Neupert, a physicist, worked in solar physics and spectroscopy instrumentation. Gordon A. Newkirk was an astrophysicist who worked on infrared photometry and balloon astronomy. Charles R. O'Dell was an astronomer who worked on instrument design for NASA. William H. Pickering was a professor of electrical engineering and physics at the California Institute of Technology as an instructor and professor of electrical engineering. Pickering specialized in research on guidance and telemetry systems, including pointing controls, and the Radio Inertial Guidance. James D. Purcell was an NRL engineer who worked on rocket instruments like film recording mechanisms. William A. Rense, a physicist, worked on instrumentation for space exploration. Walter O. Roberts, an astrophysicist at Harvard, worked on the measurement of solar phenomena. Nancy G. Roman was an astronomer at NASA who worked on ground-based lunar and planetary astronomy. Dan Schneiderman was an engineer at the Jet Propulsion Laboratories [JPL] who worked on radar systems for aircraft, computer systems for rockets, and later guidance and instrument packages for spacecraft Ronald A. Schorn, studied radio astronomy. Martin Schwarzschild, an astrophysicist, discusses his involvement in the Stratoscope I and II projects. Richard Silberstein studied the effects of the ionosphere on radio transmissions at the National Bureau of Standards beginning in 1941. John Simpson was an instrument designer at Ball Brothers who developed guidance systems. Lyman Spitzer Jr. talks about the use of V-2 rockets for ultra-violet studies of the sun. Yoshio Tanaka is interviewed. Clyde W. Tombaugh developed instruments for missiles such as photographic techniques for tracking, and analyzing ballistic data. Richard Tousey, a physicist at NRL, was Head of the Instrument Section from 1942 to 1945 and then Head of the Micron Waves Branch from 1945 to 1958. Mona Tycz conducted research in lasers before becoming manager of a study on the Secondary Electron Conduction Orthicon detector for the Space Telescope in 1976. James Van Allen, a physicist, discusses his work with proximity fuses and atmospheric research. James E. Webb was a NASA administrator. James A. Westphal worked with the Seismograph Service Corporation from 1948 to 1953 and later at Sinclair Research Labs from 1954 to 1960, where he gained experience in designing and constructing a variety of instruments. He later worked on electronic instrumentation for space exploration. Charles E. Whitsett was an engineer who worked on simulators for space missions. Fred Wilshusen, an electrical engineer, did instrumentation research for space vehicles. George Gianopolis worked at JPL as a computer programmer and manager of ground systems for the Ranger, Mariner, and Viking probes.
48
SPACE SHUTTLE INTERVIEWS
Johnson Space Center
Dates of interviews: June 1983-October 1984
Transcript
This is a collection that contains interviews related to the Space Shuttle. Some of the subjects discussed relate to electronics and communications. The individuals interviewed are William F. Barrett, Philip Culbertson, L. E. Day, Charles Donlan, Richard Foll, John D. Hodge, William E. Lilly, Douglas Lord, Joseph Mahon, Joseph McGorick, John E. Naugle, Henry Pohl, Wilhelm Raithel, Eberhard Rees, Arnold Schnyer, Willis Shapley, Milton A. Silveira, William Simon, Joseph G. Thibodaux, Richard Truly, Terry White, and Jack Wild. Tapes and transcripts are held by the Johnson Space Center in its History Office.
49
SPACE STATION INTERVIEWS
Johnson Space Center
Dates of interviews 1984-86
Transcript
These interviews were conducted under a Space Station contract between 1984 and 1986. Some of the subjects discussed relate to electronics and communications. The interviewees were Gerald Griffin, Joseph Loftus, Ron Kubicki, Clark Covington, Neil Hutchinson, Tom Kloves, Robert Pannett, Dan Germany, Nancy Woods, Allen J. Louviere. There are also several interviews with engineers, although no further information is available about those interviews.
50
TELEPHONE ORAL HISTORY COLLECTION
Sangamon State University, Ill.
Dates of interviews: 1973-74
Transcripts
This collection contains interviews with early employees of the Illinois Bell Telephone Company and other companies. The topics discussed include employee organizations and unionization, the effects of the Depression and World War II, and the towns of Cairo, Galesburg, and Springfield, Ill., during the early 1900s. The individuals who were interviewed for this project are telephone operators Alma Crumrin, Claire W. Perkins, Jeanette Praham, Winifred Hiles Sackey, and Mayme Workman, area managers Joe Bennett and Kenneth Evers, and line-men G.G. Easley, Marvel E. Fitzgerald, Edmund Bringer, and Charles V. Roberts.
51
TENNESSEE VALLEY AUTHORITY
Memphis State, Tenn.
Transcripts
This is a project to document the history of the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) by examining the origins, growth, and development of the organization. It was done through interviews with individuals involved with the TVA. Those interviewed for this project are Paul Ager, Leland Allbaugh, Louise Allen, George M. Baker, Willis M. Baker, Neil C. Bass, Harry C. Bauer, Fannon Beaucamp, Mario Bianculli, Herbert J. Bingham, Nicholls W. Bowden, Wylie Bowmaster, Arthur Brazelton, Sam L. Breeden, William N. Calvert, Ed. J. Campbell, Harry L. Case, Fred E. Chambers, William E. Cole, Herman J. Daves, Paul J. David, J. Dudley Dawson, Glen Dooley, Earl Draper, Lawrence Durisch, Louis Eckl, Howard P. Emerson, Llewellyn Evans, Paul I. Fahey, Edward Falck, John P. Ferris, Gist Finley, William C. Fitts, Henry W. Fowler, Bernard L. Foy, David Freeman, Harold C. Frincke, Albert Fry, George F. Gant, Albert Gore, Sr., Julian Granger, Osborne H. Graves, A.J. Gray, Lee S. Greene, Van Court Hare, William J. Hays, John Ivey, Virginia White James, Hendon R. Johnston, Arnold Roosevelt Jones, Walter Kahoe, Roland Kampmeier, Richard Kilbourne, Eric L. Kohler, Julius Krug, Charles Krutch, Thomas M. N. Lewis and Madeline Kneberg Lewis, David Lilienthal, Henry T. Lofft, John C. Mc Amis, Charles McCarthy, Donald H. Mattern, Howard K. Menhinick, Sherrill Milliken, Jesse C. Mills, Robert A. Monroe, Edward W. Morehouse, Arthur Morgan, Richard O. Niehoff, John Lord O'Brian, Charles W. Okey, John Oliver, George Palo, Ed J. Paxton, Jennings Perry, John F. Pierce, Carl L. Richey, Mary Utopia Rothrock, Harry Scott, Robert E. Sessions, Walton Seymour, William Shafer, Edwin A. Shelley, Barrett Shelton, Edwin Shultz, Frank E. Smith, John I. Synder, Joseph C. Swindler, George H. R. Taylor, Harry Tour, Carroll Towne, Louis Van Mol, Herber D. Vogel, Earle R. Wall, John H. Walthall, Nat I. Washburn, Frank Welch, Abraham Wiebe, Harry Wiersema, Fred L. Wiess, John D. Williams, Marshall Wilson, Warren W. Woodruff, and Chares Young.
52
TVA LAND BETWEEN THE LAKES
Murray State University, Kentucky
Interviewers: Sammy B. Fisk, Dr. Jerry A. Herdon, Margaret Hopkins, David Sullivan
Dates of interviews: 1975-1977
Places: Tennessee, Kentucky
This project examines the changes wrought by the Tennessee Valley Authority program of flood control and power production. Some of the interviewees also discuss the impact of electricity and electric power on their lives. Interviewees include Randolph Allen (Baptist minister, discusses the period when the TVA began buying land and acquiring church property), Thomas L. Askew (a farmer who talks about establishment of the Tennessee Valley Authority in Tennessee and Kentucky), Annie C. Foust (effects of the TVA upon the social and economic life of the region), Otis Joyce (lived on property bought by the Tennessee Valley Authority), Helen R. Lancaster (whose husband was involved in litigation against the TVA), Irene Leneave (who discusses the TVA's effects on the populace of the region), Vance Leneave (who discusses the early independent telephone system in western Kentucky), Mrs. Euen Newton (who discusses the TVA).
U-Z
53
U.S. NAVAL INSTITUTE COLLECTION
U.S. Naval Institute, Md.
Dates of interviews: 1971-1981
Transcripts
Several of the interviews in this collection concern topics in electrical history, such as instrumentation, automatic guidance for missiles, the Polaris Program, and nuclear-electric power for submarines. Interviewees include Roy S. Benson (seven interviews including discussions of magnetic exploders, anti-submarine warfare, and submarine tactics), Phillip A. Beshany (the transition from diesel to nuclear power in submarines), two interviews with Arleigh A. Burke (on the Polaris Program and the DEW Line early warning system), John B. Colwell (the Polaris Missile), Slade Cutter (Commander of Submarine Division 32 during the early 1950s), Charles K. Duncan (the Navy's nuclear program), Jack Dunlap (the Polaris program), Daniel V. Gallery (guided missiles), Thomas S. Gates, Jr. (the Polaris Program), Edwin B. Hooper (the Atomic Energy Commission), Andrew M. Jackson (the Grumman F6F Hellcat , the USS Timbalier), Rita Lenihan (a lighting engineer), Waldo K. Lyon (the Navy's Radio and Sound Laboratory, sonar), Kleber S. Masterson (the Polaris Missile), Gerald E. Miller (computers at the Bureau of Naval Personnel during the mid-1950s), Henry L. Miller (antisubmarine hunter-killer task groups), Charles S. Minter, Jr. (antisubmarine warfare), Thomas H. Moorer (Chief of Naval Operations in 1967), Thomas Morton (Commander of the Naval Weapons Laboratory at Dahlgren, Virginia from 1960 to 1961), Raymond E. Peet (nuclear power), Gordon Pehrson (the Polaris Project), William F. Raborn, Jr. (the Polaris Missile), Eli T. Reich (the Tartar, Terrier, and Talos missile systems), Frances L. Rich (V-mail, the Navy's communications department and WAVES), Horacio Rivero, Jr. (an electrical engineer), Edward A. Ruckner (radar in World War II), Carleton Shugg (the Polaris Program), William R. Smedberg, III (the introduction of computers to the order-writing process at the Bureau of Naval Personnel), Henri Smith-Hutton (intelligence), Bernard Strean (operation Sea Orbit), John S. Thach (anti-submarine warfare), Clement Watson (who promoted the Polaris Project to Congress), Robert H. Wertheim (communications officer), Frederick Withington (the Atomic Energy Commission), Joseph M. Worthington (radar in cruiser gunfire control).
54
WOMAN IN WACO PROJECT
Baylor University, Tex.
Interviewers: Susie Monaghan, Janelle Easley, Susan Ferguson
Dates of Interviews: 1975
Place: Waco, Tex.
This collection of oral histories contains several interviews with relevance to electrical history. The interviewees include Mary A. Clayton, Fleta G. Woolsey (who discusses their memories of radio in separate interviews), Adrienne W. Olenbush (who discusses her memories of early radio and the telephone), Elizabeth L. Simpson (who recalls the streetcar system), Rowena A. B. Warfield (who discusses streetcars and home appliances)
55
WRIGHT BROTHERS--C. F. KETTERING ORAL HISTORY
University of Dayton, Ohio
Dates of interviews: 1966-67
Transcript
This is a collection of interviews with relatives, friends, associates and employees of Orville Wright (1871-1948), Wilbur Wright (1867-1912), and Charles F. Kettering (1876-1958), which cover the early development of the airplane, flight, and the Wright Brothers' personal lives. Interviewees include Carl Beust, Zerbie Bradford, Marie E. Burner, Louis P. Christman, William Conover, Ernest Dubel, Samuel L. Finn, Richard Gaugler, Eleanor E. Gerard, Nelson R. Haas, Sr., William Huffman, James Wilbur Jacobs, Ruth Jacobs, Max Kohnop, Fred Krusch, Ivonette Wright Miller, Edmund B. O'Leary, Tom Russell, William Sanders, Henry Stout, B. L. Whelan, Horace Wright, and John Wright.
56
WRUF RADIO
University of Florida
Length of interviews: 39 hrs.
Transcripts
This is a collection of twenty-five interviews, one of which is not transcribed, that address the history of Florida radio station WRUF.
57
American Music
YALE SCHOOL OF MUSIC
Yale University
Transcripts
This is a collection of seven projects with or about contemporary composers, one of which focuses on electronic music. The interviews concerned with electronic music include those of Hal Alles, Jon Appleton, Pierre Boulez, Don Buchla, John Chowning, Charles Dodge, Emmanuel Ghent, Peter Goldmark, Lejaren Hiller, Charles Kaman, Otto Luening, Max Mathews, Robert Moog, F. Richard Moore, Robert Moore, Les Paul, David Rosenboom, Loren Rush, Laurie Spiegel, Morton Subotnick, Vladimir Ussachevsky, and Barry Vercoe.
People
A
58
ADAIR, CHARLES, b. 1902
Profession: Rear Admiral, U.S. Navy
U.S. Naval Institute, Md.
Dates of interviews: February-April 1975
Transcript: 646 pp., indexed
This is a series of 10 interviews that include Adair's recollections of his studies in communications at the Naval Postgraduate School and his service as a radio officer in destroyer squadrons from 1935 to 1938.
59
Piedmont Social History
ADAMS, ROY R.
Profession: engineer
University of North Carolina
Interviewer: Allen Tullos
Dates of interviews: 29 August-10 October 1979
Place: Greenville, S.C.
Length of interviews: 3 hrs.
Transcript
This interview includes recollections of the electrification of textile mills in the south, particularly the change from 440v to 500v apparatus, now the textile standard, which was introduced by George Wrigley. There are also recollections of the introduction of individual motors and instrumentation. The interview includes information about the Sirrine Company which designed the Portman Shoals hydroelectric plant used to power textile mills in Anderson, S.C., between 1905 and 1906, and which also did surveys and appraisals for the Duke Power Company. Adams also discusses his firms design for the General Electric Co. of fuel rods used in atomic energy plants.
60
George D. Aiken Oral History Project
AIKEN, GEORGE D., 1892-1984
Profession: U.S. Senator
University of Vermont
Interviewer: Charles T. Morrisey
Dates of interviews: April 1975-May 1980
Transcript: 200 pp.
This is a collection of 24 interviews done with Aiken, a U. S. Senator from Vermont. Aiken discusses rural electrification and nuclear power.
61
University History
ALLEN, BENNET M.
University of California, Los Angeles
Transcript, index
Allen discusses the Atomic Energy Commission.
62
Baylor University Project|
ALLEN, JIMMY R.
Baylor University, Tex.
Interviewers: Susie Valentine, Robert M. Parham
Dates of interviews: 13 March 1980, June 1983
Place: Fort Worth, Tex.
Length of interviews: 2 hrs., 45 min.
Index
This interview includes Allen's recollections of his presidency of the Southern Baptist Convention Radio and Television Commission.
63
ANDERSON, MRS. ROLAND
Nebraska Historical Society
Date of interview: 18 April 1978
Anderson discusses early radio in Wahoe, Nebraska.
64
ANDERSON, VERNICE
Profession: Secretary, Administrative Assistant
Truman Library, Mo.
Transcript
Anderson recounts the various positions she held during the Truman administration, including her work from 1947 to 1948 as Administrative Assistant to the Assistant Secretary of State for Transportation and Communications.
65
ANDERSON, WILLARD, b. 1916
University of Minnesota
Interviewer: Steven Williams
Date of interview: 16 May 1978
Length of interview: 30 min
Transcript
This interview deals with the development of the Federated Telephone Cooperative of Chokio, Minn. The reasons for forming a centralized telephone cooperative in this area are discussed, along with some of the problems with the Bell system and the Rural Electrification Administration encountered by the founders of the telephone company.
66
McGraw-Hill
ANNETT, FRED A., 1879-1959
Profession: publishing executive
Columbia University, N.Y.
Interviewer: Harlan B. Phillips
Date of interview: 1954
Transcript: 65 pp., indexed
Annett recalls the correspondence courses he took in engineering, his work as an instructor for the New York Electrical School, his impressions of James H. McGraw and John A. Hill, the influence of General Electric's corporate structure on James H. McGraw, and the advertising and circulation of Power magazine.
67
ARMER, PAUL
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-1
Interviewer: George Green
Date of interview: 1 June 1981
Place: Minneapolis, Minn.
Length of interview: 1 hr.
Transcript
Armer begins with an outline of the history of computers in industry, devoting special attention to changes in business affected by technological innovations. He describes the UNIVAC, built by Remington Rand, and discusses IBM's late entry into the computer business. He next turns to his career at the RAND Corporation, describing the JOHNNIAC computer built at RAND and equipment purchased from IBM. Armer concludes with an overview of hardware and software innovations since 1957. Topics include the standardization of software brought about by IBM's introduction in 1957 of the high-level programming language FORTRAN, the increased communication among businesses about compatibility, the emergence of the software industry in the late 1960s, the proliferation of computer applications since 1950 that have accompanied decreases in the size and cost of computer equipment, and the computer's impact on society.
68
Piedmont Social History
ASBURY, ABNER D., JR.
University of North Carolina
Interviewer: Brent Glass
Date of interview: 6 April 1976
Place: Greenville, S.C.
Length of interview: 2 tapes
Transcript
Asbury, who was born and raised in Greenville, South Carolina, discusses his grandfather's and father's operation of the city's first gas plant, which was later transformed into an electrical plant. He also describes his work in the textile department at the Sirrine Company which involved changing textile mills from mechanical to electrical power. Further, he describes the electrical department of the Sirrine Company while it was headed by George Wrigley. Asbury retired in 1964 as Vice President of Sirrine Company.
69
AUERBACH, ISAAC L.
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-2
Interviewer: Nancy Stern
Date of interview: 10 April 1978
Transcript: 41 pp.
Auerbach recounts his experiences at the Electronic Control Company (later the Eckert-Mauchly Computer Co.) from 1947 to 1949. He discusses the BINAC project and the UNIVAC computer and mentions the roles of the National Bureau of Standards, Northrop Aircraft, Raytheon, Remington Rand, and IBM in the UNIVAC's development.
70
Engineering College and Research (Texas A&M)
AYOUB, A.K.
Profession: electrical engineering professor
Texas A&M
Interviewer: Stephen R. Erbert
Date of interview: 23 October 1984
Transcript: 15 pp.
Ayoub, after a brief discussion of electrical engineering education, recounts his career, beginning with his job as head of the department of electrical engineering at the University of Kuwait from 1975 to 1977. Ayoub also worked at the Ministry of Public Works, the Atomic Energy Establishment in Cairo, and attended school at the Atomic Energy Institute in Moscow and the Harwell Reactor in England. He is presently a professor at Texas A&M University.
B
71
Engineering College and Research
BAEN, SPENCER R.
Texas A&M
Interviewer: Billy Hathorn
Date of interview: 16 July 1981
Transcript: 12 pp.
Baen became the Assistant Director of the Texas Engineering Experiment Station at Texas A & M in 1970. He describes research projects both underway and completed by the station.
72
BAGLEY, WILLIAM T., b. 1928
Profession: government official
University of California, Berkeley
Interviewer: Ann Lage
Date of interview: 1989
Transcript: 42 pp.
Bagley was a California state legislator who served on public utility commissions.
73
BAINBRIDGE, KENNETH T., b. 1904
Profession: physicist
Columbia University, N.Y.
Date of interview: 1960
Transcript: 150 pp., indexed
Bainbridge discusses the creation of the National Defense Council, the Radiation Laboratory at MIT in 1940, his mission to England on radar development in 1941, the testing and use of the atomic bomb in 1945, and the Federation of Atomic Scientists.
74
BAKER, GEORGE P.
Profession: statesman
Truman Library, Mo.
Transcript
Baker recounts the government positions he held during the Truman Administration, including his work as Director of the Office of Transportation and Communications Policy at the State Department from 1945 to 1946.
75
BARDEEN, JOHN, 1908-1991
Profession: professor of electrical engineering
University of Illinois
Date of interview: 1965
Length of interview: 60 min.
Transcript
Bardeen discusses the education of non-scientists and scientists, and comments on the scientific understanding and communication between the two. He also discusses solid-state physics.
76
BARDEEN, JOHN, 1908-1991
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn.
Interviewer: William Aspray
Date of interview: 29 May 1984
Place: Urbana, Ill
Transcript: 13 pp.
Bardeen recounts his undergraduate education in electrical engineering, work in geophysics while employed by the Gulf Oil Company in Pittsburgh, the mathematics Ph.D. program at Princeton, and his activities as a Junior Fellow of the Society of Fellows at Harvard University. He also talks about Eugene Wigner, John Van Vleck, and John Slater as pioneers of solid-state physics.
77
BARNOUW, ERIK, b. 1908
Profession: writer, educator
Columbia University, N.Y.
Date of interview: 1975
Transcript: 280 pp., indexed
Barnouw discusses his career in radio in the 1930s and 1940s, the establishment of Columbia University's Department of Radio and Television in 1946, and the Radio Writers Guild.
78
Space Shuttle Interviews
BARRETT, WILLIAM F.
Johnson Space Center
Date of interview: October 1984
Barrett was formerly the Director of Martin Marietta's Test Program and was the Director of the Lightweight Tank Program for the Space Shuttle. No specific information about the interview was available.
79
BARTLETT, LOUIS, 1872-1960
Profession: attorney, mayor of Berkeley, Calif
University of California, Berkeley
Interviewers: Corrine Gilb, Walton Bean, and Robert Burke
Date of interview: 1954
Transcript
Bartlett discusses his involvement with the East Bay Municipal Utility District from 1914 to 1924, campaigns for the California Water and Power Act from 1922 to 1926, and his attempt to establish a "TVA" for California in 1940.
80
BATTELL, WILLIAM F., b. 1906
Profession: Major General, U.S. Marine Corps
Marine Corps, D.C.
Interviewer: Thomas E. Donnelly
Date of interview: 1971
Transcript: 306 pp.
Battell recollects being a student at the Army Signal School in Fort Monmouth, N.J. from 1935 to 1936, and as a communications officer at Quantico, Va. from 1937 to 1938. He also discusses his communications duty for the Bureau of Ships, Department of the Navy from 1941 to 1944, and communications equipment.
81
BAUER, FRIEDRICH L.
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-128
Interviewer: William Aspray
Date of interview: 17 February 1987
Place: Munich, Germany
Length of interview: 60 min.
Transcript: 19 pp..
Bauer begins with a brief discussion of his early life and education in Bavaria through his years in the German army during World War II. He then discusses his education in mathematics and theoretical physics at the University of Munich. He and Klaus Samelson then joined the Programmgesteurte Elektronische Rechenanlage München group in 1952, working on hardware design and compilers. Bauer discusses the origins and design of the logic computer, STANISLAUS, and the European side of the development of ALGOL, including his work and that of Rutishauser, Samelson, and Bottenbrach. The interview concludes with a brief discussion of Bauer's work in numerical analysis in the 1950s and 1960s and his subsequent work in programming methodology.
82
BAUER, JACOB, b. 1894
University of Minnesota
Interviewer: Steve Vantdal
Date of interview: 23 July 1980
Length of interview: 105 min.
Transcript
Jacob Bauer worked for the Rural Electrification Administration and the Farm Bureau at the time of this interview. He discusses labor shortages, news quality, and the general economic impact of war on his Minnesota community. Bauer recalls fuel-oil rationing, and scrap-iron and local bond drives.
83
BAUER, WALTER F.
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-61
Interviewer: Arthur L. Norberg
Date of interview: 16 May 1983
Place: Woodland Hills, Calif.
Length of interview: 120 min.
Transcript: 37 pp.
Bauer covers his work at Ramo-Woolridge and the formation and growth of his own software firm. While at Ramo-Woolridge Bauer worked primarily on software development in the 1950s and 1960's. He discussed the proprietary nature of software and the development of the software industry. In 1962 Bauer, along with Werner Frank, Richard Hill, and Frank Wagner, started Informatics General Corporation as a subsidiary of Data Products Incorporated. He then discusses corporate structure, business strategies and various products, and describes changes in the software market from the 1960s to the 1980s.
88
BEIRNE, JOSEPH ANTHONY, 1911-1974
Profession: labor leader
Columbia University, N.Y.
Date of interview: 1957
Transcript: 66 pp.
Beirne talks about his early experiences in the Western Electric Company's maintenance shop, communications workers during the Depression, the origins of the Communications Workers of America, its role in the Congress of Industrial Organizations (CIO), and the unification of the American Federation of Labor and the CIO.
90
History of FORTRAN
BEMER, ROBERT
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-47
Interviewer: John A.N. Lee
Date of interview: 23 February 1982
Place: Phoenix, Ariz.
Length of interview: 60 min.
Transcript
Bemer discusses his work on computer software while he was working for IBM. He also reviews his use of IBM equipment at Lockheed Missile and Space Laboratory before joining IBM to work on scientific applications of the IBM 705. He then discusses his leadership role and his involvement in the development of FORTRAN, COMTRAN, and XTRAN, and describes the technical features of FORTRANSIT, comparing them to those of IT, developed by Alan Perlis. Finally, he discusses in some detail IBM's involvement with ALGOL and mentions IBM's position on the ASCII standard.
91
BERRY, PHILLIP S., b. 1937
Profession: environmentalist
University of California, Berkeley
Interviewer: Ann Lage
Dates of interviews: 1981, 1984
Transcript: 140 pp.
Berry, at one time a leader of the Sierra Club, discusses the Diablo Canyon Power Plant.
92
Entrepreneurs of the West
BEST, JOHN
University of California, Los Angeles
Transcript
Best discusses the Vivitar Corporation.
93
BETTS, AUSTIN W., b. 1912
Lieutenant General, U.S. Army
Military History Institute, Pa.
Transcript
Among other topics, Betts discusses his service with the U. S. Corps of Engineers in Bermuda, the Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory, and the Army Ballistic Missile Agency. Betts also discusses the development and use of nuclear weapons and of guided and ballistic missiles, the allocation of qualified personnel to technical services, the Korean and Vietnam Wars, the Cold War, and his contact with individuals such as Secretaries of Defense Wilson and McNamara.
94
BEVERAGE, HAROLD
Profession: radio engineer
IEEE, N.J.
Interviewer: Frederik Nebeker
Dates of interviews: March 16-17, 1992
Length of interviews: 3 hours, 30 minutes
Transcript: 68 pp.
Beverage discusses his youth and education, his job with E. F. W. Alexanderson at General Electric before and during World War I, and his subsequent career with RCA. Beverage mentions many of his acquaintances, including Vladimir Zworykin, Harold Peterson, and Edwin Howard Armstrong.
97
Electrical Workers Unions
BIELLI, ANTHONY
Pennsylvania State
Interviewer: William Kinney
Date of interview: 22 October 1974
Place: Philadelphia, Pa.
Transcript: 10 pp.
Bielli recalls starting work for General Electric Switchgear Company in July 1942, at which time the United Electrical Workers Union (UE) was the bargaining unit. He also discusses the 1946 election contest between the UE and the International Union of Electric Workers (IUEW). After the IUEW won the election Bielli became a union officer, until 1967, when he moved into management.
98
BIGELOW, ALBERT S., b. 1906
Profession: author, artist
Columbia University, N.Y.
Date of interview: 1978
Transcript: 77 pp., indexed
Bigelow recalls the Seabrook nuclear power plant demonstration of 1977, the Atomic Energy Commission, nuclear power plants, military technology, and his impressions of Linus Pauling and other scientists.
99
BIGELOW, JULIAN
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-3
Interviewer: Nancy Stern
Date of interview: 2 August 1980
Place: Princeton, N.J.
Transcript: 66 pp.
Bigelow became Chief Engineer of the Institute for Advanced Study (IAS) computer project in 1946. In addition to discussing that project at length, he also describes Herman Goldstine, John von Neumann, J. Presper Eckert, John Mauchly, and their involvement in the patent dispute over the ENIAC and EDVAC computers at the University of Pennsylvania. Bigelow also discusses how the IAS faculty's attitude toward the computer project was influenced by their respect for von Neumann.
100
BIRGE, RAYMOND THAYER, 1887-1980
Profession: physicist
University of California, Berkeley
Interviewer: Edna Tartual Daniel
Date of interview: 1959
Index
Birge discusses the physics department at the University of California at Berkeley, the Bohr and Lewis-Langmuir models of atomic structure, and the University of California Radiation Laboratory.
101
BIRKENSTOCK, JAMES
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-4
Interviewers: Roger Stuewer, Erwin Tomash
Date of interview: 12 August 1980
Length of interview: 4 hrs., 30 min.
Transcript: 67 pp.
At the time of this interview, Birkenstock was Director of Product Planning and Market Analysis for IBM. He describes his involvement with magnetic tape development in 1947, the development of the Defense Calculator and the 701 computer, and the SAGE project and its influence on the development of magnetic core memory.
104
General Electric Employees
BLEWETT, FRANK
Profession: locomotive pipe fitter
Mercyhurst College, Pa.
Date of interview: 5 June 1976
Place: Harborcreek, Pa.
Transcript
Blewett discusses his background, ethnic group, the reason he sought employment at General Electric, his job as a locomotive pipe fitter in the General Electric plant at Erie, Pa., and his involvement with trade unions.
105
Electrical Workers Unions
BLOCK, HARRY
Profession: Secretary, Pennsylvania AFL-CIO
Pennsylvania State
Interviewer: Ronald Filippelli
Date of interview: 25 September 1967
Place: Harrisburg, Pa.
Transcript: 59 pp.
Block discusses his and James Carey's efforts to organize an electrical workers union. He describes the control exercised by left wing groups over the United Electrical Workers Union and the subsequent formation by the CIO of the International Union of Electrical Workers.
106
BLOCH, RICHARD
Profession: computer programmer
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-66
Interviewer: William Aspray
Date of interview: 22 February 1984
Place: Newton, Mass.
Length of interview: 3 hrs.
Transcript: 43 pp.
Bloch describes his work at the Harvard Computation Laboratory and his subsequent career in computing. He discusses a number of the problems solved on the Mark I computer, including one for John von Neumann on spherical shock waves in an atomic implosion. Bloch also discusses joining General Electric in 1968 as a general manager to develop large computer systems to compete with IBM. When General Electric left the computer field, Bloch moved into private corporate consulting in the computer industry. He recounts how he became Chief Executive Officer of the Artificial Intelligence Corporation, a company developing a product to use English to query databases.
107
BOETTCHER, CHARLES
Colorado Historical Society
Transcript
This is a collection of correspondence, business records, newspaper reports, scrapbooks, photos and memorabilia, but it also includes taped interviews with people who knew Boettcher and his son, Claude. Charles Boettcher was involved in many electrical-related business ventures, including the Denver Tramway Company. Electric utilities are also among the topics discussed.
108
BOLEF, DAN
University of Missouri
Interviewer: William Sullivan
Date of interview: January 1982
Length of interview: 1 cassette
Index
This is a group interview with Dan Bolef, Gertrude Faust, and Joseph Klarman, co-founders of the Committee for Environmental Information (CEI), formerly the Greater St. Louis Committee for Nuclear Information. It was established in 1958 to collect and evaluate information on nuclear tests, weapons, and energy. CEI expanded its scope in the 1960s to include other environmental issues. They discuss the founding of CEI and their early efforts to organize scientists opposed to nuclear power.
109
Cavity Magnetron and Radar Development
BOOT, HENRY A.
University of California, Berkeley
Interviewer: Arthur L. Norberg
Date of Interview: 1977
Transcript
Boot discusses the research at Birmingham University in England that led to the invention of a working cavity magnetron. He also talks about related work in the U.S., including the invention of the Klystron and production of the magnetron during World War II for use in radar.
110
BOOTH, ANDREW D.
Profession: Electronics Engineer
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-5
Interviewer: Christopher Evans
Date of Interview: 1976
Place: Los Alamos, N. Mex.
Transcript: 22 8 pp.
Booth discusses his use of calculators in crystallography research during World War II. He recalls Douglas Hartree's influence on his career after the war, introducing him to digital computation and suggesting that he read Alan Turing's work. Booth tells of his 1947 visit to the U.S., when he toured computing centers, including the Institute of Advanced Study at Princeton, where he worked with John von Neumann. Booth concludes by describing computers he built at Birkbeck College on his return to London, the Automatic Relay Calculator and the All-Purpose Electronic E-Ray Calculator.
112
BOWKER, ALBERT
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-6
Interviewer: Pamela McCorduck
Date of interview: 21 May 1979
Place: Berkeley, Calif.
Length of interview: 90 min.
Transcript: 7 pp.
Bowker discusses his role in the formation of the Stanford University computer science department and his early recognition of computer science as an academic discipline. He also discusses Stanford's hiring of mathematician George Forsythe in 1959.
113
Voices of the Pioneers
BOWLES, AL
Spokane Library, Wash.
Index
Bowles discusses several aspects of Spokane, Wash. history, including early radio in the area.
114
Klystron Developments
BOWLES, EDWARD L.
University of California, Berkeley
Interviewer: Arthur L. Norberg
Dates of interviews: 1974, 1977
Transcript
Bowles discusses the development of the Klystron tube. In addition to describing its design, he mentions further research funded by the Sperry Gyroscope Company, the use of the tube in radar during World War II and the electrical engineering departments of MIT and Stanford (noting such staff members as William Hansen and Frederick Terman).
115
BOYD, JAMES, b. 1904
Profession: businessman, mining executive
University of California, Berkeley
Interviewer: Eleanor Swent
Dates of interviews: 1986-1987
Transcript: 252 pp.
Boyd, a member of the National Academy of Sciences, discusses alternative sources of energy.
116
BRASSELL, WILLIAM E.
Profession: engineer
Auburn University, Ala.
Interviewers: David L. Morton, Jr., Carl Voelcker
Date of interview: 1984-1991
Brassell discusses his work in the production facility of Orradio Industries, Inc., of Opelika Alabama. He designed and maintained machinery used to make magnetic recording tape.
118
Crawdad Alliance
BROGAN, DANIEL
University of Missouri
Interviewer: Kenn Thomas
Date of interview: 7 April 1982
Length of interview: 1 cassette
Transcript
Brogan is a co-founder of the Crawdad Alliance, an organization that tries to halt the construction and use of nuclear power plants through non-violent civil disobedience. He discusses two protests conducted by the Alliance against the Union Electric plant in Callaway County, Mo. in 1980 and 1981.
119
BROWER, DAVID R., b. 1912
Profession: environmental activist
University of California, Berkeley
Interviewer: Susan R. Schrepfer
Date of interview: 1974-1976
Transcript, index
This interview includes Brower's discussion of nuclear power and power plants at Bodega Bay. The main focus, however, is on Brower's environmental interests and concerns.
120
BROWN, ALAN K., 1909-1988
Profession: businessman, banker
University of California, Berkeley
Interviewer: Malca Chall
Date of interview: 1988
Transcript: 325 pp.
In addition to his work in banking, Brown participated in the San Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transit Commission.
121
BROWNING, GORDON, 1889-1976
Profession: Governor of Tennessee
Columbia University, N.Y.
Date of interview: 1965
Transcript, index
Browning recounts his political career, which includes a discussion of the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA).
125
BURKS, ARTHUR W.
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-78
Interviewer: Christopher Evans
Date of interview: 1976
Length of interview: 90 min.
Transcript: 32 pp.
Burks begins the interview by discussing his early education and training at the University of Michigan and the University of Pennsylvania's Moore School of Electrical Engineering. He discusses in detail work on the ENIAC computer with John Mauchly, Herman Goldstine, John Grist Brainerd, and J. Presper Eckert. Much of the interview is devoted to aspects of the EDVAC and ENIAC, including logical and arithmetic design, attitudes of the project staff, early operations, demonstrations, and the contributions of consultants, notably John Vincent Atanasoff and John von Neumann.
127
BUSH, VANNEVAR, 1890-1974
Profession: university professor, government official
MIT, Mass.
Interviewer: Eric Hodgins
Date of interviews: 1964
Transcript: 1120 pp.
Bush was a professor of electrical engineering at MIT and, later, held various government science positions. This interview was the basis of an autobiography, and in it Bush discusses the differential analyzer, patent policy, Raytheon Company, and radar.
130
BUTLER, WILLIAM W.
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-92
Interviewer: Arthur L. Norberg
Dates of Interviews: Nov.-Dec. 1984
St. Paul, Minn.
4 hours
Transcript
In this interview Butler traces his career, beginning with his work at the Radio Corporation of America during World War II on radar and sonar systems. After the war he earned a master's degree in engineering at the California Institute of Technology, went to work for Douglas Aircraft, and had his first introduction to an electro-mechanical analog computer. This spurred his interest in information processing and led to his employment in 1948 in the Washington office of Engineering Research Associates (ERA), working under William Norris. He describes his position in Washington and his move to the St. Paul facility in 1950. Butler also discusses the commercial development of magnetic drum storage, the acquisition of ERA by Remington Rand, the formation of Control Data Corporation, His departure from Sperry-Rand in 1957, and his subsequent work as manufacturer's representative and head of two companies, Technical Systems Company and Commbase.
C
132
Lincoln Ward Collection
CALIGIURI, JOSEPH
Profession: businessman, Executive Vice President, Litton Industries
California State, Northridge
Interviewers: Lincoln Ward, Joseph Staller
Caligiuri discusses Litton Industries, where he worked in the Advanced Electronic Systems Group and on the "Mission to Mars" project. The interview is part of a series of 30-minute radio programs entitled "Our Business is Your Business," hosted by Lincoln Ward (Pacific Telephone Co.) and Joseph Staller (Southern California Gas Co.). Running from 1976 to 1977, the program consisted of weekly interviews with business leaders of the San Fernando Valley.
133
CALKINS, WINDSOR
Profession: lawyer
Oregon Historical Society
Interviewer: James Strassmaier
Dates of Interviews: 7 July-1 August 1986
Length of interview: 7 hrs.
Calkins discusses the history of the Eugene (Oregon) Water and Electricity Board and the Northwest Hydro-Thermal Plan.
134
CALLAHAN, MARY
Profession: union leader, Vice President, International Union of Electrical Workers
Pennsylvania State
Interviewers: Alice M. Hoffman, Karen Budd
Dates of Interviews: 7, 19, and 26 May 1976
Place: Philadelphia, Pa.
Transcript: 169 pp.
This is a series of three interviews with Mary Callahan, Vice President of the International Union of Electrical Workers. Callahan began working at the International Resistance Company in 1935. The interview highlights her participation in the United Electrical Workers, focusing on its expulsion from the CIO in 1949. Callahan also discusses the role of women in the International Union of Electrical Workers.
135
Waco and McLennan County Project
CALLAN, JACKSON B.
Profession: businessman
Baylor University, Tex.
Interviewer: Thomas L. Charlton
Dates of Interviews: 26 February and 1 March 1976
Place: Waco, Tex
Length of interview: 4 hrs., 30 min.
Transcript: 121 pp.
Callan describes his career move from the McLennon Hardware Company into the radio and electronics business.
136
Texas Centennial Project
CAMPBELL, MARTIN B.
Profession: radio station manager
Baylor University, Tex.
Interviewer: Kenneth B. Ragsdale
Date of interview: 23 February 1978
Place: Dallas, Tex.
Length of interview: 70 min.
Campbell discusses radio station WFAA in Dallas, Texas.
137
CAMPBELL, ROBERT V. D.
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-67
Interviewer: William Aspray
Date of interview: 22 February 1984
Place: Concord, Mass.
Length of interview: 3 hrs.
Transcript: 76 pp.
Campbell discusses his work at the Harvard Computation Laboratory and his subsequent career in computing. He goes into some detail on how Howard Aiken chose him to work with IBM on the latter stages of the design of the Mark I calculator while Aiken was on active duty in the Navy in Virginia. Campbell describes what he learned from Aiken about the plans for the Mark I in the late 1930s and the relative contributions of Harvard and IBM to the Mark I project, based on his own experience at IBM's research facility at Endicott, N. Y. He then describes the formation of the Harvard Computation Laboratory, the operation of the Mark I there, and the work beginning in 1945 on the Mark II calculator for the Dahlgren Naval Proving Ground. Topics covered include the controversy between Aiken and IBM, Aiken's personality, Aiken as an educator, and Aiken's attitude toward the computer industry. The second half of the interview covers Campbell's later career at Raytheon from 1947 to 1949, especially the search for adequate storage devices and RAYDAC (Raytheon Digital Automatic Computer), his position at Burroughs as director of research and in a staff position for program planning from 1949 to 1966, and at MITRE from 1966 to 1984 on long-range planning with the Air Force and work on a data processing system for Newton, Mass.
138
History of FORTRAN Series
CANTRELL, HARRY N.
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-48
Interviewer: John A. N. Lee
Date of interview: 23 February 1982
Place: Phoenix, Ariz.
Length of interview: 60 min.
Transcript: 14 pp.
Cantrell discusses his career as a mechanical engineer at General Electric (GE) during its initial implementation of computers, and the influence of the FORTRAN programming language. He describes his first experiences at GE using an IBM 604 and a Card Programmed Calculator (CPC) and his later experiences in GE's Fluid Mechanics Research Group operating a CPC, an IBM 701 and an IBM 704, on which they first ran FORTRAN in 1957. He also recounts various problems with the language, e.g., the lack of subroutines, and the attempts of his group to remedy the deficiencies. He explains how they wrote TASMIN for financial data processing to avoid FORTAN's limitations. Cantrell appraises FORTRAN's success and briefly reconstructs its genealogy.
139
Mississippi Oral History Program
CAPERS, LEGRAND
University of S. Mississippi
Interviewer: Michael Garvey
Dates of Interviews: 7-8 August 1975
Length of interview: 4 hrs., 15 min.
Transcript: 80 pp.
The interview includes such topics as streetcars in Vicksburg, Mississippi, silent and sound motion pictures, and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
140
CAREY, JAMES B., 1911-1973
Profession: union leader
Kennedy Library, Mass.
Transcript
Carey discusses political and legislative aspects of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers.
141
CAREY, JAMES B., 1911-1973
Profession: union leader
Columbia University, N.Y.
Date of interview: 1958
Transcript: 362 pp., indexed
Carey discussed his early years at the Philco plant in Philadelphia and the formative years of the United Electrical, Radio and Machine Workers.
143
CARMODY, JOHN, 1881-1963
Profession: government official, administrator
Columbia University, N.Y.
Date of interview: 1954
Transcript, index
Carmody discussed the Rural Electrification Administration and the President's Power Policy Committee.
145
Government and Politics
CARR, WILLIAM JOLLEY
University of California, Los Angeles
Transcript, index
Carr discusses the Pacific Telephone and Telegraph Company.
146
CHAMBERS, CARL
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-7
Interviewer: Nancy Stern
Date of interview: 30 November 1977
Place: Philadelphia, Penn.
Length of interview: 120 min.
Transcript: 45 pp.
Chambers discusses the initiation and progress of the ENIAC project at the University of Pennsylvania Moore School of Electrical Engineering. He concludes with his views on the importance of the 1946 Moore School summer course in disseminating computer technology.
147
CHING, CYRUS S., 1876-1967
Profession: industrial relations expert
Columbia University, N.Y.
Date of interview: 1967
Transcript, Index
Ching discusses General Electric and the Atomic Energy Commission Labor Relations Panel (1953-67).
148
Frederick E. Terman Associates Oral History Project.
CHODOROW, MARVIN
Profession: professor of physics
IEEE, N.J.
Interviewer: A. Michael McMahon
Date of interview: 27 November 1984
Place: Stanford, California
Length of interview: 90 min.
Index
Chodorow reviews his career in physics, beginning with his microwave research at the Sperry Gyroscope Company from 1943 to 1947 but concentrates on his work at Stanford University after 1947. His discussion includes the development of the Klystron tube and the linear accelerator, the Microwave Laboratory at Stanford, and the founding of Stanford's Department of Applied Physics. People Chodorow mentions include William Hansen, Edward Ginzton, Russell and Sigurd Varian, and Frederick Terman.
149
CLAPP, NORMAN
Profession: government official, REA administrator
Kennedy Library, Mass.
Transcript
Clapp, a Wisconsin political figure, discusses political and legislative aspects of the Rural Electrification Administration.
150
Columbia University, Oral History Project
CLAY, LUCIUS D., 1897-1978
Profession: army officer
Columbia University, N.Y.
Interviewer: Jean Smith
Dates of Interviews: 1970-71
Transcript: 1101 pp.
This interview includes a discussion of the Rivers and Harbor Division of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the Tennessee Valley Authority, and Radio Free Europe.
157
COHEN, ARNOLD A.
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-58
Interviewer: James Ross
Dates of Interviews: January-March 1983
Place: Minneapolis, Minn.
Length of interviews 9 hrs.
Transcript: 147 pp.
Cohen provides information about relations of Engineering Research Associates (ERA) with the Navy, and with Remington Rand management after their acquisition of ERA. He also describes ERA projects in detail. Specific topics include early research on magnetic drum storage systems, reports to the National Bureau of Standards, the Atlas I and Atlas II computer projects and their commercial "by-products" (the 1101 and 1103 computers), the 1102 computer built for the Arnold Engineering Development Center, the 1104 computer built for the Westinghouse BOMARC ballistic missile project, the Remington Rand Tape-to-Card Converter, the File Computer, ERA non-computer projects, ERA's design contract with IBM and its relation to the IBM 650, UNIVAC II, and patents and patent litigation.
163
COOMBS, A. W. M.
Profession: engineer
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-79
Interviewer: Christopher Evans
Date of interview: 1976
Length of interview: 90 min.
Coombs talks about his work as an engineer in the Post Office Research Establishment in England during the late 1930s, where he joined T. H. Flowers in vacuum tube switching experiments. Based on his experience with Colossus, Coombs was asked to join the National Physical Laboratory Automated Computing Engine computer project. Coombs concludes with a description of his research in artificial intelligence and his views on the future of artificial intelligence.
164
CORLEY, FERN P., b. 1900
Colorado College
Interviewer: Judith Finley
Date of interview: 15 March 1977
Length of interview: 65 min.
Index
Corley discusses his family's purchase and operation of radio station KFUM, which later became KVOR.
165
CORWIN, HENRY LLOYD
Profession: political official
Baylor University, Tex.
Interviewers: Thomas L. Charleton, Rebecca Sharpless Jimenez
Dates of Interviews: 30 June 1981-30 June 1983
Place: Waco, Texas
Length of interviews: 9 hrs., 30 min.
Transcripts: 328 pp., indexed
Corwin talks about his earlier career, including employment by the Texas Electric Railway.
166
CORYELL, CHARLES D., 1912-1971
Profession: chemist
Columbia University, N.Y.
Date of interview: 1960
Transcripts: 441 pp., indexed
Coryell, who was involved in the Manhattan project, gives his views on atomic energy, the emotional and scientific impact of the bomb and its use, and several prominent atomic scientists.
167
COTT, TED, 1917-1973
Profession: radio and television executive,
Columbia University, N.Y.
Date of interview: 1961
Transcript: 297 pp., index
Cott describes his interest in radio during high school and college, radio station WNYC and Fiorello La Guardia, early radio techniques and programming, the Radio Code, independent stations and networks, FCC sponsorship, spot announcements, television pioneering, political broadcasting, educational television, the National Talent Associates, the interview on "Open End" with Nikita Kruschev, censorship, and pay television.
168
CRABB, JARRED V., b. 1902
Profession: U.S. Air Force Officer
Columbia University, N.Y.
Date of interview: 1970
Transcript: 150 pp., indexed
Crabb discusses his communications training from 1941 to 1942, bombing tactics, and the activities of the Air Defense Command from 1952 to 1954.
D
172
DAUGHERTY, JAMES L.
University of California, Berkeley
Transcript
Daugherty discusses his activities with the Utility Workers Organizing Committee (later Utility Workers Union of America), CIO, and with the United Electrical, Radio, and Machine Workers of America in Los Angeles.
173
DAVIES, DONALD W.
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-8
Interviewer: Christopher Evans
Date of interview: 1975
Place: Teddington, England
Transcript: 23 pp.
Davies describes computer projects at the National Physical Laboratory in England, from the 1947 design work of Alan Turing to the development of the two ACE (Automatic Computing Engine) computers. He also describes the magnetic delay line storage systems, the difficulties in implementing programming on the Pilot Model ACE, and some of its applications, including aerodynamics and traffic control. Davies tells of the construction begun in 1955 of a much larger, second ACE, and the decision to contract with the English Electric Company to build DEUCE. Davies argues that the DEUCE was the first commercially produced computer in Britain.
175
DE MAIO, ERNEST
Profession: union leader
Roosevelt University, Illinois
Date of interviews: 1970-71
Length of interviews: 4 hrs.
Transcript: 131 pp.
De Maio was the Chicago District Director of the United Electrical Workers of America. No specific information about the interview was available.
179
The Voices of the Pioneers
DILL, C. C.
Profession: U.S. Senator
Spokane Library, Wash.
Length of interview: 3 tapes
These are three taped interviews concerning hydroelectric power in Washington state. During the first two interviews Dill concentrates on the planning and building of the Grand Coulee Dam (emphasizing the funding of the project). He discusses the early Columbia River development during the third interview.
184
Baylor University Project
DOLE, MALCOLM
Profession: professor of chemistry
Baylor University, Tex.
Interviewer: Thomas L. Charlton
Dates of Interviews: 17 April 1979-14 October 1980
Place: Waco, Tex.
Length of interviews: 8 hrs.
Transcript: 328 pp., indexed
In this videotaped interview, Dole discusses his work for the Committee of the Arts, Sciences and Professions trying to establish a citizen's atomic energy committee.
187
Henry H. Arnold Project
DOUGLAS, DONALD W., b. 1892
Profession: aircraft manufacturer
Columbia University, N.Y.
Date of interview: 1959
Transcript: 137 pp., indexed
Douglas discusses his education at the Naval Academy and MIT, aeronautical engineering, his work as chief engineer for the Martin Company (Los Angeles, 1915-16 and Cleveland, 1917-20), and his work as the chief of aeronautical engineering in the U.S. Army Signal Corps (1916-1917). He also offers his comments on early aviation, planes, engines, changes in the aircraft industry, and relations between industry, government, and military agencies.
188
Helen Gahagan Douglas Project
DOUGLAS, HELEN GAHAGAN, b. 1900
Profession: Congresswoman
University of California, Berkeley
Transcript, index
Gahagan discusses power legislation and civilian control of atomic energy.
192
DRAKE, WILLIS K.
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-46
Interviewer: James Ross
Date of interview: 3 February 1983
Place: Minnetonka, Minn.
Length of interview: 4 hrs.
Transcript: 95 pp.
Drake, founder of Data Card Corp., discusses his career from his employment with the Engineering Research Associates (ERA) to his work with Data Card. He remembers employment with ERA from 1947 to 1952 and his growing frustration with the firm after it was sold to Remington Rand in 1952. He credits James Rand with considerable vision for business applications of computers, but criticizes Remington Rand's management for failing to coordinate ERA's activities with an earlier acquisition, the Eckert-Mauchly Computer Co. He also discusses the circumstances surrounding the formation of the Control Data Corp.
194
DRAPER, CHARLES STARK, b. 1901
Profession: aeronautical engineer
MIT, Mass.
Date of interview: 1976
Length of interviews: 6 cassettes
Transcript
This interview includes discussion of the Instrumentation Laboratory.
198
DUNCAN, DONALD, 1896-1975
Profession: naval officer
Columbia University, N.Y.
Date of interview: 1964
Transcript: 981 pp., indexed
Duncan discusses naval aviation, the Plans Division of the Bureau of Aeronautics in 1933, the development of auxiliary aircraft carriers, atom bomb tests, the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics, missiles, and naval air bases.
200
DUNNING, JOHN R., b. 1907
Columbia University, N.Y.
Transcript: 104 pp.
This is a series of journalism lectures given by Dunning on news issues concerning nuclear energy.
201
DUNSHEE, BERTRAM K., b. 1891
Profession: conservationist
University of California, Berkeley
Interviewer: Amelia Fry
Date of interview: 1962
Transcript: 53 pp.
Dunshee talks about steam power plants and their effect on ocean and river wildlife, also the functions of public and private power companies.
202
DURR, CLIFFORD J., 1899-1975
Profession: lawyer
Columbia University, N.Y.
Date of interview: 1974
Transcript, index
Durr talks about the Federal Communications Commission and broadcast license renewal considerations for part of the interview.
E
203
EAMES, EARL, 1893-1981
Profession: grain elevator owner/operator
University of Minnesota
Interviewer: Joe Moore
Dates of Interviews: 28 January, 5 May 1976
Length of interviews: 72 min.
Transcript: 7 pp.
Eames describes the Farmer's Co-op Grain Elevator, an electric power dispute which ran from 1932 to 1934, and the importance of local enterprises to rural areas.
206
EDGERTON, HAROLD E., b. 1903
Profession: electrical engineer
MIT, Mass.
Date of interview: 1975
Length of interview: 4 cassettes
Transcript
Edgerton discusses his work as an electrical engineer, photographer, and educator. Other topics of discussion include Jacques Cousteau, Kenneth Germeshausen, Herbert Grier, and the MIT Strobe Laboratory.
207
EDISON, CHARLES, 1890-1969
Profession: industrialist
Columbia University, N.Y.
Date of interview: 1953
Transcript: 294 pp., indexed
Edison discusses his family background, childhood, and education before talking about Thomas A. Edison, Thomas A. Edison, Incorporated and its various enterprises and personnel relations.
208
ELCONIN, WILLIAM B.
University of California, Berkeley
Transcript
Elconin discusses his activities with the United Electrical, Radio, and Machine Workers of America in Los Angeles.
209
ELLIS, CLYDE TAYLOR
Kennedy Library, Mass.
Transcript: 79 pp.
Ellis was general manager of the National Rural Electrification Cooperative Association from 1943 to 1967. He discusses its legislative and political aspects.
210
EMERSON, THOMAS I., b. 1907
Profession: lawyer, politician
Columbia University, N.Y.
Dates of Interviews: 1953, 1955
Transcript: 2,506 pp., indexed
Emerson talks about his political career, which includes a discussion of the drafting of the Atomic Energy Act.
211
EMSPAK, JULIUS, 1904-1962
Profession: union official
Columbia University, N.Y.
Date of interview: 1960
Transcript: 363 pp., indexed
Emspak discusses the development since 1936 of the United Electrical, Radio and Machine Workers, including the RCA strike, and labor and government relations during World War II.
213
ESTRIN, THELMA
Profession: computer scientist/electrical engineer
IEEE, N.J.
Interviewer: Frederik Nebeker
Dates of interview: Aug 24, 1992-Aug 25, 1992
Length of interview: 9 hours
Transcript
Estrin discusses her career working with computers in biology and medicine. She also discusses her experiences as a woman in electrical engineering.
214
EVANS, LUTHER H., 1902-1981
Profession: educator, librarian, public official
Columbia University, N.Y.
Interviewer: Don North
Date of interview: 1970
Transcript: 34 pp.
Evans discusses his work as Director General of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) from 1953 to 1958, the work of UNESCO in general, the U.S. National Commission of UNESCO in 1946, and an automation project.
F
216
FARMER, HENRY M., b. 1906
Profession: general practitioner
University of Vermont
Interviewer: Paul K. French
Date of interview: 25 November 1969
Transcript: 22 pp., indexed
This interview includes a discussion by Farmer of his role as commissioner of the Burlington, Vermont, Electric Light Department from 1957 to 1959.
220
FEIGENBAUM, EDWARD H.
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-14
Interviewer: Pamela McCorduck
Date of interview: 12 June 1979
Place: Stanford, Calif.
Length of interview: 90 min.
Transcript:15 pp.
Feigenbaum discusses the formation and growth of the Stanford University computer science department and its acquisition of facilities. He details the department's financing, including government support from the Advanced Research Project Agency, the National Science Foundation, and the Office of Naval Research, equipment donations from industry (especially IBM), and faculty salaries.
221
FEIN, LOUIS
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-15
Interviewer: Pamela McCorduck
Date of interview: 9 May 1979
Place: Palo Alto, Calif.
Length of interview: 3 hrs.
Transcript: 18 pp.
Fein discusses his involvement in establishing computer science as an academic discipline and the difficulty in establishing computer science's autonomy from engineering programs. He then recalls his presentation on computer science departments at the 1962 Munich meeting of the International Federation for Information Processing and how his plans were accepted at many academic institutions throughout the U.S. and Europe. He concludes with his views on the future of computer science.
222
FIERING, HENRY W.
University of California, Berkeley
Transcript
Fiering discusses his activities with the United Electrical, Radio, and Machine Workers of America (UE) in Missouri, Pennsylvania, and Ohio.
223
Electrical Workers Unions
FITZGERALD, ALBERT
Profession: union official
Pennsylvania State
Interviewer: Ronald Filippelli
Date of interview: 8 May 1968
Place: New York, N. Y.
Transcript: 31 pp.
Albert Fitzgerald's interview traces his activities in the United Electrical Workers Union (UE) from his first involvement in Local #201 in Lynn, Mass. through his elevation to the presidency of the UE, and the expulsion of the UE from the CIO in 1949. The interview primarily deals with the struggle for control of the UE between the right-wing forces led by Fitzgerald's predecessor, James Carey, and the left-wing led by Fitzgerald and union officials James Matles and Julius Emspak. The issue of communist influence in the UE is central to this interview.
224
FITZPATRICK, LEO J., 1894-1971
Profession: radio station manager
University of Michigan
Transcript
Fitzpatrick discusses the operation of radio station WJR of Detroit, Michigan, and the history of radio broadcasting in general.
225
California Jewish Community Series
FLEISHHACKER, MORTIMER, 1907-1976
Profession: civic leader
University of California, Berkeley
Interviewers: Ruth Teiser, Catherine Harroun
Dates of Interviews: 1973-74
Transcript
Fleishhacker discusses his work at public television station KQED in Pittsburgh and at museums in San Francisco.
226
FLOWERS, THOMAS H.
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-16
Interviewer: Christopher Evans
Date of interview: ca. 1976
Length of interview: 60 min.
Transcript
Flowers discusses the development of the Colossus electronic cryptanalysis machine--stating that as early as 1930 he turned to vacuum tubes because of reliability problems with mechanical switching equipment. He also describes the construction of a voice-frequency signaling system at the Post Office Research Establishment (PORE) from 1932 to 1935. At the beginning of World War II PORE directed its efforts to cryptanalysis, and Flowers's expertise in vacuum tube switching led him to a key role in the project. Finally, he describes in detail his work on Colossus at the Bletchley Park Government Code and Cipher School and his relationship with Alan Turing, a senior Bletchley Park scientist.
227
FORRESTER, JAY
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-16
Interviewer: Christopher Evans
Date of interview: 1975
Place: Boston, Mass.
Transcript: 19 pp.
Forrester discusses work leading to the development of the Whirlwind computer at MIT. He begins, however, with his work in the MIT Servomechanisms Laboratory on an aircraft stability analyzer. This leads to a discussion of the Whirlwind computer, computer architecture, and computer storage technology.
228
FORSYTHE, ALEXANDRA I.
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-17
Interviewer: Pamela McCorduck
Date of interview: 16 May 1979
Place: Stanford, Calif.
Length of interview: 3 hrs.
Transcript: 20 pp
Forsythe discusses the career of her husband, George Forsythe, from the time he earned a Ph.D in 1941. He studied and taught meteorology at UCLA and became involved with the National Bureau of Standards Western Automatic Computer. In 1957, when the National Bureau of Standards closed its operation at UCLA, George Forsythe accepted a position at Stanford University to establish its program in computer science. Forsythe recalls some of her husband's difficulties in securing funding for computer projects, the resistance he encountered in his attempts to sell computer time to the private sector, and his eventual success in establishing a well funded program in 1965. At the end of the interview, Forsythe briefly discusses her own textbooks, which grew out of her efforts in the late 1950s to introduce computer mathematics instruction in Palo Alto's public high schools. She also mentions her teaching positions at Stanford and the University of Utah.
230
FOSTER, PAUL F., 1889-1972
Profession: naval officer
Columbia University, N.Y.
Date of interview: 1966
Transcript: 373 pp.
Foster discusses engineering duty in the U.S. Navy, and his role as a representative to the International Atomic Energy Agency in 1959.
233
FOX, MARGARET
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-49
Interviewer: James Ross
Date of interview: 13 April 1983
Place: Washington, D.C.
Length of interview: 60 min.
Transcript: 39 pp.
Fox describes her Naval service in World War II, which led to a career in computing. After the war she worked for the National Bureau of Standards (NBS), first as technical staff to the computer group director, Samuel Alexander. Fox describes her negotiations with the Eckert-Mauchly Computer Company over the installation of the first UNIVAC computer at NBS, the subsequent international development of the NBS Eastern Automatic Computer, and the NBS Western Automatic Computer. In the early 1950s Fox became an officer of the National Joint Computer Committee, which attempted to bring together eminent researchers from government and the private sector. She explains how this led to her involvement in the formation of the American Federation of Information Processing Societies (AFIPS). Fox also describes AFIPS's role in the organization of the International Information Processing Conference of 1959 in Paris.
234
FOX, NELLIE M., b. 1923
Profession: union official, Education Director, AFL/CIO
Oregon Historical Society
Interviewer: William Cohen
Dates of Interviews: 6 February-18 July 1986
Length of interviews: 12 hrs.
Transcript
Fox discusses public power and organized labor.
235
FREELAND, GENE
Profession: union official
Baylor University, Tex.
Interviewer: Amelia Kay King
Date of Interview; 12 October 1980
Transcript 39 pp.
Freeland, an officer of the Dallas AFL-CIO, discusses experiences in the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers at Dallas Power and Light.
238
FRITCHLE, OLIVER PARKER
Colorado Historical Society
This collection contains interviews relevant to the Fritchle Automobile and Battery Company and the Fritchle Wind-Power Electrical Manufacturing Company, both of Colorado.
240
FULLER, LEONARD F., b. 1890
Profession: electrical engineer
University of California, Berkeley
Interviewer: Arthur Norberg
Date of interview: 1973-75
Transcript
Fuller discusses his interest in amateur radio, the manufacture of and research on Poulsen arcs and vacuum tubes for the Federal Telegraph Company, his work as executive vice-president of Federal doing research on high-power vacuum tubes, his work as professor of electrical engineering and chairman of the electrical engineering department at the University of California at Berkeley from 1930 to 1943, and his acting professorship at Stanford University from 1946 to 1954.
G
246
GIANELLI, WILLIAM R., b. 1919
Profession: engineer
University of California, Berkeley
Interviewer: Malca Chall
Date of interview: 1985
Transcript: 86 pp.
Gianelli worked with the California State Department of Water Resources, and in this interview he discusses electric power contracts.
249
GILPATRICK, LOUIS O.
Baylor University, Tex.
Interviewer: Thomas Charlton
Date of interview: 3 August 1976
Place: Waco, Tex.
Length of interview: 3 hrs.
Transcript: 108 pp., indexed
Gilpatrick recalls his work as a chemist at the Oak Ridge (Tennessee) National Laboratory and research on a nuclear reactor. He also discusses radioactive waste disposal and public attitudes toward nuclear research.
251
Frederick E. Terman Associates, Oral Hist. Project
GINZTON, EDWARD L.
Profession: businessman, Chairman of the Board of Varian Associates.
IEEE, N.J.
Interviewer: A. Michael McMahon
Date of interview: 26 November 1984
Place: Palo Alto, Calif.
Length of interview: 90 min.
Index
Ginzton discusses his career, briefly mentioning his wartime research for the Sperry Gyroscope Company but concentrating on postwar microwave research at Stanford University and the development of Silicon Valley. Topics include the Microwave and Electronics Laboratories at Stanford, the Office of Naval Research, the magnetron and Klystron tubes, linear accelerators, the transistor, and Varian Associates. People Ginzton talks about include Frederick Terman, Karl Spangenberg, William Hanson, William Shockley, and Marvin Chodorow.
258
GOLDSTINE, HERMAN H.
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-18
Interviewer: Nancy Stern
Date of interview: 11 August 1980
Transcript: 38 pp.
Goldstine discusses his role from 1945 to 1956 as associate director of the Electronic Computer Project at the Institute for Advanced Study. He also discusses the relationship between the project and one of its founders, the Atomic Energy Commission.
259
GOLDSTINE, HERMAN H.
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn.
Interviewers: Albert Tucker, Frederik Nebeker
Date of interview: 22 March 1985
Place: Princeton, N.J.
Transcript: 18 pp.
Goldstine recounts how, through wartime work, he got to know mathematician Oswald Veblen. He also discusses the group that worked at the Aberdeen Proving Grounds during the war and about how he came to be in charge of the Ballistic Research Laboratory project at the Moore School of Electrical Engineering at the University of Pennsylvania. Goldstine then gives his recollections and impressions of Veblen, von Neumann, Enrico Fermi, and Kurt Göedel, as well as mathematicians G.A. Bliss and Herman Weyl, among others.
260
American Business History
GOLDSTINE, HERMAN H.
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-19
Interviewer: George Green
Date of interview: 2 December 1981
Place: Minneapolis, Minn.
Length of interview: 30 min.
Transcript: 20 pp.
Goldstine discusses computer history from early military applications to its broad range of uses today. He begins by relating his experiences with the ENIAC at the University of Pennsylvania and the construction of firing tables during World War II. He mentions the EDVAC and its innovation of stored programming, for which he describes John von Neumann. He recounts his work with von Neumann on the Institute for Advanced Study computer in the late 1940s and 1950s, which he credits as the prototype of most modern computers. Goldstine then outlines the increase of computer applications, citing meteorology as an example. He remarks on the commercialization of computing and on the important technical innovations in the 1950s making this possible, including magnetic core memory, the transistor, and the first high-level programming language, FORTRAN.
261
GOLENPAUL, DAN, b. 1900
Profession: radio producer
Columbia University, N.Y.
Date of interview: 1964
Transcript, index
Golenpaul talks about the origin and production of the radio program, "Information Please." He discusses relations with the program's sponsors and advertising agencies, and mentions some of the people who appeared regularly, including Clifton Fadiman, newspapermen Heywood Broun and John Kieran, and musician Oscar Levant.
262
GOLUB, GENE
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-20
Interviewer: Pamela McCorduck
Date of interview: 16 May 1979
Place: Stanford, Calif.
Length of interview: 90 min.
Transcript: 6 pp.
Golub discusses his career in computer science at Stanford University. In 1962, after working as a numerical analyst for the Space Technology Center, Golub was hired by George Forsythe, head of Stanford's new computer science department, for the university's computer science program. Golub describes interactions and tensions between the mathematics department and the new computer science faculty.
270
Smith Centennial Study
GRAY, MARGUERITE K.
Smith College, Mass.
Date of interview: 9 January 1973
Transcript: 37 pp.
Gray discusses the planning, evaluation, and selection of computers, computer-related equipment, and data transmission equipment for the Tennessee Valley Authority.
271
GREEN, CECIL H., b. 1900
Profession: businessman; a founder of Texas Instruments
University of North Texas
Interviewer: Donald Caruthers
Date of interview: 10 March 1975
Transcript: 106 pp.
Green discusses his education and experience in electrical engineering. He describes his varied training and work with General Electric, development of the Spencer Thermostat, his work with Raytheon and engineer Charles V. Litton, Geophysical Research in Oklahoma, meeting J. Erik Johnsson, the development of transistors, and the formation of Texas Instruments.
276
GROMBACHER, GERD S.
Profession: Major General, U.S. Army
Military History Institute, Pa.
Date of interview: 1985
Transcript: 322 pp.
Grombacher discusses his service in the U.S. Army Signal Corps.
277
GROVES, GEORGE
Profession: Communications Engineer
University of California, Los Angeles
Interviewer: Elizabeth I. Dixon
Date of interview: 1968
Length: 4 hrs.
Transcript: 90 pp.
Groves was born in England and received musical training there. He worked at Bell Laboratories from 1923-1925 in the development of improved telephone communications. In 1925, he took a job with Warner Brothers studios, developing synchronized sound for motion pictures, and was later involved in the making of The Jazz Singer. Later in his career, Groves worked on microphone techniques and stereophonic sound for motion pictures.
278
Lincoln Ward Collection
GUTIERREZ, NANCY
Profession: manager
California State, Northridge
Interviewer: Lincoln Ward
Gutierrez talks about her management position at the Pacific Telephone Company. This interview is part of a series of 30-minute radio programs entitled "Our Business is Your Business," hosted by Lincoln Ward (Pacific Telephone Co.) and Joseph Staller (Southern California Gas Co.). Running from 1976 to 1977, the program consisted of weekly interviews with business leaders of the San Fernando Valley.
H
279
HALL, ARTHUR A.
West Virginia University
Interviewers: Charles Shelter, O.D. Lambert, Verl Garster, Jr.
Date of interview: 28 May 1958
Place: Morgantown, W.Va.
Length of interview: 1 reel
Transcript, index
Although this interview is primarily concerned with the history of Morgantown, W.Va., Hall mentions the Bell Telephone Company, the Westinghouse Company, electrical engineering, the West Virginia Traction and Electric Company, Union Utilities Company, Elkins Power Company, General Electric Company, and the West Virginia University electrical engineering department.
280
HALLMARK, GLEN D.
Profession: professor of electrical engineering
Texas A&M
Interviewer: Billy Hathorn
Date of interview: 24 September 1981
Transcript: 9 pp.
Hallmark recounts his career as an electrical engineering professor at Texas A&M University.
282
HAMILTON, CARL, b. 1914
Profession: agricultural journalist
Columbia University, N.Y.
Date of interview: 1953
Transcript 735 pp.,index
Hamilton discusses his involvement with Rural Electrification Administration matters from 1943 to 1945.
283
HAMMER, CARL
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH 56
Interviewer: James Ross
Date of interview: 15 April 1983
Place: Washington, D.C.
Length of interview: 120 min.
Transcript
Hammer reviews his career in the computing industry, including his work for RCA, Sperry, Sylvania, the Franklin Institute, the European UNIVAC Center, which he headed from 1955 to 1957, and the Space Communications division of RCA. He also discusses the industrial applications of computers and reviews the Sperry-Remington Rand merger, which he cites as his reason for leaving Sperry. Hammer then discusses Sylvania's MOBIDIC computer and the ballistic missile early warning system.
285
HARD, HERBERT
Profession: chemical engineer
Auburn University, Ala.
Interviewers: David L. Morton, Jr., Carl Voelcker
Dates of interviews: 1984, 1989
In these two interviews, Hard discusses his work with Orradio Industries, Inc., of Opelika, Alabama, a manufacturer of magnetic recording tape.
286
HARDER, EDWIN
Profession: electrical engineer
IEEE, N.J.
Interviewer: William Aspray
Dates of interviews: July 30, 1991-July 31, 1991
Length of interviews: 9 hours
Transcript: 177 pp.
Harder discusses his early life, his education at Cornell and the University of Pittsburgh, his work at Westinghouse, and his professional activities with AIEE, IEEE and IFIP. There is lengthy discussion of both Harder's work on railroad electrification and other electric power engineering problems in the interwar years and on his work with the ANACOM analog computer after the Second World War.
289
HART, C. ALLAN, b. 1909
Profession: lawyer
Oregon Historical Society
Interviewer: James Strassmaier
Dates of Interviews: April-July 1986
Length of interviews: 33 hrs.
Transcript
Hart discusses the politics of public power and the N.W. Hydro-Thermal Plan.
293
HAVENNER, FRANK R., 1882-1967
Profession: Congressman
University of California, Berkeley
Interviewer: Corrine L. Gilb
Date of interview: 1953
Transcript: 170 pp.
Havenner comments on organized labor and public electrical utilities.
295
HAVERLIN, CARL, b. 1899
Profession: radio executive
Columbia University, N.Y.
Date of interview: 1955
Transcript: 38 pp., indexed
Haverlin discusses radio in Los Angeles during the 1920s.
296
HAWKINS, ROBERT
Profession: computer technician
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-64
Interviewer: William Aspray
Date of interview: 20 February 1984
Place: Barnstable, Mass.
Length of interview: 60 min.
Transcript
Hawkins discusses the computer projects he worked on at Harvard University. In 1940 he joined the Mark I project, a collaboration between Harvard and IBM; when the computer went into operation in 1943, Hawkins assumed a leading role in its maintenance. He mentions project director Howard Aiken's dissatisfaction with the off-the-shelf components, counters, relays, card keys, and card punches supplied by IBM. He also discusses the personality of Howard Aiken and his expectations of his staff.
297
HEISLER, FRANCIS, 1895-1984
Profession: attorney
University of California, Berkeley
Interviewer: Suzanne B. Riess
Dates of interviews: 1981-1983
Transcript: 289 pp.
Early in his career, Heisler worked with the Automatic Electric Company and Insull Utilities.
298
HENRY, E. W., b. 1929
Kennedy Library, Mass.
Transcript: 51 pp.
Henry discusses his involvement with the Federal Communications Commission.
299
HERR, ROBERT
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-111
Interviewer: Arthur L. Norberg
Date of interview: 19 May 1987
Place: Minneapolis, Minn.
Length of interview: 120 min.
Transcript: 58 pp.
Herr reviews his education at Haverford College and the University of Minnesota in the 1930s, wartime activity, and his postwar work. During World War II Herr worked for the U.S. Navy's Bureau of Ordinance, primarily on methods of defending U.S. ships against magnetic mines. The bulk of the interview concerns his work, starting in 1946 at the Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Company (3M) on magnetic tape development. After the introduction of magnetic tape in 1949, Herr started the Electrical Products Lab at 3M in 1952, and later he was vice president of the Data Recording Products Division. He also discusses 3M's relationship with Engineering Research Associates and Control Data Corporation.
300
HERRIOT, JOHN
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-21
Interviewer: Pamela McCorduck
Date of interview: 22 May 1979
Place: Stanford, Calif.
Length of interview: 90 min.
Transcript: 15 pp.
Herriot concentrates on the early years of computing at Stanford University, but begins by discussing his postgraduate education at Brown University in the 1940s and his work experiences prior to joining Stanford in 1946. In 1952, Herriot was appointed the first director of the Stanford Computation Center, using a Card Programmed Calculator and later an IBM 650. He discusses the formation and funding of the Computation Center and its integration with the rest of Stanford. He also discusses the formation and development of the Stanford Computer Science Department, centering on the role of department head George Forsythe.
301
HETTRICK, JOHN T., 1868-n.d.
Profession: newspaperman, lawyer
Columbia University, N.Y.
Date of interview: 1949
Transcript, index
Hettrick discusses the Lockwood Investigating Committee and the building and subsequent development of New York City subways.
302
Frederick E. Terman Associates Oral History Project.
HEWLETT, WILLIAM R.
Profession: businessman; President of Hewlett-Packard Co.
IEEE, N.J.
Interviewer: A. Michael McMahon
Date of interview: 27 November 1984
Place: Palo Alto, Calif.
Length of interview: 90 min.
Index
Hewlett talks about Frederick Terman and the founding and subsequent development of the Hewlett-Packard Company. He discusses Terman and the electronics industry during the 1930s. He describes Terman's role in the company's founding, his position as a business advisor, and his work at Stanford University after the war. Hewlett mentions the roles of key Hewlett-Packard employees, such as Noel Eldred (marketing), Noel Porter (production), and Barney Oliver (research and development). He also gives a brief history of the electronics industry in the San Francisco Bay Area and talks about the semi-conductor, transistor, and Silicon Valley. Hewlett-Packard products that Hewlett describes include Hewlett-Packard's first desktop calculator. Other people he mentions are William Shockley and Wallace Sterling.
305
HILL, JOHN L.
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-101
Interviewer: Arthur L. Norberg
Dates of Interviews: 5 January, 22 January 1986
Place: St. Paul, Minn.
Length of interviews: 4 hrs.
Transcript: 148 pp.
Hill concentrates on his years at the Engineering Research Associates (ERA), but his formative years and employment at the 3M Corporation are also mentioned. The first part of the interview includes discussion on Hill's education, primarily in electronics, at the Rochester Institute of Technology, and his work for General Railroad (1930-1934) and 3M (1934-1946). In the 1930s he became interested in radio technology. Many aspects of his work at ERA are discussed, including tape-splicing, the Goldberg and Demon cryptanalytic machine projects, the Atlas guidance computer project, and the development of magnetic recording. During the second part of the interview Hill further describes his years at ERA and Ramsey Engineering (1956-1976).
307
Hilz Family
HILZ, W. M., JR., b. 1926
Profession: businessman, President, Hilz Ford Sales
University of North Texas
Interviewer: Floyd Jenkins
Dates of Interviews: October 1978-January 1979
Transcript
Hilz recalls his computing work for the Marine Seismic Survey, employment as a branch manager for U.S. Electric Motors, and U.S. Electric Motors's merger with Emerson Electric.
312
Lincoln Ward Collection
HOFFMAN, LILLIAN
California State, Northridge
Interviewers: Lincoln Ward, Joseph Staller
Date of interview: 18 October 1976
This interview, in which Hoffman discusses the Southern California Gas Company, is part of a series of 30-minute radio programs entitled "Our Business is Your Business," hosted by Lincoln Ward (Pacific Telephone Co.) and Joseph Staller (Southern California Gas Co.). Running from 1976 to 1977, the programs consisted of weekly interviews with business leaders of the San Fernando Valley.
314
HOLBERTON, FRANCES E.
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-50
Interviewer: James Ross
Date of interview: 14 April 1983
Place: Potomac, Md.
Length of interview: 120 min.
Transcript: 47 pp.
Holberton discusses her education from 1940 through the 1960s and her experiences in the computing field. These include work with the Eckert-Mauchly Computer Company, the David Taylor Model Basin (a naval ship model testing and experimental plant), and the National Bureau of Standards. Holberton also discusses competition among members of these organizations and the difficulties she encountered as a woman. She relates her work on ENIAC and the Livermore Atomic Research Computer, her design of operating systems, and her applications programming.
315
HOLCOMB, BANKSON T., JR., b. 1908
Profession: Brigadier General, U.S. Marine Corps
Marine Corps, D.C.
Interviewer: Richard D. Alexander
Date of interview: 1970
Transcript, 86 pp.
Holcomb mentions his work while he was a communications intelligence officer from 1941 to 1943. He discusses radio intercept "Magic" and Pearl Harbor.
317
Mississippi Oral History
HOLT, CHARLES
Profession: broadcasting executive
University of S. Mississippi
Interviewer: Orley B. Caudill
Dates of Interviews: July 1975, February 1976
Length of interview: 4 hrs.
Transcript: 118 pp.
Holt discusses radio broadcasting and the radio broadcasting business.
319
HONNELL, MARTIAL A.
Profession: professor of electrical engineering
Auburn University, Ala.
Date of interview: 10 November 1976
Length of interview: 60 min.
Honnell discusses research involving the use of transmitters to monitor liquid hydrogen fuel during the Saturn Mission for NASA and the U.S. Army Missile Command.
321
HOPPER, GRACE M.
Profession: naval officer, computer scientist
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-81
Interviewer: Christopher Evans
Date of interview: 1976
Length of interview: 60 min.
Transcript: 27 pp.
Hopper describes her work as a Navy officer on the Mark I project at Harvard University during World War II and her contributions to software development in the 1950s. She also describes her initial work at Harvard on the calculation of rocket trajectories and her later work on the general problems of programming. She argues that the Mark I had greater flexibility than the ENIAC, which was built about the same time at the University of Pennsylvania. She also discusses her development of the first compiler in 1952, the general disbelief in her claim that computers could actually organize their own programs, and efforts in her spare time to realize this objective. She describes her work for the Eckert-Mauchly Computer Company and contests the judge's findings in the Honeywell vs. Sperry Rand case that John Mauchly appropriated ideas for the design of the digital computer from John Vincent Atanasoff.
322
Electrical Workers Unions
HOUCHINS, EDWARD
Profession: worker, General Electric Company, Switchgear division
Pennsylvania State
Interviewer: William Kinney
Date of interview: 22 October 1974
Place: Philadelphia, Pa.
Transcript: 12 pp.
Houchins began working at the General Electric Switchgear Company plant in Philadelphia in 1924 and worked there for 36 years. In 1924 the only union there was an ineffective Employee Representation Plan. In 1939 workers voted to affiliate with the United Electrical Workers Union (UE). Houchins discusses the 1946 strike for higher wages, the controversial non-communist affidavit, and the "Truman Loyalty Oath" in 1949. The expulsion of the UE from the Congress of Industrial Organizations (CIO) took place in Cleveland and subsequently the IUE (International Union of Electrical Workers)-CIO was formed. Houchins talks about the controversy between UE and IUE factions in local #119 of the plant with the IUE finally winning company recognition after National Labor Relations Board elections. Houchins retired in 1959.
326
The Voices of the Pioneers
HUGHES, E. H.
Spokane Library, Wash.
Hughes discusses the early history of Spokane, Washington, including his recollections of an early electric cable car system.
327
HUMPHREYS, ARTHUR L. C.
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-23
Interviewer: Erwin Tomash
Date of interview: 28 February 1981
Place: Los Angeles, Calif.
Transcript: 31 pp.
Humphreys, a former managing director of International Computers, Ltd. (ICL), reviews the history of the British computer industry. Topics include the termination in 1949 of the trade agreement between IBM and the British Tabulating Machine Company, the merger in 1959 of British Tabulating and the Powers Samas Company into International Computers and Tabulators, Ltd. (ICT), and the merger in 1968 of English Electric Computers Ltd. and ICT into ICL. Humphreys explains how the last merger was enacted by the government to establish a single national computer company. He recalls the government's pride, as expressed by Prime Minister Harold Wilson, in maintaining a position in the international computer industry. Humphreys also discusses the strengths and weaknesses of the British computer industry and compares the management of the British and American computer industries. He mentions the European Economic Community's efforts to establish Unidata, a multinational computer company, and the problems associated with conducting business across Europe's linguistic and cultural boundaries.
328
HURD, CUTHBERT C.
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-82
Interviewer: Christopher Evans
Date of interview: 1976
Length of interview: 90 min.
Transcript
Hurd discusses his work with IBM through the 1950s. Beginning with his education and early career, he tells of his work with IBM punch card equipment as a student during World War II. He describes his involvement with scientific computation after the war with the Oak Ridge, Tenn., atomic energy project, and his discussion with IBM president Thomas J. Watson, Sr. of the need for high-speed electronic computers. Shortly thereafter, in 1947, IBM issued its 604 computer, which increased production at Oak Ridge by a factor of three. As a result of his interest in computing and IBM's interest in atomic energy, Hurd joined IBM in 1949 to build up a computing staff. He provides details on subsequent events in IBM's growth, through the military work during the Korean War, the developments of magnetic tape and magnetic core storage, and the growth of business computing between 1952 and 1954. He explains how this growth was tied to the success of IBM's 650 and 700 series of computers.
329
HURD, CUTHBERT C.
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-76
Interviewer: Nancy Stern
Date of interview: 20 January 1981
Place: Portola Valley, Calif.
Length of interview: 3 hrs.
Transcript: 66 pp.
Hurd discusses computing at IBM in the 1950s. He devotes a major portion of the interview to John von Neumann, mentioning the Institute for Advanced Study computer project, von Neumann's relationships with J. Presper Eckert, John Mauchly, Herman Goldstine, and Robert Oppenheimer, and von Neumann's consulting arrangement with IBM. A portion of the interview focuses on Hurd's contribution to IBM, including technical contributions and management in the Applied Sciences Division. Hurd also discusses IBM more generally, highlighting the company's organizational structure in the early computer era, interactions between Thomas Watson, Sr. and Thomas Watson, Jr., and the relations between IBM and the Eckert-Mauchly Computer Company.
330
HUSKEY, HARRY D.
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-83
Interviewer: Christopher Evans
Date of interview: 1976
Place: 90 min.
Transcript
Huskey discusses his work on the ENIAC, Automatic Computing Engine (ACE), and the Standards Western Automatic Computer (SWAC). As a mathematics professor at the University of Pennsylvania, he joined the Moore School's ENIAC project in 1944 and with electrical engineer Arthur Burks wrote a technical description of the machine. Huskey credits much of the engineering to J. Presper Eckert, including the idea for stored programming. In 1946 Huskey went to the ACE project at Britain's National Physical Laboratory (NPL). He tells of the Manchester University computer project under the direction of F.C. Williams, whose cathode-ray memory tube Huskey was recommended for the ACE. He discusses his interactions with Alan Turing, Turing's interest in artificial intelligence, and events that led to Turing's resignation from NPL. In 1947 Huskey returned to the U.S. to work for the National Bureau of Standards (NBS), where in 1948 he was assigned to design the SWAC, a computer being built by NBS and UCLA at the Institute for Numerical Analysis. He describes how he followed the EDVAC design in designing the SWAC, SWAC'S use of a mercury delay line memory, and its application from 1950 to 1967, primarily by Air Force contractors and UCLA mathematicians.
332
Waco and McLennan County Project
HUTSON, GEORGE
Profession: manager, Southwestern Bell Telephone
Baylor University, Tex.
Interviewer: Carl Snodgrass
Date of interview: 6 August 1980
Length of interview: 60 min.
Transcript: 34 pp.
Hutson, a local manager of the Southwestern Bell Telephone Company, describes the history of the telephone system in Waco, Tex. He describes in detail a tornado that swept through Waco and the telephone company's ability to recover and handle the aftermath.
J
334
JACKSON, CHARLES
IEEE, N.J.
Interviewer: Carol Lof
Date of interview: 19 February 1980
This is a joint interview with Jackson and U.S. Representative Lionell Van Deerlin. They discuss the break-up of AT&T, competition within the telecommunications industry, and the regulation of telephone service. This interview was conducted for the article "The Era of Electronic Enlightenment?," which appeared in the IEEE Communications Society Magazine.
336
JAFFRAY, CLIVE T., 1865-1956
Minnesota Historical Society
Date of interview: 1956
Transcript: 86 pp.
Jaffray discusses the Electric Machinery Company and electrical manufacturing.
337
JAWORSKI, LEON
Profession: attorney
Baylor University, Tex.
Interviewers: Thomas L. Charlton, Frank Newton
Date of Interviews: 18 March 1976-5 November 1982
Place: Houston and Waco, Texas
Length of interviews: 33 hrs.
In these videotaped interviews, Jaworski recalls his career as an attorney. Part of the discussion includes his comments on his relationship with television networks during involvement in the Watergate investigation. He also talks about Richard Kleindienst's work on an International Telephone and Telegraph antitrust case.
338
JOEL, AMOS
Profession: electrical engineer
IEEE, N.J.
Interviewer: William Aspray
Dates of interviews: February 4, 1992, February 18, 1992
Length of interviews: 7 hours
Transcript: 190 pp.
Joel discusses his early life, education at MIT, and career at Bell Telephone Laboratories. Joel recalls various electromechanical switching systems used by AT&T, including the Panel, Crossbar, Step-By-Step systems, as well as electronic switching devices that he helped to develop, including Traffic Service Positions System, the Remote Concentrator, and the Number 1 Electronic Switching System. Part of the discussion is devoted to the relationships between early electronic computers and early electronic switching networks. Joel also talks about his experiences in various research and development laboratories at Bell from the late 1930s to the 1960s.
342
The Voices of the Pioneers
JOHNSON, RANDALL
Spokane Library, Wash.
Johnson talks about the streetcar system of Spokane, Washington.
345
JONES, HERBERT C., 1880-1970
Profession: politician, California state senator
University of California, Berkeley
Interviewers: Corrine L. Gilb, Willa K. Baum
Date of interview: 1957
Transcript: 318 pp.
Jones discusses California legislation concerning water and power, and water problems experienced by the Santa Clara Valley Water Conservation District during the 1920s.
346
Engineering College and Research
JONES, WILLIAM B.
Profession: electrical engineering professor
Texas A&M
Interviewer: Billy Hathorn
Date of interview: 20 July 1981
Transcript: 10 pp.
Jones has been head of the Texas A&M Department of Electrical Engineering since 1967. He examines the history, current challenges, and changes in his department.
K
347
KAAPCKE, WALLACE L., b. 1916
Profession: attorney
University of California, Berkeley
Interviewer: Carole Hicke
Dates of interviews: 1986-1989
Transcript: 330 pp.
Kaapcke, a corporate lawyer, was the general counsel for the Bay Area Rapid Transit District.
349
KAPPEL, FREDRICK
Profession: businessman; Chairman of the Board AT&T; Chairman, Business Council
Kennedy Library, Mass.
Transcript: 28 pp.
Kappel discusses his work as a leader of American Telephone and Telegraph.
351
KEENAN, JOSEPH
Roosevelt University, Illinois
Date of interview: 1970
60 min.
Transcript
Keenan was Secretary of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers and the Chicago Federation of Labor. No specific information about the interview was available.
353
Smith Centennial Study
KELLEY, PEGGY C.
Smith College, Mass.
Date of interview: 30 August 1972
Transcript: 57 pp.
Kelley discusses her work as a theater lighting designer.
354
KELLY, JIM
University of S. Mississippi
Interviewer: R. Wayne Pyle
Date of interview: 28 February 1979
Length of interview: 120 min.
Transcript: 71 pp.
Kelly discusses his career as a railroad telegrapher.
356
Law and Politics
KENT, ROGER, b. 1906
University of California, Berkeley
Interviewers: Amelia Fry, Anne Brower
Dates of Interviews: 1976-77
Transcript
Kent discusses his career, which includes a discussion of the Bodega Bay atomic plant controversy.
357
KILBURN, TOM
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-24
Interviewer: Christopher Evans
Date of interview: 1976
Place: Manchester, England
Transcript: 16 pp.
Kilburn discusses computer development during the 1940s and 1950s at Manchester University, where he worked under Professor F.C. Williams on a cathode ray tube storage system (known generally as the Williams tube). Kilburn also characterizes A.M. Turing's relationship with the computer project, Turing's interest in using computers, and Turing's overall contributions to programming. Williams concludes with an assessment of the rapid growth of computer technology and industry.
358
KILBY, JACK S. C.
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-74
Interviewer: Arthur L. Norberg
Date of interview: 21 June 1984
Place: Dallas, Tex.
Length of interview: 3 hrs.
Transcript: 72 pp.
Kilby covers his entire career, including his education, work experiences at Centralab and Texas Instruments (TI), and his independent work after leaving TI in 1970. Kilby graduated from the University of Illinois in 1948. He then worked at Centralab under Alfred Khouri and Bob Wolf, initially on resistor-capacitor couplings for television sets. In 1952 Kilby attended the Bell conference on transistors, which led him to work on transistor technology at Centralab until he joined TI in 1958. At TI he worked under Willis Adcock on the development of geranium and silicon transistors. Kilby discusses the organizational structure of TI in the late 1950s and details its development and manufacturing of integrated circuits. He also discusses his involvement in the development of the first handheld calculator at TI. He mentions semiconductor developments at Fairchild Corporation and his career after leaving TI.
360
KILLIAN, JAMES R., JR., b. 1904
Profession: scientist
Columbia University, N.Y.
Interviewer: Stephen White
Date of interview: 1970
Transcript: 402 pp.
For part of the interview Killian discusses his work as Special Assistant to the President for Science and Technology from 1957 to 1959, as Chairman of the President's Science Advisory Committee from 1957 to 1959, and as President of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology from 1948 to 1959. Other topics include Intercontinental Ballistic Missile developments, the space program, the National Science Foundation, the missile gap, U-2, Polaris, satellites, the Federal Council for Science and Technology, and the Geneva Conference on nuclear test detection.
361
KINOY, ARTHUR, b. 1920
Profession: lawyer
Columbia University, N.Y.
Date of interview: 1975
Transcript: 268 pp., indexed
Among the topics Kinoy discusses are the Rosenberg and Sobell case, U.S. vs. U.S. District Court wiretap case of 1972, and the United Electrical Workers case.
364
KNUDSEN, VERN O., 1893-1974
University of California, Berkeley
Transcript
Knudsen worked at Bell Laboratories as a researcher in acoustics with Harvey Fletcher in the 1920s. He was later a consultant to Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer studios on motion picture sound, as well as a designer of broadcasting studios.
367
KOA RADIO, COLORADO
Colorado Historical Society
Date of interview: 1962
In addition to documentary sources, this collection contains interviews with the engineer and original announcer who put KOA on the air in 1924. Interviews also describe changes in broadcasting equipment.
368
KOBAK, EDGAR, 1895-1962
Profession: business consultant
Columbia University, N.Y.
Date of interview: 1956
Transcript: 120 pp., indexed
Kobak discusses his work as business manager of Electrical World. magazine Other topics include aviation, electronics, and nucleonics.
369
KOENIG, ROBERT P., 1904-1984
Profession: engineer, geologist
Columbia University, N.Y.
Date of interview: 1964
Transcript: 121 pp., indexed
Koenig discusses Lehman Brothers and the Electric Shovel Corporation in the period 1935 to 1939.
374
KUSCH, POLYKARP, b. 1911
Profession: physicist
Columbia University, N.Y.
Date of interview: 1962
Transcript: 212 pp., indexed
Kusch discusses Westinghouse Electric (where he worked from 1941 to 1942), the Columbia Radiation Laboratory (where he worked from 1942 to 1944), Bell Telephone Laboratories, and his work as head of the Physics Department and Radiation Laboratory at Columbia University.
L
377
The Voices of the Pioneers
LANTRY, HARRY
Spokane Library, Wash.
Lantry discusses Spokane, Washington's first radio stations, radio studios, and broadcasters.
378
The Voices of the Pioneers
"THE HARRY LANTRY STORY"
Spokane Library, Wash.
Lantry discusses his career during the early days of radio broadcasting in Spokane, Washington.
379
LASSWELL, ALVA B., b. 1905
Profession: Colonel, U.S. Marine Corps
Marine Corps, D.C.
Interviewer: Benis M. Frank
Date of interview: 1968
Transcript: 62 pp.
Lasswell discusses cryptographic/communications intelligence training during the prewar period and communications intelligence work at Pearl Harbor and the Battle of Midway during WWII.
383
LEARY, WILLIAM
Profession: union official; former president of Federation of Telephone Workers of Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania State
Interviewer: Vincent Maisano
Date of interview: August 1975
Place: Philadelphia, Pa.
Transcript: 40 pp.
Leary begins by telling how, with the coming of the Wagner Act in 1935, the Employee Representation Plan at the Bell Telephone Company went out of existence and the Federation of Telephone Workers of Pennsylvania (FTWP) was born. Leary was selected to the executive board from the Philadelphia division and in 1942 became the president of the Federation. He discusses the five-week strike against AT&T in 1947 for not raising wages in the Bell System, a strike which brought to the surface conflicts and weaknesses in the FTWP. In 1949 he participated in the formation of the Eastern Seaboard Alliance of Telephone Workers (its name has since been changed to the Alliance of Independent Telephone Unions) and became president of that organization. Leary describes the effect on FTWP of such legislation as the Taft-Hartley Act and the Landrum-Griffin Act of 1959. He reflects on the nature of bargaining with the Bell System and on the ineffectiveness of the strike as a weapon in the industry.
389
The Voices of the Pioneers
LIBBY, GEORGE
Spokane Library, Wash.
Libby talks about the electrification of Spokane, Washington.
390
LIVERMORE, NORMAN B., b. 1911
Profession: government administrator
University of California, Berkeley
Interviewers: Ann Lage, Gabrielle Morris
Dates of interviews: 1981-1982
Transcript: 285 pp.
Livermore discusses his role in land and energy planning during California Governor Ronald Reagan's term.
392
LLOYD, RICHARD C.
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-25
Interviewer: Arthur L.C. Humphreys
Date of interview: 26 September 1980
Transcript: 8 pp.
Lloyd, managing director of the British insurance company SAMLAS (formerly Mutual), outlines the company's computerization beginning with the Powers Samas Perseus installed in 1959. He discusses their later machines, including the Ferranti Orion 2 in 1966 and the 2900 in 1976. For each computer Lloyd describes notable hardware and software features, comments on its operation, and points to the company's increased information processing ability.
393
LOCKWOOD, CHARLES A.
Profession: Naval officer, 1890-1967
Columbia University, N.Y.
Date of interview: 1965
Transcript: 720 pp., indexed
Lockwood discusses sonar, radar, nuclear propulsion, and the development of the nuclear submarine.
394
LODGE, JOHN D., b. 1903
Profession: lawyer, diplomat
Columbia University, N.Y.
Interviewer: John T. Mason, Jr.
Date of interview: 1967-69
Transcript: 198 pp.
This interview includes discussion on the Commission for the Civilian Uses of Atomic Energy.
395
LOEVINGER, LEE
Kennedy Library, Mass.
Transcript: 45 pp.
Loevinger was Commissioner of the Federal Communications Commission from 1963 to 1968. No specific information about the interview was available.
397
LOOMIS, FRANCIS B., JR., b. 1903
Profession: Major General, U.S. Marine Corps
Marine Corps, D.C.
Interviewer: Benis M. Frank
Date of interview: 1970
Transcript: 149 pp.
Loomis discusses his role as a Marine Corps Liaison Officer for Ground Missiles and Atomic Energy.
399
LOVELL, JAMES
IEEE, N.J.
Interviewer: Carol Lof
Date of interview: 1980
Lovell discusses telecommunications and the space program. This interview was for the article "Talk with an Astronaut Turned Telephone Man," which appeared in the IEEE Communications Society Magazine.
400
LUENING, OTTO, b. 1900
Profession: composer
Columbia University, N.Y.
Date of interview: 1976
Transcript: 607 pp., indexed
Luening discusses an electronic workshop at Columbia University and the development of electronic music.
401
Smith Centennial Study
LYMAN, ELISABETH R.
Profession: physicist, educator
Smith College, Mass.
Interviewer: 25 September 1973
Transcript: 45 pp.
Lyman describes how he helped to develop Plato, a computer-controlled teaching system.
M
405
MAGUIRE, TIMOTHY H.
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-69
Interviewer: William Aspray
Date of interview: 27 February 1984
Place: Westport, Conn.
Length of interview: 120 min.
Transcript: 50 pp.
This interview concerns computer activities of General Electric (GE) and the data communications industry. After describing his early life and undergraduate work in mechanical engineering at the University of Washington, Maguire concentrates on his career at GE. He worked for GE's utility sales divisions in Chicago and Madison, Wisconsin, in the programming department in Phoenix, and as a support specialist to the utilities industry in the Philadelphia field office. Maguire describes the training program for new engineers, the divisional structure of the company, the sales and management philosophy, and the marketing plan, and illustrates them from his personal experiences. He devotes particular attention to GE's attempt to gain the #2 market share in the computer industry and the decision to leave the industry because of their capital commitments to steam turbine and nuclear power technologies. Maguire then reviews his career after GE, first as a product manager with the communications system start-up, Communatype, and later with his own company in the data communications systems business. He provides an overview of the technical innovations, price-performance improvements, and companies that entered the data communications industry.
406
South Dakota Oral History Project
MALONE, TED
Univ. of South Dakota
Malone was director of the NAB Encyclopedia of Recorded Sound project at the time of this interview and is a former ABC radio performer.
407
Lincoln Ward Collection
MALONEY, JOHN L.
Profession: businessman, President, Maloney's Stationers
California State, Northridge
Interviewers: Lincoln Ward, Joseph Staller
Date of interview: 27 January 1976
Transcript, index
Maloney discusses energy, nuclear power, and conservation. This interview is part of a series of 30-minute radio programs entitled "Our Business is Your Business," hosted by Lincoln Ward (Pacific Telephone Co.) and Joseph Staller (Southern California Gas Co.). Running from 1976 to 1977, the program consisted of weekly interviews with business leaders of the San Fernando Valley.
408
MARDEN, ETHEL
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-51
Interviewer: William Aspray
Date of interview: 20 October 1983
Place: McLean, Va.
Length of interview: 120 min.
Transcript: 37 pp.
Marden discusses the early use of computers by the U.S. government as seen from the perspective of the National Bureau of Standards (NBS), where she was employed following World War II. She discusses the results of the construction of the Standards Eastern Automatic Computer (SEAC) and points to the prominent role in its design of people who had worked on ENIAC. She describes the enthusiasm and work environment of the SEAC project, including accommodations for women to hold professional positions at the same time they were raising families. She points to the success of SEAC as measured by the many government offices that used it. She describes the interactions of NBS with other government agencies and other major computer projects and describes how NBS recruited talented personnel.
409
MASON, J. RUPERT, 1886-1959
Profession: municipal bond broker
University of California, Berkeley
Interviewer: Willa K. Baum
Date of interview: 1957
Transcript: 372 pp.
Mason discusses public verses private power distribution.
412
Electrical Workers Unions
MATLES, JAMES
Profession: union leader
Pennsylvania State
Interviewer: Ronald Filippelli
Date of interview: 6 May 1968
Place: New York, N. Y.
Transcript: 98 pp.
James Matles covers his career in the labor movement from 1929 (when he arrived in the U.S.) to 1950. He traces his activities as an officer in the Steel and Metal Workers Union through his brief stint as a Grand Lodge Representative in the International Association of Machinists and subsequent career as director of the organization of the United Electrical Workers Union (UE). The bulk of the interview concerns the bitter ideological struggle that took place between the left and the right wings for control of UE between 1941 and 1949. Matles goes into detail about the formation of the UE from three distinct groups between 1933 and 1937.
413
MAUCHLY, JOHN W.
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-44
Date of interview: 13 November 1978
Place: Rome, Italy
Length of interview: 90 min.
Transcript: 18 pp.
This is an address given by Mauchly at Sperry Univac's 1973 Point of View meeting in Rome. He discusses his early use of computers at Ursinus College for weather prediction and his determination that calculators using vacuum tubes to function at much higher speeds were feasible. He recounts his move to the University of Pennsylvania and his failure to interest anyone other than J. Presper Eckert in his research. Mauchly explains how they were able to obtain funding to build the ENIAC, the first electronic digital calculator, only after proposing to use it for ballistics calculations. Finally, he describes funding of the Eckert-Mauchly UNIVAC computer by the National Bureau of Standards.
414
MAUCHLY, JOHN W.
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-26
Interviewer: Christopher Evans
Date of interview: 1976
Place: Philadelphia, Pa.
Transcript: 19 pp.
Mauchly describes his role in the development of the ENIAC and EDVAC computers. He explains how his work in the 1930s on weather statistics led him to experiment with electronic calculating devices and how this became an active project when he joined the University of Pennsylvania Moore School of Electrical Engineering faculty in 1941. He recounts his early conversations with J. Presper Eckert on the feasibility of replacing electro-mechanical relays with thousands of vacuum tubes. Mauchly then turns to the Army's funding of the ENIAC computer for use in preparing firing tables and the important role of Herman Goldstine in securing this funding. Mauchly provides details on the small integrators built during the ENIAC's first phases, John von Neumann's contributions to the project, and technological innovations made during the machine's early operation in the mid-1940s -- including the development of stored programming that was designed into the ENIAC's successor, the EDVAC.
417
MAXWELL, A. T.
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-27
Interviewer: Arthur L.C. Humphreys
Date of interview: 9 January 1980
Transcript: 15 pp.
This interview describes the evolution of the British computer industry through the formation of International Computers Ltd. (ICL), based upon Maxwell's experiences as an executive with Powers Samas, International Computers and Tabulators, Ltd., and ICL.
418
MAY, BERNICE H., 1897-1975
Profession: politician
University of California, Berkeley
Interviewer: Gabrielle Morris
Date of interview: 1974
Transcript
May discusses the Bay Area Rapid Transit District (BART) in San Francisco, Calif.
419
MCANENY, GEORGE, 1869-1953
Profession: banker, civic leader
Columbia University, N.Y.
Date of interview: 1949
Transcript: 102 pp., indexed
McAneny discusses the history of New York City and touches on the construction of the city's subways.
422
MCCORMACK, JAMES
Profession: businessman
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-68
Interviewer: William Aspray
Date of interview: 23 February 1984
Place: Waltham, Mass.
Length of interview: 120 min.
Transcript: 40 pp.
McCormack, co-founder of the Boston software company, McCormack and Dodge, describes his career and the growth of his company. He begins with his work at General Motors in the early 1960s on the automation of a cost accounting system. He explains how he gained knowledge of computer systems while working as an IBM marketing representative and describes his discussions with Frank Dodge, a systems engineering group leader at IBM, that led to the 1969 founding of McCormack and Dodge. He describes their first product (for fixed assets), their early financial problems, the establishment of a base of customers in the Boston area, and the successes of a mass-market pricing strategy. He then turns to the company's rapid growth over the next decade to over 750 employees and a range of products, including accounts payable, ledger, purchasing, capital project accounting, human resource, and accounts receivable systems. McCormack discusses at length the problems associated with managing a fast-growing company. He also remarks on his company's strong reputation, and on the strategy and structure of the competition. He concludes with an appraisal of the acquisition of his company by Dunn and Bradstreet in 1983.
424
MCCRACKEN, JARRELL FRANKLIN
Profession: businessman
Baylor University, Tex.
Interviewers: Thomas L. Charlton, Dial A Moffatt, Thomas Kelly
Dates of Interviews: 19 August 1971-27 October 1976
Place: Waco, Texas
Length of Interview: 15 hrs., 45 min.
Transcript: 510 pp., 2 vols.
Transcripts of this interview are in two volumes. The first discusses McCracken's early life and the formation of the religious record label WORD. Volume Two discusses further aspects of WORD Records, WORD's acquisition of Lexicon Music and Light Records, its sale to ABC-Paramount, and technological changes in the record industry generally.
425
MCDONALD, ROBERT E.
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-45
Interviewer: James Ross
Date of interview: 16 December 1982
Place: Minneapolis, Minn.
Length of interview: 120 min.
Transcript: 54 pp.
McDonald focuses on early computing activities at Remington Rand. He first discusses his own career, mentioning his undergraduate education in electrical engineering and business at the University of Minnesota, his graduate work at Iowa State and the University of Chicago, his years in the Navy during World War II, and his employment with Northwest and Braniff airlines before joining Remington Rand's computer operations in 1953. McDonald discuss the Remington Rand organization, highlighting business strategies, upper-level management, marketing, allocation of resources, product development, and the decentralized nature of operations. The differences between commercial and government projects and the tensions between two divisions of the Remington Rand, Eckert-Mauchly and Engineering Research Associates (ERA), are also discussed. McDonald mentions the efforts of Charles Green of Sperry, who tried to integrate ERA into the Sperry-Rand organization after the Sperry merger with Remington Rand. He mentions the influence of outside consultants on Remington Rand and IBM, and the influence of ex-IBM employees on the Sperry Rand organization. He concludes by contrasting Remington Rand with IBM.
426
MCDONALD, ROBERT E.
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-57
Interviewer: James Ross
Date of interview: 4 May 1983
Place: Minneapolis, Minn.
Length of interview: 120 min.
Transcript: 29 pp.
McDonald discusses the early years of Remington Rand in the computer business, including the management of Engineering Research Associates (ERA) and the Eckert-Mauchly Computer Company (both acquisitions of Remington Rand), the rivalry between the two, their competition for funds, and their relations to the parent company. Other topics include the departure of ERA personnel to form the Control Data Corporation, successful products, financial structure of Sperry Rand, collaboration with Bell Laboratories, Western Electric, and MIT on defense projects, Sperry's role in the 1969 IBM anti-trust case, and Univac's involvement in the international market.
427
MCFADDEN, ARTHUR JAMES
Profession: Regent, Businessman
University of California, Los Angeles
Interviewer: Donald J. Schippers
Date of interview: 1965
Transcript: 112 pp
McFadden was involved in a number of rail and shipping concerns in California beginning in the 1880s. In this interview he discusses the Pacific Electric railroad to Newport, built in 1905.
428
IEEE Merger History Project
MCFARLAN, RONALD L.
IEEE, N.J.
Interviewer: George Sell
Date of interview: 18 December 1979
McFarlan discusses the merger of the American Institute of Electrical Engineers (AIEE) and the Institute of Radio Engineers (IRE) to form the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE).
430
MCLAUGHLIN, DONALD H., b. 1891
Profession: mining company executive
University of California, Berkeley
Interviewer: Harriet S. Nathan
Dates of Interviews: 1970, 1971
Transcript: 318 pp.
Topics discussed include the Atomic Energy Commission, nuclear energy, the National Science Board, and the U.S. Geological Survey from 1950 to 1965.
431
MCPHERSON, JOHN
Profession: computer engineer and manager
IEEE, N.J.
Interviewer: William Aspray
Dates of interviews: April 29, 1992, May 12, 1992
Length of interviews: 4 hours, 30 minutes
Transcript: 100 pp.
This interview covers McPherson's early life, education at Princeton, and career with IBM, where he rose to the position of vice-president. The interview is particularly useful in providing information about IBM's activities in the pre-computer era and about the company's transition to computers.
432
MCRANEY, BOB
Profession: radio broadcaster
University of S. Mississippi
Interviewer: Michael Garvey
Date of interview: 15 January 1975
Place: 2 hrs., 30 min.
Transcript: 47 pp.
McRaney discusses the creation of the Mississippi Broadcasters Association, the formation of the Mid-South Network, the founding of a radio and television museum, radio station development, and politicians and radio.
434
Lincoln Ward Collection
MENDENHALL, FERD
Profession: publisher
California State, Northridge
Interviewer: Joseph Staller
Date of interview: 7 February 1977
This is a joint interview with Mendenhall and radio station community relations director Jerri Spoehel. They discuss radio station KCSN and journalism. This interview is part of a series of 30-minute radio programs entitled "Our Business is Your Business," hosted by Lincoln Ward (Pacific Telephone Co.) and Joseph Staller (Southern California Gas Co.). Running from 1976 to 1977, the programs consisted of weekly interviews with business leaders of the San Fernando Valley.
435
MERZBACH, UTA
Profession: historian
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-28
Interviewer: George Green
Date of interview: 15 September 1980
Place: Washington, D.C.
Length of interview: 30 min.
Transcript: 13 pp.
Merzbach, curator of the Mathematics Division of the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of American History, provides a brief overview of the history of electronic computing. She begins with the early projects in the 1940s that grew out of a need for advanced military technology, such as the ENIAC, the EDVAC, the Institute for Advanced Study computer, and the Whirlwind. Merzbach touches on the transition from military to commercial computers, with Eckert and Mauchly's UNIVAC and IBM's 650 and 700 series. She discusses early memory systems (mercury delay line, Williams electrostatic storage tube, Selectron tube, and magnetic drum) and how they were all superseded by the magnetic core in the 1950s. She also discusses the creation of FORTRAN, the first high-level programming language.
436
MICKELSON, SIG, b. 1913
Profession: journalist, broadcasting executive
Columbia University, N.Y.
Transcript: 122 pp., indexed
Mickelson discusses radio news work at WCCO, Minneapolis, Minn., in 1943, CBS in 1950, television coverage of special news events, and news on film.
443
MILLER, WILLIAM F.
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-29
Interviewer: Pamela McCorduck
Date of interview: 22 May 1979
Place: Stanford, Calif.
Length of interview: 90 min.
Transcript: 10 pp.
Miller reviews his early career, including his work on the Argonne National Laboratory computer and teaching at the University of Chicago Institute for Computer Research. He then focuses on George Forsythe and his role in establishing a computer science program at Stanford University. Miller joined the Stanford Linear Accelerator Center and the Stanford computer science department at its formation in 1965. He contrasts what happened at Stanford with what happened at Harvard and the University of Pennsylvania, where other early computer science programs were started. Miller explains the relations of the computer science department to the computer center and the mathematics and electrical engineering departments, and how these relationships strengthened the university's computer science program. Miller also provides some details about the early funding of the department by the Atomic Energy Commission and the National Science Foundation.
445
MONTGOMERY, DEANE
Princeton University, N.J.
Interviewers: Frederik Nebeker, Albert Tucker
Date of interview: 13 March 1985
Place: Princeton, N.J.
Transcript: 16 pp.
Montgomery, after completing his Ph.D. at the University of Iowa, spent a year at Harvard and then a year at Princeton. During World War II he returned to Princeton, taught Army students, and worked for a year with John von Neumann. In 1948 Montgomery became a permanent member of the faculty and in 1951 a professor of the Institute for Advanced Study. Montgomery describes the atmosphere at Princeton, and interviewer Albert Tucker and Montgomery talk at length about mathematician Oswald Veblen, who played a large role in the building of the mathematics department at the University and the main role in establishing of the School of Mathematics at the Institute. Montgomery also discusses the beginnings of the Institute.
446
Baylor University Project
MONTGOMERY, RUTH S.
Baylor University, Tex.
Interviewer: Kent Keeth
Dates of Interviews: 22 June-9 July 1976
Place: San Antonio, Tex.
Length of interviews: 6 hrs. 20 min.
Transcript: 229 pp., indexed
This tape includes interviews with Montgomery for radio and television panel shows. She discusses her first experiences with and techniques of automatic writing and her first experiences with an electric typewriter.
447
Smith Centennial Study
MOODEY, HANNAH C.
Profession: engineer
Smith College, Mass.
Date of interview: 17 November 1972
Transcript: 32 pp.
Moodey discusses the development of color television at RCA.
452
MULLANEY, FRANK C.
Profession: electrical engineer
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-110
Interviewer: Arthur L. Norberg
Dates of Interviews: 2 & 11 June 1986
Minneapolis, Minn.
Length of interviews: 3 hrs.
Transcript: 107 pp.
Mullaney was involved in several projects at Engineering Research Associates (ERA), including the Goldberg project, Demon I, and the ATLAS computer. He discusses ERA's production technology and quality control efforts in the late 1940s and early 1950s. He witnessed ERA's transition from a designer of equipment for specific contracts to a designer of general-purpose equipment suitable for a range of problems. He continues by comparing and contrasting various ERA products, including the ATLAS I and II, and the 1101, 1102, and 1103. He also discusses the sale of ERA to Remington Rand and his departure, along with William Norris and others, to form the Control Data Corporation.
454
MUMMA, ROBERT E.
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-73
Interviewer: William Aspray
Date of interview: 19 April 1984
Place: Dayton, Ohio.
Length of interview: 2 hrs.
Transcript: 42 pp.
Mumma went to work for National Cash Register (NCR) in 1939 in its newly formed Electronic Research Department. Before the war he designed gas thyratron tubes for use as decimal counters in an electronic calculator, a working model of which was completed before the war. He discusses the contact NCR had during this period with MIT and Harvard and reviews some of the early research projects and personnel at NCR. In the second half of the interview, Mumma describes NCR's move into commercial electronic computing in the 1940s, 1950s, and early 1960s, with such products as cash registers with punched tape, accounting machines with electronic multipliers, high-speed printers, bar code readers, point-of-sale terminals, and magnetic ink character recognition equipment. Mumma explains how NCR considered purchasing the Eckert-Mauchly Company prior to its acquisition of the Computer Research Corporation (CRC) as a way of entering the computer field. The division of labor between NCR-Dayton and the NCR-CRC division is considered, as are the difficulties of promoting, developing, and marketing electronic technology in the mechanically oriented environment of NCR headquarters in Dayton.
N
455
NELSEN, ANCHER, b. 1904
Profession: U. S. Congressman, public administrator
Columbia University, N.Y.
Interviewer: Ed Edwin
Date of interview: 1970
Transcript: 31 pp., indexed
Nelsen reviews his work as administrator of the Rural Electrification Administration from 1953 to 1956, the Georgia Power contract, and the Tennessee Valley Authority.
461
NEWMAN, MAXWELL H. A.
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-84
Interviewer: Christopher Evans
Length of interview: 60 min.
Transcript
Newman discusses his work at the Bletchley Park Government Code and Cipher School in Britain during World War II. He mentions his teaching position in mathematics at the University of Cambridge before the war, and his acquaintance there with Alan Turing while he was formulating his theory of computability. At Bletchley Park, Newman worked on the decoding of machine-generated ciphers using the Colossus, an electronic calculator built under the direction of Thomas H. Flowers incorporating design features based on Turing's statistical theory. Newman discusses personal interactions and the operation of the Colossus. He also describes his post-war position at Manchester University, where he worked on the Mark I computer project before returning to teach mathematics. The copyrights and originals of this interview are held by the Science Museum of London.
463
NICHOLS, KENNETH D., b. 1907
Profession: army officer, civil engineer
Columbia University, N.Y.
Interviewer: John Luter
Date of interview: 1967
Transcript
Nichols discusses his role as Deputy Director of Guided Missiles in the Office of the Secretary of Defense from 1950 to 1953, his work as a member of the U.S. Army Science Advisory Panel, the Manhattan Project, missile developments, satellites, the Oppenheimer case, the missile gap, and the Tennessee Valley Authority.
O
465
O'BRIAN, JOHN LORD, 1874-1973
Profession: lawyer
Columbia University, N.Y.
Date of interview: 1952
Transcript: 611 pp., index
O'Brian discusses his career as a lawyer and New York State politician, including a discussion of the Tennessee Valley Authority.
466
O'BRIEN, MORROUGH PARKER, 1902-1988
Profession: engineer, educator
University of California, Berkeley
Interviewer: Marilyn Ziebarth
Dates of interviews: 1986-1989
Transcript: 313 pp.
O'Brien discusses his work as a consulting engineer General Electric, working in the field of jet engines.
470
OLIVER, BERNARD M.
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-97
Interviewer: Arthur L. Norberg
Date of interview: 9 August 1985
Place: Palo Alto, Calif.
Length of interview: 20 min.
Transcript: 58 pp.
Oliver discusses his early life, education, and work experiences at Bell Laboratories and Hewlett-Packard. He began his formal education at the Institute of Technology (Caltech) at the age of fifteen but transferred to Stanford University for his junior and senior years to study electrical engineering with Frederick Terman. There he became associated with William Hewlett and David Packard. After receiving his degree in 1935, he returned to the Caltech for graduate work, from which he joined Bell Laboratories in 1939. His initial assignment there was in the television research group under Axel Hansen, though during World War II he worked at Bell on radar. Later he continued his work in television technology at Bell Laboratories in the 1940s and compares the Labs to Hewlett-Packard, which he joined in 1950 as Director of Research. Many aspects of Hewlett-Packard are discussed such as vertical integration, distribution of projects, company structure, competitors, associations with Stanford University, military contracts, and recruiting issues. Oliver concludes the interview by discussing his associations with William Hewlett, David Packard, and others at the Hewlett-Packard Corporation.
471
Colorado College Archives
OLSON, HOWARD M., b. 1906
Profession: physicist, professor
Colorado College
Interviewer: Judith R. Finley
Date of interview: 25 January 1977
Length of interview: 70 min.
Index
Olsen discusses his studies as an electrical engineering major at Colorado College, Professor Roland Tileston, his career in the physics department at Colorado College from 1925 to 1969, and changes he experienced in teaching physics.
473
O'NEAL, EDWARD A., 1875-1958
Profession: agriculturist
Columbia University, N.Y.
Date of interview: 1952
Transcript, index
O'Neal discusses his involvement in the Tennessee Valley Authority from 1932 to 1952, and Muscle Shoals, Tenn.
474
OPPENHEIM, ADELAIDE
Profession: engineer
Columbia University, N.Y.
Date of interview: 1976
Transcript:50 pp., indexed
Oppenheim discusses the General Electric engineering lab in 1941, her role as a supervisor in the Heat Transfer Laboratory, the Knolls Atomic Power Lab, and electrical engineering education.
475
ORR, JOHN HERBERT
Profession: entrepreneur
Auburn University, Ala.
Interviewer: Carl Voelcker
Date of interview: 1984
Place: Opelika, Ala.
Length of interview: 90 min.
Orr was the founder of Orradio Industries, Opelika, Alabama, a maker of Irish Brand magnetic recording tapes.
P
476
PACKARD, WALTER E., 1884-1966
Profession: consulting agricultural engineer
University of California, Berkeley
Interviewer: Willa K. Baum
Dates of Interviews: 1964, 1966
Transcript: 603 pp., indexed
Packard discusses his efforts to secure municipal ownership of electric power.
477
PAINE, ELLERY B., 1875-1976
University of Illinois
Date of interview: 1967
Paine discusses the Westinghouse Electric Corporation and voltage regulation.
478
PALEY, WILLIAM S., b. 1901
Profession: broadcasting executive
Columbia University, N.Y.
Date of interview: 1960
Transcript: 67 pp., indexed
Paley discusses the use of radio in advertising.
479
PALFREY, JOHN G., b. 1919
Profession: educator
Columbia University, N.Y.
Date of interview: 1958
Transcript, index
This is a joint lecture with teaching consultant Menelaos D. Hassialis on nuclear energy.
482
PARKER, JOHN E.
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn. OH-99
Interviewer: Arthur L. Norberg
Dates of Interviews: 6 May, 13 December 1986
Place: Washington, D.C.
Length of interviews: 4 hrs.
Transcript: 140 pp.
Parker discusses his years in the U.S. Navy, the Porterfield Aviation Co., the start-up of the Northwestern Aeronautical Corp., and the formation of the Engineering Research Associates (ERA). He talks about ERA's entry into the computing field, including contracts in 1948 with the Navy, Air Force, and National Bureau of Standards, and negotiations in 1949 with IBM over a magnetic drum design. He also recalls ERA's sale to Remington Rand in 1950 and his work as VP of sales at Remington Rand and Sperry.
488
PENDERGRASS, JAMES T.
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-93
Interviewer: William Aspray
Date of interview: 28 March 1985
Place: Princeton, N.J.
Length of interview: 120 min.
Transcript: 37 pp.
Pendergrass discusses his work in the Navy and the early use of computers by the Navy. He discusses his decoding and production work during World War II, particularly on the Enigma project in which he used IBM, Kodak, and NCR equipment. After the war Pendergrass remained in the Navy and worked with Rear Admiral Leonard Winger and others in the Naval Security Group. Pendergrass reviews his computer training in 1946 at the University of Pennsylvania Moore School of Electrical Engineering and his subsequent work for the Navy with the Engineering Research Associates, the Institute for Advanced Study, and IBM. He concludes with a discussion of his Navy work on the Atlas project and advances in computer technology in the late 1940s and early 1950s.
489
History of FORTRAN
PESSIN, FLORENCE
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-52
Interviewer: John A.N. Lee
Date of interview: 24 June 1981
Place: Santa Teresa, Calif.
Length of interview: 60 min.
Transcript: 14 pp.
Pessin discusses the programming language FORTRAN and its development at IBM in the 1950s. Topics include the preparation of FORTRAN for the IBM 650, the development of FORTRAN II for the IBM 7070 machine, the attitudes and work environment of the Applied Programming group at IBM in the late 1950s and early 1960s, variations of FORTRAN, and attempts at programming language standardization. Pessin concludes with an assessment of IBM system designer John Backus's programming group at IBM and their contributions to the software industry.
492
PIERCE, JOHN R.
Profession: electrical engineer
IEEE, N.J.
Interviewer: Andrew Goldstein
Dates of interview: August 19, 1992-August 21, 1992
Length of interview: 11 hours
Transcript
Pierce discusses his career at Bell Laboratories where he worked with vacuum tubes, the traveling wave tube, satellites, telephone switching, and music research. He also describes his work at the California Institute of Technology and Stanford University.
495
Waco and McLennan County Project
POAGE, WILLIAM ROBERT
Profession: United States Congressman
Baylor University, Tex.
Interviewers: Thomas L. Charlton, Robert T. Miller, Phillip A Thompson
Dates of interviews: 28 August 1971-22 December 1983
Place: Waco, Texas
Length of interviews: 49 hrs.
Transcript: 1,646 pp., index
In this videotaped interview, Poage discusses his work on the subcommittee on rural electrification, and the conflict between private power companies and rural cooperatives.
496
POMERENE, JAMES
Profession: engineer
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-31
Interviewer: Nancy Stern
Date of interview: 26 September 1980
Length of interview: 120 min.
Transcript: 25 pp.
Pomerene describes his experiences working for the Institute for Advanced Study's computer project as the first engineer to work on the project's electronic components in 1946 and as the project's chief engineer beginning in 1951. He reviews the personal interactions and technical decisions that surrounded the project's development. He discusses the roles of John von Neumann and Herman Goldstine, the personalities of some of the project staff, and the aborted attempt to employ the RCA Selectron electrostatic memory tube.
497
PORTER, ARTHUR
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-85
Interviewer: Christopher Evans
Length of interview: 60 min.
Transcript
Porter discusses his work in Britain and North America with analog computers before and during World War II and with digital computers after the War. As a student in Manchester in 1932, his interest in computing led him to Douglas Hartree, a professor at Manchester who was building a differential analyzer based on Vannevar Bush's machine at MIT. Porter received master's and doctorate degrees under Hartree and was awarded a Commonwealth Fund Fellowship in 1937 to study at MIT for a year. His task there involved the problem of feeding information on punched paper tape into the Rockefeller Differential Analyzer. He describes Bush as a dynamic and attractive leader. On his return to Britain, Porter worked on fire-control problems for the Admiralty Research Laboratories, and in 1940 he joined the Operations Research Group. Porter concludes with highlights from his postwar career. In 1945 he went to the U.S. to research a report on industrial automation. He moved to Toronto in 1949 to help build a modular, solid state, digital computer for the Ferranti research division, and in 1955 he helped to establish an analog computing laboratory at Imperial College, London. The copyright and originals for this interview are held by the Science Museum of London.
498
Texas Engineering Experiment Station
PORTER, W. ARTHUR
Profession: scientist, Director of the Texas Engineering Experiment Station
Texas A&M
Interviewer: 8 June 1984
Transcript
Porter discusses the Texas Engineering Experiment Station (TEES), which he has directed since 1980. His involvement with TEES began in 1968 when he was a professor, though in the 1970s he was the director of the Institute for Solid State Electronics. Porter also discusses his future goals for TEES.
501
PRENDERGAST, WILLIAM A., 1867-1954
Profession: banker, politician
Columbia University, N.Y.
Date of interview: 1951
Transcript: 995 pp., indexed
Prendergast primarily discusses the political history of New York City; however, he also mentions the subway system opened in 1913.
502
PURCELL, EDWARD M.
MIT, Mass.
Transcript
Purcell worked at the MIT Radiation Laboratory. No specific information about the interview was available.
505
QUARLES, ELLA MAE L. AND LAWRENCE R.
Profession: electrical engineers
University of Virginia
Interviewers: Charles E. Moran, Jr., Evelyn Dollens Wyllie
Date of interview: 9 May 1977
Place: University of Virginia (Charlottesville, Va.)
Length of interview: 2 tapes
Index
The Quarles discuss their careers, concentrating on the University of Virginia School of Engineering. Topics include their education (with Lawrence's impressions of his college instructors and Ella May's difficulties being a female engineering student), the impact of World War II on engineering (particularly the impact of radar on electrical engineering), the relationship between engineering and physics, and post-war engineering programs for female students.
R
506
RABINOWITZ, VICTOR, b. 1911
Profession: lawyer
Columbia University, N.Y.
Transcript, index
Rabinowitz discusses the American Communications Association vs. Douds, Steve Nelson case.
509
RAJCHMAN, JAN
IEEE, N.J.
Date of interview: 27 May 1971
Rajchman, a computer pioneer at RCA, discusses computer memory and storage.
512
Frederick E. Terman Associates Oral History Project
RAMBO, WILLIAM R.
Profession: professor of electrical engineering
IEEE, N.J.
Interviewer: A. Michael McMahon
Date of interview: 27 November 1981
Place: Stanford, Calif.
Length of interview: 90 min.
Index
Rambo discusses his career. After mentioning his work in radio broadcasting, he describes his duties at Harvard University's Radio Research Laboratory from 1942 to 1946. He also talks about his employment at the Airborne Instruments Laboratory from 1946 to 1950 in New York, which was a laboratory for the Office of Scientific Research and Development during World War II and later was an independent facility supported by the Office of Naval Research, American Airlines, and the Air Transport Association. He then discusses his career at Stanford University from 1951 to 1976. Topics include the Office of Naval Research, Stanford's laboratories, transistors, vacuum tube and solid state electronics, MIT's Whirlwind computer, Texas Instruments, and electrical engineering education. People he mentions include Karl Spangenberg, Oswald Villard, Jr., Lester Field, Joseph Petitt, and Frederick Terman.
513
Entrepreneurs of the West
RAMO, SIMON
University of California, Los Angeles
Transcript, index
Ramo discusses TRW, Incorporated.
514
RAMSEY, NORMAN, b. 1915
Profession: physicist
Columbia University, N.Y.
Date of interview: 1960
Transcript: 358 pp., indexed
Norman discuses research with I. I. Rabi, Enrico Fermi, the National Defense Research Committee, the Radiation Laboratory at MIT, radar, the Manhattan Project, possible atomic bomb targets, Trinity Test, Tinian, Brookhaven National Laboratory, the Robert Oppenheimer security case, Ramsey's role as Science Advisor of NATO, General Leslie Groves, Atomic Energy Commission chairman Lewis L. Strauss, and physicist Edward Teller.
515
Cavity Magnetron and Radar Development
RANDALL, JOHN T.
University of California, Berkeley
Interviewer: Arthur L. Norberg
Date of interview: 1977
Transcript
Randall discusses research at Birmingham University in England that led to the development of a working cavity magnetron. He also discusses related work in the U.S., including the invention of the Klystron and production of the magnetron during World War II.
516
RANKINE, JOHN
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-32
Interviewer: George Green
Date of interview: 11 September 1980
Place: Valhalla, N. Y.
Length of interview: 3 hrs., 15 min.
Transcript: 26 pp.
Rankine discusses changes in digital computing from card-programmed calculators to microprocessors and supercomputers. He explains how the move from electro-mechanical to vacuum tube to solid state technology improved speed and decreased size, and he describes the accompanying development of software. He reviews IBM's role in the transition of the computer from a scientific to a commercial tool. He also assesses the possibilities of computing to improve various social conditions, as well as the danger of its threat to privacy, which he believes can be easily minimized.
517
REGULATORY AGENCIES PANEL
Kennedy Library, Mass.
Transcript: 187 pp.
On participant in this panel discussion is Joseph Swindler, a former chairman of the Federal Power Commission. No specific information about the interview was available.
519
REIS, CLAIRE, 1888-1978
Profession: composer
Columbia University, N.Y.
Date of interview: 1977
Transcript: 320 pp., indexed
Reis discusses electronic concerts and the use of radio and film.
520
RENCH, CARL
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-72
Interviewer: William Aspray
Date of interview: 18 April 1984
Place: Dayton, Ohio.
Length of interview: 4 hrs.
Transcript: 92 pp.
Rench, a National Cash Register (NCR) employee since 1946, surveys the company's growth from a manufacturer of cash registers to one of the largest suppliers of business computers. He begins with NCR's 1946 experiments with vacuum tube arithmetic devices, work during the Korean War on the A-1-A bombing navigational system, and the acquisition in 1952 of the Computer Research Corporation. He points to Joseph Desch's role in moving NCR into electronics. Rench highlights the major products of the 1950s, including the Post-Tronic machine for reading magnetic strips on ledger cards and doing financial transactions and the Magnetic Ink Character Recognition device. He mentions a 1959 joint venture with General Electric to produce one of the first all-transistorized business computers. He then explains how, in the 1960s, NCR returned to its earlier specialty in peripheral devices and contrasts this approach with IBM's concentration on the sale of systems. Rench focuses on the company in the early 1970s as a major producer of metal oxide semiconductor chips and as a multinational corporation. He discusses at length NCR president William Anderson's decentralization of the company, the resistance among Dayton employees, and the advantages of this policy to the company's livelihood.
524
RICHARDSON, HERVEY
University of Minnesota
Interviewer: Ed Nelson
Date of interview: 7 December 1977
Length of interview: 70 min.
Transcript
Richardson presents his views favoring the planned power line and reflects on the controversy over the line. He begins with discussion of his involvement with cooperatives (telephone, Rural Electrification Administration) in their early stages. He served for several years on the Agrilite Electric Board in Benson, Minn., and discusses the cooperative system and decision-making process. At one time Richardson worked to organize the REA system in Minnesota and was an easement agent for the telephone company. He favors the building of the power line as a way to meet growing energy needs, and feels that the farmers who were opposed to it were misinformed about the project.
525
RICHARDSON, LEWIS J., b. 1889
E. Washington University, Wash.
Interviewer: Charles Dronen
Length of interview: 2 tapes
Richardson was one of the founders of the Chelan County Public Utility District (PUD) in Washington state and was elected a PUD commissioner in 1942. About that time, the Puget Sound Power and Light Co. was building Rock Island Dam on the Columbia River, just southeast of the Wenatchee River. Lack of funds halted the project, so the Chelan County PUD purchased it and completed the project. Richardson was also instrumental in the planning for the Rocky Reach Dam on the Columbia river just north of the Wenatchee, where only private funds were used to finance it. Seven generators were installed, with pits for four more if needed. The additional generators were installed a few years later, and Chelan County's cheap electrical power was an important consideration in Alcoa's decision to locate there.
526
RICKOVER, HYMAN
Profession: Vice Admiral, U.S. Navy
Kennedy Library, Mass.
Transcript
Rickover discusses his work as Chief of the Bureau for Nuclear Propulsion in the Bureau of Ships and as Chief of the Naval Reactors Branch of the Atomic Energy Commission.
529
ROBERTS, BESSIE D. AND JEAN M.
University of Virginia
Interviewer: Charles E. Moran, Jr.
Date of interview: 3 November 1976
Place: Charlottesville, Va.
Index
Bessie and Jean Roberts recount their careers. Topics include Jean's education (particularly in the General Electric-sponsored graduate co-op program at MIT during the 1920s), his various teaching positions from 1928 to 1942, his consulting work in research and development in New York and New Jersey from 1942 to 1952, and his experiences as a professor of electrical engineering at the University of Virginia from 1952 to 1973.
531
ROBINSON, SAMUEL M., 1882-1972
Profession: U.S. Navy officer
Columbia University, N.Y.
Date of interview: 1963
Transcript, index
Robinson discusses naval engineering in relation to electric ship propulsion, the Puget Sound Navy Yard from 1927 to 1931, and his work as Chief of the Bureau of Engineering in 1931.
534
ROSS, DOUGLAS T.
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-65
Interviewer: William Aspray
Date of interview: 21 February 1984
Place: Waltham, Mass.
Length of interview: 3 hrs.
Transcript: 75 pp.
Ross, the founder of SofTech Corporation, recounts some of his early experiences working on MIT's Whirlwind computer in the 1950s. He explains how a summer job at MIT's Servomechanisms Laboratory operating a Marchant calculator led him to use the Whirlwind for greater computing power--and to seventeen years in the MIT computer labs. Ross reports on his first use of Whirlwind for airborne fire control problems. Soon after that the Whirlwind was used for the Cape Cod early warning system, a precursor to the SAGE Air Defense System. Ross describes improvements made to Whirlwind, including the introduction of the first light pen and the replacement of the paper tape reader with a photoelectric tape reader. Ross also discusses some of the programs he wrote or used on Whirlwind, such as the Initial Data Processing Program (IDPP), the Servo Lab Utility Program, and the Mistake Diagnosis Routine. He describes the IDPP as particularly interesting because it involved pattern recognition and was thus an early example of artificial intelligence research.
535
University of Vermont Institutional History
ROTH, WILFRED, b. 1922
Profession: electrical engineering professor
University of Vermont
Interviewer: T.D.S. Bassett
Date of interview: 26 July 1976
Transcript: 21 pp.
Topics discussed by Roth include the University of Vermont Colleges of Engineering, Mathematics, and Business Administration, University presidents Edward C. Andrews, Jr. and Lattier F. Coor, and the role of the faculty in the University.
538
RUBENS, SIDNEY M.
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-100
Interviewer: Arthur L. Norberg
Dates of Interviews: 6, 15 January 1986
Place: Minneapolis, Minn.
Length of interviews: 5 hrs.
Transcript: 159 pp.
In the first part of this interview Rubens discusses his career through his employment with the Engineering Research Associates (ERA). He reviews his physics education at the University of Washington, his work in ionization techniques, and his teaching position at UCLA beginning in 1937. In 1940 he joined the Naval Ordnance Laboratory (NOL), where he developed magnetic mine detection devices. There he met mathematician Howard Engstrom, Robert Gutterman, Howard Daniels, and NOL naval officer William Norris. In 1945, under the sponsorship of the Office of Naval Research, this group formed ERA to continue their wartime work. Rubens joined them in 1946. He first worked on magnetic tape equipment, some of which was captured from German laboratories during the war. He also discusses his contacts with the University of Minnesota computer center. In the second part of the interview, Rubens returns to the subject of ERA, tracing it from its formation through the mid-1950s. He discusses work in magnetic recording technology from 1946 to 1949, including Arnold Cohen's B3001 project, Project Boom, and the non-return-to-zero technique that Rubens developed with mathematicians C.B. Tompkins. Rubens mentions Athena, an early transistorized computer designed by Seymour Cray. Rubens then discusses the acquisition of ERA by Remington Rand and relations of ERA with the Remington Rand management in New York and the company's other computer operations in Norwalk, Connecticut and Philadelphia. He comments at length on the role of J. Presper Eckert in the acquisition of ERA and on-going relations among Remington Rand's various computer operations.
540
IEEE Merger History Project
RYDER, JOHN D.
IEEE, N.J.
Interviewer: George Sell
Dates of Interviews: 22-23 August 1979
Ryder discusses the merger of the American Institute of Electrical Engineers and the Institute of Radio Engineers into the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers.
S
546
SCHALLER, WILLIAM F., 1889-1975
Date of interview: 1967
University of Illinois
Schaller discusses electrical engineering education, Ernest J. Berg, and Charles P. Steinmetz.
547
SCHNEIDAU, JOHN D., 1887-1980
Friends of the Cabildo, La.
Interviewer: Dorothy G. Schlesinger
Date of interview: 31 January 1977
Length of interview: 60 min.
Transcript
Schneidau describes his career at the telephone company and the difficulty with laying telephone lines in rural areas.
551
SCHWARZSCHILD, MARTIN
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-124
Interviewer: William Aspray
Date of interview: 18 November 1986
Place: Princeton, N.J.
Length of interview: 60 min.
Transcript: 25 pp.
Schwarzschild describes the early training in automatic computing he received when he assumed the position of Director of the Watson Scientific Computation Laboratory at Columbia University upon the resignation of Wallace Eckert. He describes the computation research he did there on stellar models using advanced IBM tabulating equipment. He discusses his experience during World War II at the Aberdeen Proving Grounds working on bomb blasts. He then describes discussions among engineer Robert H. Kent, mathematician Louis Dederick, IBM personnel, John von Neumann, and other scientific consultants on the design of new automatic calculating equipment for the laboratories. Schwarzschild answers questions about the relationship between Kent and von Neumann. Schwarzschild concludes the interview with a discussion of his work during the 1950s on stellar interiors using the Institute for Advanced Study computer. He describes his experiences trying to use the computer for large scientific projects and recalls the reception of his computational research by professional astronomy journals.
552
SCHWAN, HERMAN
Profession: electrical engineer
IEEE, N.J.
Interviewer: Frederik Nebeker
Dates of interviews: June 26, 1992-July 1, 1992
Length of interviews: 10 hours
Transcript: 150 pp.
Schwan describes his upbringing and education in Germany and the difficulties he encountered there during World War II. He tells of his emigration to the United States after the war and of his establishment of a program in biomedical engineering at the University of Pennsylvania.
555
SEIGENTHALER, JOHN L., b. 1927
Profession: newspaper editor
Columbia University, N.Y.
Date of interview: 1974
Transcript: 121 pp., index
Seigenthaler mainly discusses his career as an investigative reporter for the Tennessean, and talks about the Tennessean's attitudes toward the Tennessee Valley Authority.
556
SERRELL, ROBERT
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-33
Interviewer: Gary D. Saretzky
Date of interview: 5 April 1982
Place: Princeton, N.J.
Transcript
Serrell discusses the system he developed for the Educational Testing Service (ETS) in the late 1950s to process multiple choice tests (SCRIBE). He thoroughly reviews the technical specifications, operation, capabilities, and modifications in the SCRIBE optical scanner. He also compares his work on SCRIBE with his work on other projects. These include the design of facsimile machinery to transmit photographs by radio at General Electric in the late 1920s, Navy contract work on computers at GE in the 1930s, and television development at RCA and CBS in the 1930s. He also describes his work on the Teaching Machine, which was built for ETS in the 1960s, and speculates on possible future applications of technology to education.
557
SHARP, DUDLEY C., b. 1905
Profession: business executive
Columbia University, N.Y.
Interviewer: John Luter
Date of interview: 1969
Transcript: 68 pp.
Sharp discusses the missile gap, reorganization of the Department of Defense, missiles and satellites, and NASA.
558
SHIELDS, GARRY, b. 1899
Profession: motion picture producer
Oregon Historical Society
Interviewer: Rich Harmon
Dates of Interviews: 8, 17 August 1984
Length of interviews: 2 hrs., 45 min.
Transcript
Shields discusses the technology of early film-making, the introduction of sound, and the use of Cooper-Hewitt mercury vapor lighting.
565
SIRI, WILLIAM E., b. 1919
Profession: scientist, mountaineer
University of California, Berkeley
Interviewer: Ann Lage
Dates of Interviews: 1975-77
Transcript: 296 pp.
Siri discusses his scientific career at the Donner Laboratory (University of California at Berkeley), the formulation of energy policy the growth of opposition to nuclear power, and scientific and mountaineering expeditions.
566
Religion and Culture Project
SLATER, NORVELL
Profession: radio show producer/businessman
Baylor University, Tex.
Interviewer: Thomas L. Charlton
Dates of interviews: 4 November-29 November 1982
Place: Waco, Texas
Length of interviews: 4 hrs.
Transcript: 117 pp.
Slater was the founder, producer and host of "Hymns We Love," a radio show.
567
SLUTZ, RALPH
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-86
Interviewer: Christopher Evans
Length of interview: 90 min.
Transcript
Slutz discusses his involvement with the Institute for Advanced Study (IAS) and Standards Eastern Automatic Computer (SEAC) computer projects. He begins with his electrical engineering education at MIT and his interest in differential analyzers. After completing his Ph.D. at Princeton University in 1946, he joined the IAS computer project. Slutz describes the factors that led to the decision to use Williams electrostatic tube rather than an RCA Selectron tube for the IAS computer's main memory. In 1948, Slutz left IAS to work in Samuel Alexander's computing group at the National Bureau of Standards. He describes the technical features of the SEAC computer built at NBS and the experiments made there with vacuum tubes and diodes to improve reliability. He compares the SEAC to the SWAC, a computer built by NBS at UCLA. He also mentions experiments with magnetic wire and magnetic tape storage.
568
Mississippi Oral History Program
SMITH, FRANK
Profession: U.S. Congressman
University of S. Mississippi
Interviewer: Orley B. Caudill
Date of interview: 2 July 1976
Length of interview: 4 hrs. 30 min.
Transcript: 87 pp.
Smith discusses the Tennessee Valley Authority and the role of its Director.
572
SMITH, R. BLAIR
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-34
Interviewer: Robina Mapstone
Date of interview: May 1980
Length of interview: 3 hrs.
Transcript: 69 pp.
Smith discusses his career at IBM in the 1940s and 1950s. He also reviews his educational background and explains how he became involved in data processing at Boeing Aircraft and the California Shipbuilding Corporation before and during World War II. In early 1945 Smith worked with Western Airlines and later Flying Tigers as manager of tabulating, an experience he acknowledges as helpful in his later work at IBM on the SABRE passenger reservations project for American Airlines. In 1950 Smith joined IBM as an assistant salesman in southern California. He discusses his relationship with his customers: Lockheed, Rand, and Douglas, among others. He also discusses the formation of the Digital Computing Association in 1952, and in this context he discusses at length IBM's marketing operations and organizational structure at the regional (California) level. In 1953 he moved to corporate headquarters, where he held various positions mostly associated with the SABRE project. He describes this project from its conception in 1953 to its completion in 1961. He also reviews his involvement in the IBM anti-trust suit, and mentions various products with which he was associated, including the X795 (Wooden Wheel), 601, 601A, 405, 700, 7000, and 360 computers.
575
SOLOMON, GUS, b. 1906
Profession: Federal District Court judge
Oregon Historical Society
Interviewer: Rick Harmon
Dates of Interviews: 3 July-18 October 1984
Length of interviews: 14 hrs.
Transcript
Solomon discusses the Bonneville Power Administration, public utilities during the 1930s and 1940s, and rural electrification.
576
Motion Pictures and Television
SORRELL, HERBERT KNOTT
University of California, Los Angeles
Transcript, index
Sorrell talks about the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees and the Moving Picture Machine Operators of the United States and Canada.
578
SOULE, A. BRADLEY, b. 1903
Profession: radiologist
University of Vermont
Interviewers: Samuel B. Hand, Arthur S. Kunin
Date of interview: 17 July 1972
Transcript: 65 pp.
Soule, a radiologist in the Department of Radiology at the University of Vermont College of Medicine, discusses his position as head of the Radiology Department and the recruitment of students and radiologists.
579
SPARKS, HALE
Profession: broadcaster
University of California, Los Angeles
Interviewer: James V. Mink
Date of interview: 1973
Transcript: 58 pp.
Hale was involved in the inauguration of radio service at UCLA in the 1930s. He held several programming positions there during the 1930s, and during World War II worked with the office of war information.
580
SPEDDING, FRANK H., 1902-1985
Iowa State University
Interviewer: Dorothy Kehlenbeck
Date of interview: 5 July 1961
Transcript
Spedding discusses the development of the Ames Research Laboratory and the role of Iowa State University in the Manhattan Project.
581
Lincoln Ward Collection
SPOEHEL, JERRI
Profession: broadcasting employee, Community Relations Director, KCSN radio station
California State, Northridge
Interviewer: Joseph Staller
Date of interview: 7 February 1977
Transcript
This is a joint interview between Spoehel and Ferd Mendenhall. They discuss radio station KCSN and journalism. This interview is part of a series of 30-minute radio programs entitled "Our Business is Your Business," hosted by Lincoln Ward (Pacific Telephone Co.) and Joseph Staller (Southern California Gas Co.). Running from 1976 to 1977, the programs consisted of weekly interviews with business leaders of the San Fernando Valley.
582
Lincoln Ward Collection
STADA, BOB
Profession: union leader
California State, Northridge
Interviewer: Lincoln Ward, Joseph Staller
Date of interview: 1977
Transcript
Stada is the President of local 11503 of the Communications Workers of America (CWA). He discusses the CWA and labor unions. This interview is part of a series of 30-minute radio programs entitled "Our Business is Your Business," hosted by Lincoln Ward (Pacific Telephone Co.) and Joseph Staller (Southern California Gas Co.). Running from 1976 to 1977, the programs consisted of weekly interviews with business leaders of the San Fernando Valley.
583
Lincoln Ward Collection
STALLER, JOSEPH
California State, Northridge
Interviewers: Lincoln Ward, Mark Alyn
Dates of Interviews: June-December 1975
Transcript
A series of interviews with Staller and Lincoln Ward was conducted covering the topics of natural gas, telephone operations, utility companies, career opportunities in utility companies, solar energy, Israeli telephone service and solar energy, the Atlantic Richfield Company, phone rates, directory assistance, telephone frauds, energy conservation, telephone repair, Aliso Canyon, Pacific Telephone practices and profits, phone installation costs, public utilities, energy sources, and the Alaska pipeline. These interviews comprised a series of fourteen 30 minute radio programs entitled "This Afternoon." The programs were broadcast from 1975 to 1976 and were hosted by Mark Alyn of radio station KCSN.
584
STANTON, FRANK, b. 1908
Profession: broadcasting executive
Columbia University, N.Y.
Date of interview: 1978
Transcript: 330 pp., indexed
Stanton discusses public television, the Office of Radio Research, and psychological research among radio audiences.
585
STEIN, MARVIN
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-90
Interviewer: William Aspray
Dates of Interviews: 29 Oct., 7 Nov. 1984
Place: Minneapolis, Minn.
Length of interviews: 5 hrs.
Transcript: 71 pp.
Stein discusses his early career and the formation of the University of Minnesota's computing facilities. While working at Convair, Incorporated he familiarized himself with the ERA 1103 computer, which was purchased from the Engineering Research Associates (ERA). He also made frequent consultation visits to ERA headquarters in Minnesota. In the second part of the interview, Stein discusses the formation of the University of Minnesota's computer science program.
586
STIMSON, HENRY L., 1867-1950
Profession: U.S. Secretary of State, and War
Columbia University, N.Y.
Date of interview: 1949
Transcript: 23 pp., indexed
Stimson discusses the atomic bomb and Franklin D. Roosevelt's relations with the press.
589
STRAUSS, ANNA L., b. 1899
Profession: civic leader
Columbia University, N.Y.
Date of interview: 1972
Transcript: 571 pp., indexed
Strauss discusses a wide variety of topics, including women's rights, the United Nations, and New York City politics. She also addresses atomic energy control and mentions the New York State League of Women Voters' attitudes toward the Tennessee Valley Authority.
590
STRAUSS, LEWIS L., 1896-1974
Profession: government official, financier
Truman Library, Mo.
Transcript
Strauss discusses his work as a member of the Atomic Energy Commission (AEC) from 1946 to 1950, and as AEC Chairman from 1953 to 1958.
594
STROGANOFF-SCHERBATOFF, GEORGE, 1898-1976
Profession: naval officer
Columbia University, N.Y.
Date of interview: 1974
Transcript: 252 pp., indexed
Stroganoff-Scherbatoff discusses Russian radio communications in 1916 and 1917.
595
Frederick E. Terman Associates Oral History Project.
SUITS, CHAUNCEY GUY
Profession: engineer, Director of Research, General Electric Co.
IEEE, N.J.
Interviewer: A. Michael McMahon
Date of interview: 5 November 1984
Place: Pilot Knob, N.Y.
Length of interview: 90 min.
Index
After briefly discussing his education, Suits talks about his research career at the General Electric (GE) Research Laboratory from 1930 to 1942. Topics include electronic circuitry, electric caves, and high-temperature plasma phenomena. People he mentions include Willis Whitney, William Coolidge, Gerard Swope, Irving Langmuir, and Albert Hull. Suits also recounts the wartime activities of Division 15 of the National Defense Research Council (NDRC), which he headed from 1942 to 1946. Topics include radar countermeasures, the Radio Research Laboratory, the NDRC Microwave Committee, GE, Harvard University, the Airborne Instruments Laboratory, and Bell Telephone Laboratories. People he talks about include Lee DuBridge, Luis Alvarez, Vannevar Bush, James Conant, William Claflin, K.C. Black, John Dyer, Frank Lewis, Donald Sinclair, Oswald Villard, and Frederick Terman. During the last half of the interview Suits talks about his return to GE as the President and Director of Research, GE President Charles Wilson, and Frederick Terman.
596
Electrical Workers Unions
SUMMERS, JOHN
Profession: union official
Pennsylvania State
Interviewer: Karen Budd
Dates of Interviews: 7 Oct. 1971, 6 Mar. 1972
Place: Philadelphia, Pa.
Transcript: 52 pp.
Summers covers his civil rights activities in the Philadelphia area, particularly in the United Steelworkers of America and the International Union of Electrical Workers. Summers also describes his activities with the CIO Political Action Committee and later with the Committee on Political Education. He also describes his associations with leading civil rights leaders, such as Thurgood Marshall and J. Philip Randolph.
597
SVOBODA, ANTONIN
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-35
Interviewer: Robina Mapstone
Date of interview: 15 November 1979
Length of interview: 7 hrs., 30 min.
Transcript: 144 pp.
Svoboda describes his research on computing in Czechoslovakia, France, and the U.S. He begins by discussing his early career, including his electrical engineering education in Prague, the differential analyzer he built for the French during World War II for fire control, and his work in New York for the ABAX Corporation on Bofors anti-aircraft guns. He explains how MIT became interested in his work on linkage computers for aiming guns automatically and describes the two-part linkage computer system he built for them, the OMAR and Mark 56. On his return to Czechoslovakia in 1948, the Research Institute of Mathematics asked Svoboda to develop computing machines and funded his visits to major digital computer projects. He recounts visits to Harvard, the Institute for Advanced Study, and the University of Pennsylvania. In 1951 he began work on and Czechoslovakia's first (electro-mechanical) digital computer, the SAPO, which was successfully completed despite interference from the Communist government. He also mentions the EPOS computer he built in Czechoslovakia in the early 1960s. Svoboda then describes his escape to the U.S. in 1964 and his appointment at UCLA. He concludes by assessing his greatest contributions, including the use of graphical and mechanical means to teach logical design, the solution of multiple output optimization, and the Boolean analyzer.
598
Mississippi Oral History Program
SWAN, JIMMY
Profession: radio personality, political figure
University of S. Mississippi
Interviewer: Michael Garvey
Date of interview: 23 March 1977
Length of interview: 6 hrs.
Transcript: 112 pp.
This is a biographical sketch of Swan's life, including a discussion of his experiences starting up a radio station.
601
SWOPE, GERARD, 1872-1957
Profession: electrical engineer
Columbia University, N.Y.
Date of interview: 1955
Transcript: 116 pp., indexed
Among the topics Swope discusses are his work for Western Electric and International General Electric.
T
603
Texas Centennial Project
TATUM, C. A., JR.
Baylor University, Tex.
Interviewer: Kenneth B. Ragsdale
Date of interview: 25 July 1978
Place: Dallas, Tex.
Length of interview: 90 min.
Transcript
Tatum was Chairman of the board of the Texas Utilities Commission at the time of the interview. No specific information about the interview was available.
605
TAYLOR, TELFORD, b. 1908
Profession: lawyer
Columbia University, N.Y.
Date of interview: 1956
Transcript: 501 pp., indexed
Taylor discusses his work with the FCC from 1940 to 1942.
606
TEAL, GORDON
Profession: materials scientist
IEEE, N.J.
Interviewer: Andrew Goldstein
Dates of interviews: December 17, 1991-December 20, 1991
Length of interviews: 11 hours
Transcript: 214 pp.
Teal discusses his youth in Dallas; his education in chemistry at Baylor University and Brown University; and his career at Bell Laboratories, Texas Instruments, and the National Bureau of Standards. He mentions his work on television tubes, transistors, and as director of research at Texas Instruments. He also discusses his involvement with the IEEE.
607
IEEE Merger History Project
TEARE, BENJAMIN, R.
IEEE, N.J.
Interviewer: George Sell
Date of interview: 28 December 1979
Teare discusses the merger of the American Institute of Electrical Engineers and the Institute of Radio Engineers into the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers.
612
TERMAN, FREDERICK E., 1900-1982
Profession: Electrical engineer, educator
University of California, Berkeley
Interviewer: Arthur L. Norberg
Dates of Interviews: 1974, 1975, 1978
Transcript
Terman discusses the composition and educational goals of the electrical engineering department at Stanford University during the 1920s and 1930s, as well as his involvement with early San Francisco Peninsula radio pioneers. He goes on to address such topics as research on vacuum tube circuits, Klystron development, the directorship of the Harvard University Radio Research Laboratory during World War II, and his opinions on the best type of training for engineers.
615
THELEN, MAX, 1880-1972
Profession: railroad commissioner, attorney
University of California, Berkeley
Interviewer: Willa K. Baum
Date of interview: 1961
Transcript
Thelen discusses his work while on the California State Railroad Commission from 1911 to 1918. In addition to describing the day-to-day operations of the Commission, Thelen discusses the Public Utilities Act of 1911.
616
THOMPSON, JAMES V., b. 1915
Profession: engineer
University of California, Berkeley
Interviewer: Eleanor Swent
Dates of interviews: 1990-1991
Transcript, 127 pp.
Thompson, a mining engineer and metallurgist, discusses research that he conducted on zinc batteries for electric vehicles.
617
THOMPSON, PHILIP
Profession: meteorologist
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-125
Interviewer: William Aspray
Date of interview: 5 December 1986
Place: Boulder, Colo.
Length of interview: 120 min.
Transcript: 39 pp.
Thompson describes his career in numerical meteorology. He discusses attitudes of the early 1940s, including those of meteorologists Victor Starr and Jule Charney, toward the work of British physicist L. F. Richardson and the possibilities of predicting the weather numerically. He describes the Numerical Meteorology Project at the Institute for Advanced Study where he worked from 1946 to 1947 and the roles of Charney and John von Neumann in that project. Thompson recounts the activities of the meteorology research group he organized at the Air Force Cambridge Research Laboratory and the calculations they did in the early 1950s on electro-mechanical calculators and on an IBM 701. Thompson also describes the establishment of the Joint Numerical Weather Prediction Unit in Washington, and his work there from its founding in 1954 until 1958. He then discusses the U.S. Air Force research center he established in Sweden in association with the work being conducted at the Institute of Meteorology at the University of Stockholm and recalls leaving Stockholm in 1960 to become associate director of the National Center for Atmospheric Research. He concludes with some general comments about recent research in numerical meteorology and the revolutionary impact of the computer on meteorology.
619
THOMSON, VIRGIL, b. 1896
Profession: composer, music critic
Columbia University, N.Y.
Transcript
In addition to discussing musical education, performance, and composition, Thomson addresses the limitations of electronic music.
622
TINNEY, C. W., b. 1900
Profession: salesman
University of North Texas
Interviewer: Floyd Jenkins
Date of interview: 30 May 1978
Transcript: 61 pp.
Tinney discusses electrical appliances and work in the development of the electric furnace. He also describes the founding of Electric Products, Incorporated, its growth, expansion, and eventual sellout to Square D Electric.
624
TOMASH, ERWIN
Profession: electrical Engineer, corporate executive
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-60
Interviewer: Arthur L. Norberg
Date of interview: 15 May 1983
Place: Los Angeles, Calif.
Length of interview: 3 hrs.
Transcript: 81 pp.
Tomash discusses his career, including his employment at Engineering Research Associates (ERA) and the founding of the Data Products Corporation He begins by discussing his electrical engineering education at the University of Minnesota in the early 1940s and his subsequent entry into the U.S. Army Signal Corps as a radar specialist. He recounts his initial task at ERA, conducting research for High Speed Computing Devices. He then surveys ERA's work with the predecessors of the National Security Agency and other government offices and the company's expansion and move to the forefront of computer technology in the early 1950s. Tomash describes changes in the company and his move into management when the company was sold to Remington Rand in 1953. He recalls his departure in 1956 from Remington Rand to Telemeter Magnetics, where he soon became president. This company manufactured core memory systems and one of the first successful transistor memory systems. Tomash explains how he used the organization he and others had assembled from Telemeter Magnetics to found the Data Products Corporation in 1962.
626
TOWNES, CHARLES
Profession: Physicist
IEEE, N.J.
Interviewer: Frederik Nebeker
Dates of interview: Sept 14, 1992-Sept 15, 1992
Length of interview: 6 hours
Transcript
Townes discusses his work at Bell Laboratories on radar bombing systems and microwave spectroscopy and the relationship between physics and electrical engineering.
628
TRAUB, JOSEPH F.
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-70
Interviewer: William Aspray
Date of interview: 5 April 1984
Place: New York, N. Y.
Length of interview: 120 min.
Transcript: 45 pp.
Although Traub mentions his work at Bell Laboratories, the bulk of the interview concerns his graduate education at Columbia University and his work at the Watson Scientific Computing Laboratory. After discussing family and early education history, he discusses his graduate education at Columbia. In 1955 he became involved with computing at the Watson Computing Laboratory, at which he discusses the work environment during the mid-1950s and his own research on an IBM 650 after he became a Watson Fellow in 1957. Some Columbia faculty and Watson Lab personnel are mentioned, particularly Wallace Eckert and L. H. Thomas. Traub concludes the interview by discussing his work on optimal iteration theory and describing the environment at Bell Laboratories, where he started working in 1959.
629
TRAUB, JOSEPH F.
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-89
Interviewer: William Aspray
Date of interview: 12 October 1984
Place: New York, N. Y.
Length of interview: 120 min.
Transcript: 54 pp.
Traub discusses his academic contributions to computer science and mathematics at Bell Laboratories, Carnegie Mellon University, and Columbia University. He describes his work on iterative methods and the publication of his 1964 book, Iterative Methods for the Solution of Equations. He also describes his role in the development of computational complexity, out of an attempt beginning in the mid-1960s to construct a theory of operational algorithms for the solution of linear systems and polynomials.
630
TRAUB, JOSEPH F.
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-94
Interviewer: William Aspray
Date of interview: 29 March 1985
Place: New York, N. Y.
Length of interview: 120 min.
Transcript: 50 pp.
Traub discusses institutions in computing for the length of the interview. He begins by describing why computer science has developed as a discipline at some institutions but not others. Institutions that are highlighted include Stanford, Berkeley, the University of Pennsylvania, MIT, and Carnegie Mellon. He also discusses his experiences as chairman of the computer science departments at Carnegie Mellon and Columbia Universities. Other topics include industrial and government funding of computer science departments (in particular the role of the Advanced Research Projects Agency of the Defense Department), the relationships between academic centers (such as MIT, Stanford, Columbia, and Carnegie-Mellon), and the importance of educational institutions to regional centers of industrial computing. At the end of the interview Traub discusses his experiences at the Bell and Watson Laboratories.
631
TRAVIS, IRVEN
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-36
Interviewer: Nancy Stern
Date of interview: 21 October 1977
Place: Paoli, Pa.
Transcript: 45 pp.
Travis gives his recollections of the ENIAC project at the University of Pennsylvania, though he begins by describing his employment at RCA before he moved to the University of Pennsylvania Moore School of Electrical Engineering in 1931. He describes his early work in analog computing, which includes hearing of Vannevar Bush's differential analyzer at MIT and "borrowing" Bush's draftsman to build a differential analyzer at the Moore School for the Aberdeen Proving Ground. He also discusses the direction of anti-aircraft fire control research at the Bureau of Ordnance and his position on a National Defense Research Council task force on fire control at the Moore School as a naval officer during World War II. He then turns to his interest in digital computing, beginning with visits from John Mauchly at Ursinus College. Travis describes the ENIAC project, the technical and leadership abilities of chief engineer J. Presper Eckert, working relations between Mauchly and Eckert, the dispute over patent rights, and the resignations of Eckert and Mauchly from the University of Pennsylvania.
634
TUCKER, ALBERT
Princeton University, N.J.
Interviewer: Evar Nering
Date of interview: March 1977
Place: Princeton, N.J.
Transcript: 15 pp.
Tucker describes his wartime work as Associate Director of the Fire Control Research Project and his wartime work directing the mathematics portion of the Army Specialized Training Program at Princeton. He also describes his research in non-linear programming, game theory, and linear programming in the late 1940s and early 1950s.
635
TUKEY, JOHN
Princeton University, N.J.
Interviewers: William Aspray, Albert Tucker
Date of interview: 11 April 1984
Place: Princeton, N.J.
Transcript: 18 pp.
Tukey discusses his wartime work on the Fire Control Research Project in Princeton. He also describes how statistics became his principal interest as a result of this work. He also mentions his fellow mathematicians, including Frederick Mosteller, Charles Windsor, Sam Wilks, and George Snedecor.
636
TURNER, J. C.
Truman Library, Mo.
Transcript
Turner is an official of the International Union of Operating Engineers. No specific information about the interview was available.
639
TYREE, WILLIAM W., b. 1900
Profession: speech professor
Colorado College
Interviewer: Judith R. Finley
Date of interview: 11 April 1978
Length of interview: 95 min.
Index
Tyree discusses the founding and history of KRCC-FM Radio.
U
640
ULAM, STANISLAW
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-87
Interviewer: Christopher Evans
Length of interview: 90 min.
Ulam discusses his career at the University of Cambridge in the early 1930s and at Los Alamos National Laboratory in the 1940s and 1950s. He describes his collaboration with John von Neumann at the Institute for Advanced Study and the Los Alamos National Laboratory and explains its relation to computing. Ulam describes how his involvement with electronic computers and computer programming began during his work with Fermi and others on the hydrogen bomb in the late 1940s. He also discusses the impact of computing on the field of science and of Los Alamos on computing developments. He concludes with remarks about von Neumann's thoughts on computers, artificial intelligence, and other matters.
641
UNDERHILL, ROBERT M., b. 1893
Profession: university administrator
University of California, Berkeley
Interviewer: Arthur L. Norberg
Date of interview: 1976
Transcript: 98 pp.
Underhill was secretary and treasurer of the University of California regents, and he discusses various contract negotiations he made for the University of California. Among them are contracts for the San Diego Underwater Sound Laboratory, the Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory, and the Lawrence Radiation Laboratory at Livermore. He also addresses special problems of government-university contracts and postwar planning, especially for the Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory.
642
USSACHEVSKY, VLADIMIR, b. 1911
Profession: composer
Columbia University, N.Y.
Transcript, index
Ussachevsky discusses the development of electronic music at Columbia University.
V
646
VAN BUSKIRK, FREDRICK W., b. 1907
Profession: medical professor
University of Vermont
Interviewers: Paul K. French, A. Bradley Soule
Date of interview: 24 July 1969
Transcript: 47 pp.
Van Buskirk was affiliated with the radiology department of the University of Vermont College of Medicine at the time of the interview. He discusses his World War II experiences, the history of DeGoeriand Hospital since 1946, and his work with the College of Medicine.
647
VAN DEERLIN, LIONELL
Profession: U.S. Representative
IEEE, N.J.
Interviewer: Carol Lof
Date of interview: 19 February 1980
This is a joint interview with Van Deerlin and Charles Jackson. They discuss the break-up of AT&T, competition within the telecommunications industry, and the regulation of telephone service. This interview was conducted for the article "The Era of Electronic Enlightenment," which appeared in the IEEE Communications Society Magazine.
648
VANDERSLICE, THOMAS A.
IEEE, N.J.
Interviewer: Carol Lof
Date of interview: 1980
Vanderslice discusses telecommunications technology, rates and regulation, the management of GTE, and "capital recovery." This interview was conducted for the article "Capital Recovery: Key to Industrial Vitalization," which appeared in the January 1981 issue of IEEE Communications Society Magazine.
649
VERZUH, FRANK M.
Profession: electrical engineer
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-63
Interviewer: William Aspray
Dates of Interviews: 20 and 24 February 1984
Length of interviews: 4 hrs.
Transcript: 71 pp.
Verzuh describes early computing at MIT but first reviews his early life, his work on cosmic ray counters at the University of Denver, and his graduate work in electrical engineering at MIT. He discusses his work on MIT's Rapid Arithmetic Machine, his master's thesis on thyratron tubes, and the effect of World War II on electrical engineering and computing at MIT. He also provides information about other computing equipment built at MIT, including the Mechanical Differential Analyzer, Rockefeller Electronic Calculator, and Whirlwind. Other topics he discussed in detail are the MIT Center of Analysis and Digital Computing Laboratory, the formation of Lincoln Laboratory, and the first computer conference held at MIT in 1945. The last portion of the interview concerns computer education at MIT, including the electrical engineering curriculum during the 1940s, the formation of the Computing Center (which he directed), the relationship between MIT and computer manufacturers, the New England Computer Consortium, and relations between Harvard and MIT in computer science.
650
Frederick E. Terman Associates Oral History Project.
VILLARD, OSWALD G.
Profession: professor of electrical engineering
IEEE, N.J.
Interviewer: A. Michael McMahon
Date of interview: 23 November 1984
Place: Woodside, Calif.
Length of interview: 90 min.
Index
Villard discusses his interest in electrical engineering and his graduate career during the late 1930s at Stanford University. Individuals he mentions include Frederick Terman, Hugh H. Skilling, Lester Frold, Karl Spangenberg, and Edward L. Ginzton. Villard also discusses his work at the Radar Research Laboratory at Harvard University during World War II and talks about William Hansen, William Hewlett, David Packard, Frederick Terman, an oscillator developed by Hewlett and General Radio, and the Eitel-McCollough Co. After the War Villard returned to Stanford, where he earned his doctorate and began teaching engineering courses. He then discusses Terman's work at Stanford, particularly his founding of the Stanford Electronics Laboratories. He also compares Terman's leadership style with Stanford president Wallace Sterling and discusses issues and problems of research and development. Other individuals he mentions include Felix Bloch and William Shockley.
651
VINCENT, RICHARD
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-54
Interviewer: Craig Solomonson
Date of interview: 8 March 1983
Length of interview: 3 hrs.
Transcript: 64 pp.
Vincent reviews his work in computing from 1949 to the early 1970s. He relates how he first learned about computers in an Air Force punched card operator school and by running IBM punch card machines during the Korean War. He joined International Harvester after the war, operating an IBM 602A and later one of the first IBM 705 computers. He discusses the problems with the 705 and the field support offered by IBM. In 1959 Vincent joined Montgomery Ward, where he operated an early drum computer, the IBM 650. He describes the difficulties of operating a drum computer. In 1961 he joined Pillsbury and converted the company from an IBM punched card system to a General Electric 225 computer. He describes subsequent computer acquisitions at Pillsbury, including the 1965 acquisition of a GE 625, one of the early multi-processing computers. In 1969 he joined the Standard Computer Corporation, founded by engineers from the Call-A-Computer Division of Pillsbury, where he worked with Lazlo Rocozi on an IBM 7090 take-off, the IC 7000. In 1971 Vincent returned to Pillsbury and programmed the GE 635 in Cobol. He discusses the problems of integrating different computer systems both within Pillsbury and with other companies. He concludes by discussing why Pillsbury uses GE (now Honeywell) instead of IBM computers.
654
VOLLUM, HOWARD, 1913-1985
Profession: inventor, entrepreneur
Oregon Historical Society
Interviewer:Brody
Date of interview: 26 March 1980
Length of interview: 120 min.
Transcript
Vollum discusses the development of the oscilloscope, the history of Tektronix, Incorporated, and management-labor relations.
655
VOLTZ, PHILLIP W.
Profession: government official
Truman Library, Mo.
Transcript
Voltz discusses the various government positions he held during the Truman Administration, including his work as a staff member of the Rural Electrification Administration from 1949 to 1952.
W
657
California Women Political Leaders Project
WAGNER, ELEANOR, b. 1917
Profession: leader in coalition politics
University of California, Berkeley
Interviewer: Malca Chall
Date of interview: 1976
Transcript: 166 pp.
Among the topics Wagner discusses is her work as a board member and coordinator of grants for the Viewer Sponsored Television Foundation from 1972 to 1977.
658
WAKELIN, JAMES H.
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-104
Interviewer: Arthur L. Norberg
Date of interview: 27 February 1986
Place: Washington, D.C.
Length of interview: 60 min.
Transcript: 48 pp.
Wakelin discusses his career, including his education, his work in the Department of the Navy and with the Engineering Research Associates (ERA), and his consulting work. During the first part of the interview he reviews his education at Dartmouth, Cambridge, and Yale, and his first job at B.F. Goodrich. He discusses his work in the Department of the Navy during World War II, where he was involved with their first use of modern computers. Through this Wakelin came in contact with William Norris (a naval officer and former salesman for Westinghouse) and others who, along with Norris, founded ERA. Wakelin discusses his own plans to establish a consulting company after the war and his decision to join ERA. He also discusses his work in ERA's Washington, D.C. office from 1945 to 1948, where he was primarily involved with securing Navy contracts. Other aspects about ERA in the late 1940s are discussed, including his relationships with ERA president and director John E. Parker, mathematician C.B. Tompkins, and others. He concludes by mentioning his later work with a textile institute affiliated with Princeton.
659
WALLACE, HENRY A., 1888-1965
Profession: public official
Columbia University, N.Y.
Date of interview: 1951
Transcript: 5,197 pp., indexed
Among other topics, Wallace discusses the Bernard Baruch atomic energy plan.
660
Religion and Culture Project
WARD, S. J.
Profession: electronics manufacturer
Baylor University, Tex.
Interviewer: Patricia W. Wallace
Dates of Interviews: 19 May 1976, 15 July 1978, and 6 September 1982
Places: Waco and Houston, Tex.
Length of interviews: 3 hrs., 30 min.
Transcript: 65 pp.
Ward discusses his move from Eastland to Houston, Tex. and the beginning of his work as an electrician. He also discusses his employment at the Houston Power and Light Co.
661
WARE, WILLIS H.
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-37
Interviewer: Nancy Stern
Date of interview: 19 January 1981
Transcript: 63 pp.
Ware concentrates on his work with the Institute for Advanced Study computer project in the late 1940s and details the contributions of John von Neumann, Herman Goldstine, meteorologist Jule Charney, and others. He discusses the division of tasks, interaction among project members, design considerations, pace of work, and patent issues. Ware distinguishes between scientific and commercial computers and compares the Institute computer with others produced at the time. Associations between the Institute and IBM, RCA, and other companies and with Princeton University are also discussed. Finally, he describes his move to the Rand Corporation and Rand's activities in computing.
662
WARNE, WILLIAM E., b. 1905
Profession: U.S. government administrator
Truman Library, Mo.
Interviewer: Niel M. Johnson
Place: Independence, Missouri
Date of interview: 21 May 1988
Transcript: 113 pp.
Warne discusses hydroelectric power in the Imperial Valley, and the construction of the Boulder Dam.
663
WARREN, S. REID, JR.
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., 0H-38
Interviewer: Nancy Stern
Date of interview: 5 October 1977
Place: Philadelphia, Pa.
Transcript: 29 pp.
Warren discusses computer projects at the University of Pennsylvania Moore School of Electrical Engineering, where he was a faculty member and supervisor of the EDVAC project. He discusses the EDVAC, the personal interactions of the project members, and the effect of the project on the school. Central to his discussion are J. Presper Eckert and John Mauchly and their disagreements with administrators over patent rights, their resignations from the university and the founding of their own company, the role of John von Neumann, the distribution of von Neumann's 1945 Draft Report on the EDVAC, and its lack of acknowledgement of other EDVAC contributors. Warren also discusses the university's patent policy, its effect on the project, and the inability of the Moore School to remain at the forefront of computer development.
664
Lincoln Ward Collection
WARWICK, STANLEY G.
Profession: broadcasting executive, Vice president, radio station KGIL
California State, Northridge
Interviewer: Lincoln Ward
Warwick discusses radio station KGIL. This interview is part of a series of 30-minute radio programs entitled "Our Business is Your Business," hosted by Lincoln Ward (Pacific Telephone Co.) and Joseph Staller (Southern California Gas Co.). Running from 1976 to 1977, the programs consisted of weekly interviews with business leaders of the San Fernando Valley.
666
WATSON, ROBERT B., 1903-1978
Profession: physician
Columbia University, N.Y.
Date of interview: 1968
Transcript: 375 pp., indexed
Watson discusses the Tennessee Valley Authority and malaria control in Tennessee Valley.
667
WATSON, THOMAS J., JR.
Profession: corporate executive, Chairman of the Board, IBM
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-109
Interviewer: Arthur L.C. Humphreys
Date of interview: 25 April 1985
Place: Armonk, N. Y.
Length of interview: 60 min.
Transcript: 13 pp.
This is a joint interview with Thomas J. Watson and James W. Birkenstock. They discuss the details of the original agreement and relationship between IBM and the British Tabulating Machine Company during World War II and after 1949. The interview also includes discussion on IBM licensing agreements, Cyril Holland-Martin and Gerhard Dirks.
668
WATSON-WATT, ROBERT A., 1892-1973
Profession: radio physicist, meteorologist
Columbia University, N.Y.
Dates of Interviews: 1961, 1964
Transcript: 121 pp., indexed
This is a two-part interview with Watson-Watt. It includes discussions of radio and static studies, direction finders, the Department of Scientific and Industrial Research, the simultaneity of several technical developments, a 1935 memorandum on radiation detection, airborn radar, recruiting young scientists for military research, U.S. interest in radar, secondary radar devices, and the Telecommunications and Research Establishment. In the second interview, conducted in 1964, Watson-Watt discusses his role as scientific advisor to the British government.
672
WATTIS, PHYLLIS, b. 1905
Profession: philanthropist
University of California, Berkeley
Interviewer: Caroline Crawford
Date of interview: 1990
Transcript: 130 pp.
Wattis discusses the merger of her Utah International, a mining and construction company, with General Electric.
673
WEAVER, WARREN, 1894-1978
Profession: mathematician, foundation executive
Columbia University, N.Y.
Date of interview: 1961
transcript: 783 pp., indexed
Among other topics, Weaver discusses the Rockefeller Foundation Division of Natural Sciences (1932), experimental biology programs, bomb sights, electrical predictors and computers, European refugee scientists, his work as vice president for Natural and Medical Sciences, the Sloan Kettering Institute, and science writing and reporting.
674
WEBER, ERNST
Profession: electrical engineer
IEEE, N.J.
Interviewer: Frederik Nebeker
Dates of interviews: April 10, 1991-April 12, 1991
Length of interviews: 9 hours
Transcript: 103 pp.
Weber describes his youth and education in Vienna, his first job for Siemens-Schuckert, and his emigration to the United States in 1930. He then discusses his research and educational administrative efforts at Polytechnic Institute of Brooklyn (Now Polytechnic University), culminating in his presidency of that institution. Weber discusses also his involvement with professional organizations, especially AIEE, IRE, and IEEE.
675
WELCH, NATHANIEL
Auburn University, Ala.
Interviewers: David L. Morton, Jr., Carl Voelcker
Dates of interviews: 1984, 1989
Welch was an executive in the marketing division of Orradio Industries, Opelika, Alabama. In the early 1950s, he worked to expand his company's sales of magnetic recording tapes.
677
WENGEL, MILDRED W.
Wisconsin Historical Society
Interviewer: Robert W. Sherman
Date of interview: 15 September 1966
Index
Mildred Wengel, widow of radio electronics expert Arthur M. Wengel, discusses her husband's work, particularly in the development of the hearing aid.
680
WHEELER, HAROLD A.
Profession: electrical engineer
IEEE, N.J.
Interviewer: Ronald R. Kline
Date of interview: 28 August 1985
The discussion is centered on Wheeler's engineering notebooks, which he kept continuously beginning in 1917. Wheeler mentions several of his early radio inventions, including automatic volume control, the Neutrodyne receiver, and his work with professor Hazeltine.
681
WHEELER, HAROLD A.
Profession: electrical engineer
IEEE, N.J.
Interviewer: Frederik Nebeker
Dates of interviews: July 29, 1991-July 31, 1991
Length of interviews: 13 hours
Transcript: 214 pp.
The interview reviews Wheeler's career with Hazeltine Corporation and, for a time, as head of Wheeler laboratories. Wheeler talks about his work in a variety of areas, including radio design, the development of television, and antenna design.
683
WICKARD, CLAUDE R., 1893-1967
Profession: government official
Columbia University, N.Y.
Date of interview: 1953
Transcript: 3,992 pp., indexed
Wickard discusses his work with the Rural Electrification Administration.
685
WIGNER, EUGENE
Profession: college professor
Princeton University, N.J.
Interviewer: William Aspray, Albert Tucker
Date of interview: 12 April 1984
Transcript: 10 pp.
Wigner begins by describing how he came to Princeton in early 1931. He mentions some of his students, including physicists Fred Seitz, John Bardeen, Conyers Herring, and Leonard Eisenbud, and also some of his friends and colleagues, including physicist Edward U. Condon, mathematician Paul Dirac, and, at some length, John von Neumann.
686
WILKINSON, JAMES
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-39
Interviewer: Christopher Evans
Date of interview: 1976
Place: Teddington, England
Transcript: 24 pp.
Wilkinson describes his work at the National Physical Laboratory beginning in 1946 under A.M. Turing on the design of an electronic stored-program computer with delay line storage. He then turns to the contributions of computer systems designer Harry Huskey, who joined the program for a year in 1947. He discusses the ENIAC design Huskey introduced, the small test model built during Huskey's tenure, and the strained relations between Huskey and Turing. Wilkinson also mentions the enthusiasm of the Pilot Automatic Computing Engine (ACE) computer development staff, the on-the-job training of this group of mathematicians in electronic circuitry, and the success of the Pilot ACE once completed in 1950. The copyright and originals of this interview are held by the Science Museum of London.
687
WILLIAMS, FREDERICK CALLAND
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-40
Interviewer: Christopher Evans
Date of interview: 1976
Place: Manchester, England
Transcript: 24 pp.
Williams discusses his development of a cathode ray tube to store information electrostatically. He describes how he first developed the tube at the Telecommunications Research Establishment, based upon radio experience during World War II. He explains the attempt to raise funds and A.M. Turing's assistance in these efforts. He also describes his experiments in the design of the storage device, the computer they completed in 1949, and the subsequent contract with Ferranti Ltd. for a second Manchester computer incorporating both magnetic drum storage and rapid-access CRT memory. The copyright and originals of this interview are held by the Science Museum of London.
689
Texas Baptist Project
WILLIAMS, JOSEPH W.
Profession: plant maintenance supervisor
Baylor University, Tex.
Interviewer: Fred W. Edwards, Jr.
Dates of Interviews: 7 February - 3 May 1977
Place: Belton, Tex.
Length of interviews: 12 hrs., 30 min.
Transcript: 312 pp., indexed
Williams discusses his experiences in the maintenance department of the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor (MH-B). Topics include Williams' first part-time position with the chief engineer at MH-B, MH-B sewer, electrical, and gas lines, the construction of a new university power plant, MH-B's investment in a radio station, and MH-B telephone lines.
700
Klystron Developments
WOODYARD, JOHN R.
University of California, Berkeley
Interviewer: Arthur L. Norberg
Transcript
This interview with Woodyard concerns the development of the Klystron tube. In addition to describing its design, he discusses further research funded by the Sperry Gyroscope Company, the use of the tube in radar during World War II, and the electrical engineering departments of MIT and Stanford (noting such staff members as William Hansen and Frederick Terman).
704
WRIGLEY, GEORGE, JR.
Profession: executive, Sirrine Co.
University of North Carolina
Interviewer: Allen Tullos
Date of interview: 27 August 1979
Place: Greenville, S.C.
Length of interview: 60 min.
Index
Wrigley talks about his father, who was involved in converting belt-driven textile machinery to motor-driven machinery at a textile mill. He also talks about the Sirrine Company's conversion from water-powered machinery to electrically powered machinery in manufacturing paper.
Y
706
YOCK, GORDON, b. 1907
Profession: merchant, politician
University of Minnesota
Interviewer: Susan Stumm
Date of interview: 13 September 1977
Length of interview: 90 min.
Yock discusses the Clara City Telephone Company, service, its rates, problems with telephone service in other communities, the Continental Telephone Company of Minnesota, and Appleton, Minnesota.
Z
708
MIT Physical Science Study Committee
ZACHARIAS, JERROLD
Profession: physicist
MIT, Mass.
Zacharias was employed at the MIT Radiation Laboratory, the Sprague Electric Corporation, and the Laboratory for Nuclear Science & Engineering, and the Brookhaven National Laboratory.
709
ZUCKERT, EUGENE
Profession: government official
Truman Library, Mo.
Transcript
Zuckert discusses his government career during the Truman Administration. He talks about his work as a member of the Surplus Property Board from 1945 to 1946, as Special Assistant Secretary of the Air Force from 1947 to 1952, and as a member of the Atomic Energy Commission from 1952 to 1954.
710
ZUSE, KONRAD
Charles Babbage Institute, Minn., OH-41
Interviewer: Christopher Evans
Date of interview: 1975
Place: London, England
Transcript: 17 pp.
Zuse discusses his pioneering efforts in building relays and electronic computers in the 1930s and 1940s. He tells how, as a construction engineering student at the University of Berlin in the mid-1930s, he became aware of the need for large-scale calculating devices. He describes the design and construction of his Z1, a mechanical relay computer, and the problems with mechanical calculating units and programming capacity. He explains how these problems were overcome in his electro-mechanical relay calculators, the Z2 and Z3, of the late 1930s, and his Z4 of the 1940s. As an aircraft engineer during World War II, he interested German Air Force researchers in using computers for wing flutter problems. His next calculators, the S1 and S2, were used for process control in missile manufacture. He recalls that one of his later calculators, the S4, was brought to Werner von Braun's rocket factory for a short time, before he and von Braun fled to the Alps. Zuse describes how during his brief exile he developed a complex programming language, the Plankalkül. He then details his 1947 interrogation in London by the Allied Forces. He also mentions his contract with Remington Rand in the late 1940s, under which he designed first mechanical and then electro-mechanical relay computers. The copyright and originals of this interview are held by the Science Museum of London.
Repositories by State
ALABAMA
Auburn University
Special Collections and Archives
RBD Library 231 Mell Street
Auburn University, AL 36849-5606
Phone: (334) 844-1732
Dwayne Cox, Head of the Department
Phone: (334) 844-1707
Email: coxdway@auburn.edu
Website: www.lib.auburn.edu/sca/
CALIFORNIA
California State University, Northridge
Special Collections and Archives
Oviatt Library, Room 265
18111 Nordhoff St.
Northridge, CA 91330-8326
Phone: (818) 677-2285
Robert Marshall, Archivist
Phone: (818) 677-4199
Email: robert.marshall@csun.edu
Website: http://library.csun.edu/SCA
Hewlett-Packard
Oral History Program
3000 Hanover Street
Palo Alto, CA 94304
Phone: (650) 857-1501
Fax: (650) 857-5518
Website: http://www.hp.com/country/us/eng/office_locs.htm
University of California, Berkeley
Regional Oral History Office
486 The Bancroft Library #6000
Berkeley, California 94720-6000
Phone: (510) 642-7395
Email: roho@library.berkeley.edu
Richard Cándida Smith, Director
Website: http://bancroft.berkeley.edu/ROHO/
University of California, Los Angeles
Oral History Program
A253 Bunche Hall
Box 951575
Los Angeles, CA 90095-1575
Phone: (310) 825-4932
Fax: (310) 206-2796
Email: oral-history@library.ucla.edu
Janice Reiff, Interim Director
Website: http://www.library.ucla.edu/libraries/special/ohp/ohpindex.htm
COLORADO
Colorado College
Special Collections, Tutt Library
1021 N. Cascade Avenue
Colorado Springs, CO 80903
Phone: (719) 389-6668
Email: tuttspec@ColoradoCollege.edu
Website: http://www2.coloradocollege.edu/Library/SpecialCollections/Special.html
Colorado Historical Society
Colorado History Museum
1300 Broadway
Denver, Colorado 80203
Phone: (303) 866-3682
Website: http://www.coloradohistory.org/hist_sites/CHM/Colorado_History_Museum.htm
CONNECTICUT
University of Connecticut
Center for Oral History, Thomas J. Dodd Center
405 Babbidge Road, Unit 1205
Storrs, CT 06269-1205
Phone: (860) 486-5245
Fax: (860) 486-4582
Bruce M. Stave, Center Director
Phone: (860) 486-4578 or 6102
E-mail: Bruce.Stave@ucon.edu
Website: http://www.ucc.uconn.edu/~cohadm01/
Yale University
Oral History American Music
Yale School of Music and Library
PO Box 208246
New Haven, CT 06520-8246
Phone: (203) 432-1988
Fax (203) 432-1989
Vivian Perlis, Director
Email: vivian.perlis@yale.edu
Website: http://www.yale.edu/oham/
DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center
National Aeronautics and Space Administration
History Office
NASA Headquarters Building
300 E Street SW
Washington, DC 20546
Phone: (202) 358-0384
Email: histinfo@hq.nasa.gov
Roger D. Launius, NASA Chief Historian
Website: http://history.nasa.gov/what.html
National Air and Space Museum
Room 3100 (west end of the 3rd floor of the Museum)
7th & Independence Avenue SW
Washington, D.C.
Phone: (202) 357-3133
Fax: (202) 786-2835
Website: http://www.nasm.edu/nasm/dsh/oralhistory.html
Marine Corps Historical Center
1254 Charles Morris Street, S.E
Building 58
Washington Navy Yard
Washington D.C. 20374-5040
Phone: (202) 433-3483
Website: http://www.usmcmuseum.com/Museum_OralHistory.asp
Smithsonian Institution
National Museum of American History
Division of Information Technology and Society
14th Street and Constitution Avenue, N.W.
Washington, D.C.
Phone: (202) 357-2279
Fax: (202) 633-9338
David Allison, Chair and Curator
Website: http://americanhistory.si.edu/
Website: http://www2.roosevelt.edu/library/depts.htm
FLORIDA
University of Florida
Samuel Proctor Oral History Program
4103 Turlington
PO Box 115215
Gainesville, FL 32611
Phone: (352) 392-7168
Fax: (352) 846-1983
Dr. Julian Pleasants, Director
Email: jpleasan@history.ufl.edu
Website: http://www.history.ufl.edu/oral/
ILLINOIS
Roosevelt University
Murray Green Library Archive
430 South Michigan Avenue
Chicago, IL 60605
Phone: (312) 341-3640 or (312) 341-3643
E-mail: ajones@acfsysv.roosevelt.edu
Website: http://www2.roosevelt.edu/library/depts.htm - Downtown
University of Illinois
Archives/Special Collections LIB 144
University of Illinois at Springfield
One University Plaza
Springfield, IL 62703
Phone: (217) 206-4UIS (4847)
Toll-free 1-888-977-4UIS (4847)
Thomas J. Wood, Archivist
Email: wood@uis.edu
Website: http://www.uis.edu/library/lib-arch/
Note: Archives/Special Collections holds historical records of the University of Illinois at Springfield and Sangamon State University (1969-1995) as well as regional history records and manuscripts.
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
University Archive Oral History Program
Room 19, Main Library
1408 West Gregory Drive
Urbana, IL 61801
Phone: (217) 333-0798
William J. Maher, University Archivist:
Email: w-maher@uiuc.edu
INDIANA
Carnegie Library
Wabash Carnegie Public Library
Oral History Project
188 West Hill Street
Wabash, IN 46992
Phone: (219) 563-2972
Website: http://www.wabash.lib.in.us/index.htm
IOWA
Iowa Historical Society
State Historical Society of Iowa
Oral History Collection
402 Iowa Avenue
Iowa City, IA 52240-1806
Phone: (319) 335-3916
Website: http://www.iowahistory.org/library/index.html
Iowa State University
Special Collections Department
403 Parks Library
Iowa State University
Ames, IA 50011-2140
Phone: (515) 294-6672
Fax: (515) 294-5525.
Tanya Zanish-Belcher, Head, University Archives
Phone: (515) 294-6648
E-mail: tzanish@iastate.edu
Website: http://www.lib.iastate.edu/spcl/about/location.html
University of Iowa
Special Collections Department
University of Iowa Libraries
Iowa City, IA 52242-1420
Phone: (319) 335-5921
Fax: (319) 335-5900
E-Mail: lib-spec@uiowa.edu
Sidney F. Huttner, Head
Email: sid-huttner@uiowa.edu
Website: http://www.lib.uiowa.edu/spec-coll/
KANSAS
The Dwight D. Eisenhower Library and Museum
200 Southeast Fourth Street
Abilene, Kansas 67410
Phone: (785) 263-4751
Toll Free: 1 (877) Ring Ike
Fax: (785) 263-4218
Email: Eisenhower.library@nara.gov
Website: http://www.eisenhower.utexas.edu/
KENTUCKY
Murray State University
Forrest C. Pogue Library
Special Collections
208 Waterfield Library
Murray, KY 42071-3307
Phone: (270) 762-2291
Website: http://www.murraystate.edu/msml/Pogue.html#special
LOUISIANA
Friends of the Cabildo
Louisiana Division, 3rd Floor Main Library
New Orleans Public Library
219 Loyola Ave.
New Orleans, LA 70112-2044
Phone: (504) 596-2610
Wayne Everard, Archivist
Email: weverard@gno.lib.la.us
Website: http://nutrias.org/~nopl/spec/speclist.htm
Website: http://nutrias.org/~nopl/guides/foc/cabildo.htm
Note: The Friends of the Cabildo (FOC) is the support group for the Louisiana State Museum. In 1992 the FOC and the New Orleans Public Library agreed to a transfer of the duplicate user tapes from the Museum's Louisiana Historical Center to the Library's Louisiana Division.
MARYLAND
U.S. Naval Institute
Naval Institute History, Reference and Preservation
History Division
291 Wood Rd.
Annapolis, MD 21402-5034
Phone: (410) 295-1023
Paul Stillwell, Director
Phone: (410) 295-1020
Fax: (410) 269-7940
Website: http://www.usni.org/hrp/reflib.html
Niels Bohr Library
American Institute of Physics
One Physics Ellipse
College Park, MD 20740-3843
E-mail: nbl@aip.org
Phone: (301) 209-3177
Fax: (301) 209-3144
R. Joseph Anderson, Head
Email: rja@aip.org
Website: http://www.aip.org/history/nblbro.htm
MASSACHUSETTS
John Fitzgerald Kennedy Library
Oral History Program
Columbia Point
Boston, Massachusetts 02125
Phone: (617) 929-4500
TTY: (617) 929-1221
Toll Free: 1 (877) 616-4599
Fax: (617) 929-4538
Email: kennedy.library@nara.gov
Website: http://www.cs.umb.edu/jfklibrary/oh_description.html
MIT Libraries
Institute Archives and Special Collections
Building 14N-118
77 Massachusetts Ave
Cambridge, MA 02139-4307 USA
Phone: (617) 253-5136
Fax: (617) 258-7305
Elizabeth Andrews, Interim Head
Phone: (617) 253-4323
Website: http://libraries.mit.edu/archives/
Smith College Archives
Level A of Alumnae Gym
Northampton, MA 01063
Nanci Young, College Archivist, (413) 585-2976
E-mail: nyoung@smith.edu
Website: http://www.smith.edu/libraries/libs/archives/
MICHIGAN
University of Michigan
Bentley Historical Library
1150 Beal Avenue
Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109-2113
Phone: (734) 764-3482
Fax: (732) 936-1333
Nancy Bartlett, Division Head
E-mail: nbart@umich.edu
Website: http://www.umich.edu/~bhl/bhl/uarphome/uarphome.htm
MINNESOTA
Charles Babbage Institute
University of Minnesota
211 Andersen Library
222 21st Avenue South
Minneapolis, MN 55455
Phone: (612) 624-5050
Fax: (612) 625-8054
Arthur L. Norberg, Ph.D., Director
E-Mail: norberg@cs.umn.edu
Website: http://www.cbi.umn.edu/
Minnesota Historical Society
Division of Library and Archives
345 W. Kellogg Blvd.
St. Paul, MN 55102-1906
Phone: (651) 296-6126 or 651-296-6980
Fax: (651) 296-9961
Michael Fox, Assistant Director
Phone: (651) 296-2150
Email: michael.fox@mnhs.org
Website: http://www.mnhs.org/library/collections/oralhistory/oralhistory.html
Southwest Minnesota Historical Center
Southwest State University
Marshall, MN 56258
Phone: (507) 537-6176507-537-7333
Fax: (507) 537-6200
Jan Louwagie, Curator
Information supplied by the Minnesota Historical Society’s list of regional research centers in Minnesota:
Website: http://www.mnhs.org/preserve/mho/regcent.html
West Central Minnesota Historical Research Center
Rodney A. Briggs Library, Room 110
University of Minnesota, Morris
600 East 4th Street
Morris, Minnesota 56267
Email: wcmhc@cda.mrs.umn.edu
Website: http://www.mrs.umn.edu/academic/history/wchrc/
MISSISSIPPI
Mississippi Power Company
2992 West Beach Boulevard
PO Box 4079
Gulfport, Miss. 39502-4079
Phone: (228) 864-1211
Toll Free: (800)-353-9777
University of Southern Mississippi
McCain Library & Archives
PO Box 5148
Hattiesburg, MS 39406-5148.
Phone: (601) 266-4345
Fax: (601) 266-6269
Graham P. Toby, Head, Special Collections
Phone: (601) 266-5077
Email: Toby.Graham@usm.edu
Website: http://www.lib.usm.edu/mccain.html
MISSOURI
Harry S. Truman Library & Museum
500 W. US Hwy. 24
Independence MO, 64050
Phone: (816) 833-1400 or 1-800-833-1225
Fax: (816) 833-4368
Email: truman.library@nara.gov
Website: http://www.trumanlibrary.org/
University of Missouri
Western Historical Manuscript Collection
Thomas Jefferson Library
University of Missouri-St. Louis
8001 Natural Bridge Road
St. Louis, MO 63121
Phone: (314) 516-5143
Fax: (314) 516-5853
Email: swhmc@umslvma.umsl.edu
Zelli Fischetti
Website: http://www.umsystem.edu/ums/aa/units-manuscripts/
NEBRASKA
Nebraska State Historical Society
State Archives Division
P.O. Box 82554
1500 R Street
Lincoln, NE 68501
Email: lanshs@nebraskahistory.org
Paul Eisloeffel, manuscripts, sound recordings, motion pictures
Phone: (402) 471-4750
Website: http://www.nebraskahistory.org/lib-arch/
NEW JERSEY
IEEE History Center
Stevens Institute of Technology
Samuel C. Williams Library 3rd Floor
Hoboken, NJ 07030-5991
Email: history@ieee.org
Sheldon Hochheiser, Archivist and Institutional Historian
Email: s.hochheiser@ieee.org
Website: http://www.ethw.org
Princeton University
Seeley G. Mudd Manuscript Library
65 Olden Street
Princeton, NJ 08544
Email: mudd@princeton.edu
Phone: (609) 258-6345
Fax: (609) 258-3385
Dan Linke, University Archivist and Curator of Public Policy Papers
Website: http://www.princeton.edu/~mudd/
NEW YORK
Columbia University
Oral History Research Office
801 Butler Library, Box 20
535 W. 114th St., MC 1129
New York, NY 10027
Phone: (212) 854-7083
Email: oralhist@libraries.cul.columbia.edu
Mary Marshall Clark, Director
Email: mmc17@columbia.edu
Phone: (212) 854-2273
Website: http://www.columbia.edu/cu/lweb/indiv/oral/
University at Albany, State University of New York
Department of History
Schenectady General Electric in the twentieth Century
1400 Washington Avenue
Albany, N.Y. 12222
Phone: (518) 442-4800
Fax: (518) 442-3477
Email: history@albany.edu
Website: http://www.albany.edu/history/histmedia/
NORTH CAROLINA
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
University Archives
CB# 3926, Wilson Library
Chapel Hill, NC 27514-8890
Phone: (919) 962-0043
Fax: (919) 962-4452
Email: archives@email.unc.edu
Susan C. Ballinger, Assistant Archivist
Website: http://www.lib.unc.edu/
OHIO
University of Dayton Roesch Library
300 College Park
Dayton, Ohio 45469 -1360
Phone: (937) 229-4221 or (937) 229-4270
Website: http://library.udayton.edu/basics/departments/archives.php
OREGON
Oregon Historical Society Library
1200 SW Park Avenue
Portland, OR 97205-2483
Phone: (503) 222-1741 or (503) 306-5198
Fax: (503) 221-2035
E-mail: orhist@ohs.org
Website: http://www.ohs.org/general/default.htm
PENNSYLVANIA
Mercyhurst College Archives
Hammermill Library Lower Level
501 East 38th Street
Erie, Pa. 16546
Phone: (814) 824-2190
Earleen Glaser, M.S.L.S., M. Ed. Reference Librarian/Archivist
Phone: (814) 824-2190
Email: eglaser@mercyhurst.edu
Website: http://merlin.mercyhurst.edu/
U.S. Army Military History Institute
22 Ashburn Drive
Carlisle, PA 17013-5008
Phone: (717) 245-3225
Fax: (717) 245-3711
Website: http://carlisle-www.army.mil/usamhi/
Pennsylvania State Special Collections Library
Historical Collections and Labor Archives
104 Paterno Library
University Park, PA 16802-1808
Phone: (814) 865-7931
Fax: (814) 863-5318
Website: http://www.libraries.psu.edu/crsweb/speccol/labor.htm
SOUTH DAKOTA
University of South Dakota Oral History Center
414 East Clark Street
Vermillion, South Dakota 57069
Phone: (605) 677-5011 or 1(877) COYOTES
Email: iais@usd.edu
Leonard R. Bruguier, Director
Email: bruguier@usd.edu
Website: http://www.usd.edu/iais/oralhist/ohc.html
TENNESSEE
Memphis State University Libraries
Special Collections
126 Ned R. McWherter Library
The University of Memphis
Memphis, Tennessee 38152-6500
Phone: (901) 678-2210
Curator: efrank@cc.memphis.edu
Website: http://www.memphis.edu/specialcollections/uldr.php
Memphis Shelby County Public Library and Information Center
Memphis & Shelby County Room
Central Library
3030 Poplar Avenue, Memphis TN 38111-3527
Phone: (901) 415-2742
Website: http://www.memphislibrary.lib.tn.us/history/index.html
TEXAS
Baylor University
Texas Collection
South Fifth Street at Speight Avenue,
P. O. Box 97142
Waco TX 76798-7142
Phone: (254) 710-1268
Fax: (254) 710-1368
E-mail: txcoll@baylor.edu
Kent Keeth, Director
Email: Kent_Keeth@baylor.edu
Website: http://www3.baylor.edu/Library/Texas/frames/framelayout.html
Rice University
Woodson Research Center
Fondren Library-MS 215
Rice University
P.O. Box 1892
Houston, Texas 77251-1892
E-mail: woodson@rice.edu
Phone: (713) 348-2586
Fax: (713) 348-6172
Kinga Perzynska, Director
Phone: (713) 348-2596
Email: kingap@rice.edu
Website: http://www.rice.edu/fondren/woodson/
Texas A&M University
Oral History Collection, Cushing Memorial Library
College Station, TX 77843-5000
Phone:(979) 845-1951
Fax: (979) 845-1441
Phone: (979) 845-1951
Email: cushing-library@tamu.edu
Website: http://library.tamu.edu/
University of North Texas Libraries
University Archives
P.O. Box 305190
Denton, TX, 76203-5190
Phone: (940) 565- 2766
Richard Himmel, Department Head, Librarian III
Phone: (940) 565-2766
Email: rhimmel@library.unt.edu
Website: http://www.library.unt.edu/
VERMONT
University of Vermont Special Collections
Special Collections, Bailey/Howe Library
University of Vermont
Burlington, VT 05405
Phone: (802) 656-2138
Fax: (802) 656-4038
Email: uvmsc@zoo.uvm.edu
Jeffrey D. Marshall, University Archivist and Curator of Manuscripts
Email: jeffrey.marshall@uvm.edu
Website: http://library.uvm.edu/about/specialcollections/
VIRGINIA
University of Virginia
Special Collections Department
Alderman Memorial Library
P.O. Box 400110 University of Virginia,
Charlottesville, Virginia 22904-4110
Phone: (434) 924-3025
Email: mssbks@virginia,edu
Fax: (434) 924-4968
Mike Plunkett Director, Albert H. Small Special Collections Library
Email: mfp@virginia.edu
Website: http://www.lib.virginia.edu/speccol/
WASHINGTON
East Washington University Archives and Special Collections
100 LIB, 816 F St.
Cheney, WA 99004-2453
Phone: (509) 359-2475
Fax: (509)359-6456
Charles V. Mutschler, Ph.D., University Archivist
Phone: (509) 359-2254
Email: charles.mutschler@mailserver.ewu.edu
Website: http://www.library.ewu.edu/collections/archives.html
Skagit County Historical Museum
PO Box 818
501 S 4th St
La Conner, WA 98257
Phone: (360) 466-3365
Website: http://www.ohwy.com/wa/s/skagichm.htm
Spokane Public Library
906 West Main
Spokane, WA 99201
Phone: (509) 444-5300
Website: http://198.1.37.9/
University of Washington
Manuscripts, Special Collections, and University Archives
Allen Library
PO Box 352900
Seattle, WA 98195-2900
Email:speccoll@u.washington.edu
Phone: (206) 543-1929 or (206) 543-1879
Fax: (206) 543-1931
John Paul Deley, University Archivist
Email: jpdeley@u.washington.edu
Phone: (206) 543-1879
Website: http://www.lib.washington.edu/specialcoll/
WEST VIRGINIA
West Virginia University
West Virginia and Regional History Collection
Colson Hall (#21)
P.O. Box 6464
Morgantown, WV 26506-6464
Phone: (304) 293-3536
Fax: (304) 293-3981
John Cuthbert, Curator, WV & Regional History Collection and Head, Special Collections
Email: jcuthber@wvu.edu
Phone: (304) 293-3536
Website: http://www.libraries.wvu.edu/wvcollection/
WISCONSIN
Wisconsin Historical Society Archives
816 State Street
Madison, WI 53706
Phone: (608) 264-6460
Website: http://www.shsw.wisc.edu/archives/