Physics Department Records

Collection

Identifier: RG 09-005

Staff Only

Scope and Contents

The records of the physics department are arranged in three subgroups: General Departmental Records, Organizations and Activities, and Faculty Papers.

The General Departmental Records provide information about the physics buildings and equipment, budgets, curriculum, faculty members, foundation and government grants, the planetarium, salaries, and staff meetings. Papers in this subgroup originate primarily with physics faculty members Lloyd W. Taylor, Carl E. Howe, and David L. Anderson. Comprised of correspondence and memoranda, budgets, course descriptions, a ledger of experiments, personnel evaluations, meeting minutes, vendors' promotional materials, and writings by various faculty members, the subgroup is arranged in five series. The bulk of these papers date between 1940 and 1984.

Items contained in subgroup II, Organizations and Activities, document the societies and events sponsored by the physics department. Included is a bound volume of minutes from the Physical Science Club from 1909 to 1922. The club invited both faculty members and students for membership. Presentations were given by members of the science departments and outside speakers. Professor Frank Fanning Jewett was the club's first president. Also included are calendars of events and memoranda to physics majors concerning the Physics Club, 1968-1977, and information about the visiting scientist programs, 1956-1971. Discontinuity in the records, made evident by the absence of papers between 1923 and 1956, creates an uneven character for this subgroup.

Subgroup III, the final subgroup, contains departmental papers and records attributable to specific staff and faculty members. The records series document the professional work of the individual creators. Currently there are five series of faculty papers: 1. Elisha Gray Papers; 2. Carl Ellis Howe Papers; 3. Lloyd William Taylor Papers; 4. Forest G. Tucker Papers; and, 5. Joseph Palmieri Papers. Until 2009 the College Archives received these records from the physics department, not from family members, when the individuals covered within the subgroup's series were deceased. The records are therefore classified as institutional rather than personal papers. An additional accession was recieved from Emeritus Professor Joseph Palmieri in 2009 of papers generated during his time in the department, which makes up series 5. For the personal papers of Lloyd William Taylor, David L. Anderson, and Robert Weinstock, the researcher may consult record groups 30/97, 30/65, and 30/336.

Dates

Creation: 1871 - 2009
Creation: Majority of material found within 1871 - 1970
Other: Date acquired: 00/00/1967

Creator

Oberlin College Physics Department (Organization)

Conditions Governing Access

Restrictions on Subgroup I, Series 4: Box 2; Series 5: Box 2; Subgroup III, Series 3, Subseries 2: Class Records.

Administrative History

The Oberlin College ("Collegiate Institute" before 1850) physics department traces its origins to the early mathematics and natural philosophy offerings in the collegiate curriculum of the 1830s. From 1890 to 1910, physics instruction was given by the department of physics and astronomy, an adjunct branch of mathematics. In 1910 a separate chair in physics was created.

Reverend George Whipple (1805-1876) served as the first instructor of mathematics and natural philosophy from 1838 to 1847. When Whipple resigned his post to become the first secretary of the American Missionary Association, he was followed by James H. Fairchild (1817-1902). Fairchild taught from 1847 to 1859 before becoming the third president of Oberlin College.

During the tenure of Charles H. Churchill (1824-1904), from 1859 to 1897, physics began to gain a measure of autonomy from the mathematics department. Elisha Gray (1835-1901), a pioneer in telephone technology, served as a faculty member and guest lecturer during Churchill's tenure. Churchill presided over two relocations, moving from Colonial Hall to French Hall in 1868, and from French Hall to Peters Hall in 1887. In 1890 the department of physics and astronomy was created as a separate branch of mathematics. Churchill was succeeded by Charles E. St. John (1857-1935), who taught from 1897 to 1908 prior to leaving for Mt. Wilson Observatory in Pasadena, CA. St. John also worked with Albert Einstein proving the theory of relativity.

In 1910 a separate chair of physics was created. The position was filled by Samuel R. Williams (1879-1955) who taught from 1908 to 1924. The position of assistant professor of physics was created and filled by several instructors from 1910 to 1924. Otto Koppius (1889-1965) served as assistant professor from 1920 to 1924, departing the same year as Williams.

In 1924 the vacancies in the physics department were filled by Lloyd William Taylor (1893-1948) and Carl Ellis Howe (1898-1968). Taylor and Howe were appointed as professor and acting associate professor, respectively. Taylor specialized in optics, and Howe concentrated on X-Ray technology. The department continued to expand in the 1920s. Forrest Glenn Tucker (1892-1976), a specialist in photoelectricity, joined the staff in 1926. Over the next several decades these three physicists became the backbone of a physics department that became one of the top undergraduate sources of successful Ph.D. candidates in the nation (15 Oberlin College physics graduates went on to earn the Ph.D. in physics between 1936 and 1945). In 1942 the Wright Physics Building was erected, and it was occupied by the department in 1943. During this period the physics department offered the M.A. degree to students preparing for advanced careers in physics.

World War II expanded the need for physics instruction. In conjunction with the Navy V-12 program on the Oberlin campus, additional instructors were added to meet the increased demand. A number of visiting professors helped to meet the additional teaching load. From 1943 to 1945 the physics department had three regular members, and five visiting instructors. In 1948 Lloyd W. Taylor died unexpectedly during a vacation, leaving the department short-handed. David L. Anderson was brought in during 1948, and Thurston L. Manning in 1949.

From the beginning the course offerings were designed to meet the needs and interests of those who desired first-hand acquaintance with quantitative science as well as those studying in the humanities and social sciences. The department underscored both the importance of science as part of a liberal education and the preparation of students for careers in physics, engineering, secondary school teaching, and other careers in which a background in physical science is valuable. For students interested in teaching physics, the department offered an M.A. in physics education.

The postwar physics department continued to expand and accommodate new fields of specialization. The scientific initiatives spawned by the Cold War-Sputnik era fueled a surge in federal research. Grant monies (private and public) enabled the department to invest in new equipment and technology. In 1964 the department received an IBM 1620, the first major computer on campus. A separate Oberlin Computer Center was created in 1965 headed by Robert Bushnell (1935- ). The computing center shared space with the physics department before moving to the Houck Computing Center in 1973.

The department grew significantly during the late 1950s and throughout the 1960s. Six new professors joined the department during this period, and the number of new courses doubled by 1970. Among the professors appointed during this period were: W. Bruce Hawkins (1957), Robert Weinstock (1959), Joseph N. Palmieri (1961), Robert Edson Warner (1965), Walter Bruce Richards (1967) and Joseph L. Snider (1969). Many of these professors remained in the department guiding its fortunes through the 1980s.

Note written by William Bigglestone, Micheal Broudo, Frank Trevorrow.

Extent

12.20 Linear Feet

Language of Materials

English

Additional Description

Source of Acquisition

Physics Department

Method of Acquisition

The records of the department of physics were received in three accessions transferred from the physics department to the archives through physics professor David L. Anderson between 1967 and 1968. In 1987 physics professor Bruce Richards transferred the papers of Carl Ellis Howe and Lloyd William Taylor. Later accessions 1993/67, 1994/50, 1996/042, and 1996/103 also originated with Anderson. Additional materials were received by Edwin Taylor [accession 2001/006]. Research materials on Elisha Gray were donated by David Simmons of the Ohio Historical Society for reference only. An additional accession (2009/42) from Joseph Palmieri, Emeritus Professor of Physics, was received in 2009.

Accruals and Additions

Accessions: 13, 46, 52, 1987/80, 1987/81, 1996/42, 1996/103, 2001/6, 2002/11, 2009/42.

Related Materials

Replicas of airfoil test pieces used by the Wright brothers, exhibited in the Wright Physics Laboratory until 2002, are in the Museum Collection, RG 35.

http://cdm15963.contentdm.oclc.org/cdm/singleitem/collection/objects/id/159/rec/4