William Francis Whitmore papers, 1945-1991

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Summary

Title:
William Francis Whitmore papers
Dates:
1945-1991
Creators:
Whitmore, William Francis
Abstract:
William Francis Whitmore was a mathematician in the field of oceanography and a scientist and consultant with Lockheed Missiles and Space Company. He was the head of the division of Thermal Energy Conversion where he worked on the development of the Polaris missile and later worked as a scientific analyst and consultant to various Department of Defense agencies.
Extent:
39 Linear Feet (85 manuscript boxes, 2 half boxes, 2 flat boxes)
Language:
English
Preferred citation:

[identification of item], William Francis Whitmore Papers (M0915). Department of Special Collections and University Archives, Stanford Libraries, Stanford, California.

Background

Scope and content:

This collection contains papers relating to William Francis Whitmore's work at Lockheed Missile and Space Company and as a consultant to the United States Navy. These include correspondence, reports, speech drafts, notes, photographs, publications, clippings, and personal, professional, and biographical materials.

Biographical / historical:

William Francis Whitmore (1917-1996) was an American mathematician, physicist, and scientist with a focus on the field of oceanography who was heavily involved in the development of weapons and ocean technology for the United States Navy. He received his S.B. in General Engineering from MIT and Ph.D in Mathematics from University of California, He worked for the US Navy in the Operations Evaluation Group (1946-1957) and later served as the chief scientist in their Special Projects Office (1957-1959), heading the division of Thermal Energy Conversion where he worked on the development of the Polaris Missile. After this, he was employed at Lockheed Missiles and Space Company for the remainder of his career, and served as an analyst and consultant on a number of other projects, such as the Missile Systems Division and Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion (OTEC), becoming the chief scientist of Ocean Systems in 1969, a position he held for 14 years. He also served on the Naval Research Advisory Committee (NRAC) until 1975, where he was the chairman of the Laboratory Advisory Board for Ordnance. In addition, Whitmore was the LMSC Editorial Chairman for Lockheed Horizons and engaged in speechwriting assignments for senior management, as directed.

He married Elizabeth Sherman Arnold in 1946, another mathematician who also received her PhD at the University of California, Berkeley in 1941, and they had four sons.

Acquisition information:
Gift of the Whitmore Family Trust, 1997.
Rules or conventions:
Describing Archives: A Content Standard

About this collection guide

Collection Guide Author:
Processed by Special Collections staff; machine-readable finding aid created by Steven Mandeville-Gamble. Revised by Alyssa Tou
Date Encoded:
This finding aid was produced using ArchivesSpace on 2022-03-21 17:39:07 -0700 .

Access and use

Restrictions:

Collection is open for research; material must be requested at least 36 hours in advance of intended use.

Terms of access:

While Special Collections is the owner of the physical and digital items, permission to examine collection materials is not an authorization to publish. These materials are made available for use in research, teaching, and private study. Any transmission or reproduction beyond that allowed by fair use requires permission from the owners of rights, heir(s) or assigns.

Preferred citation:

[identification of item], William Francis Whitmore Papers (M0915). Department of Special Collections and University Archives, Stanford Libraries, Stanford, California.

Location of this collection:
Department of Special Collections, Green Library
557 Escondido Mall
Stanford, CA 94305-6004, US
Contact:
(650) 725-1022
specialcollections@stanford.edu
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