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Finding Aid for the Willard F. Libby Papers
1276
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Title: Willard F. Libby Papers,
Date (inclusive): ca. 1954-1976
Collection number: 1276
Creator:
Libby, Willard F.
Extent:
278 boxes (139 linear ft.)
4 cartons (4 linear ft.)
9 oversize boxes
Repository:
University of California, Los Angeles. Library.
Department of Special Collections.
Los Angeles, California 90095-1575
Abstract: Willard F. Libby (1908-1980) was a professor in the UCLA Department of Chemistry (1959), and director of the Institute of
Geophysics and Planetary Physics at UCLA. In 1960, he received the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for developing the radio-active
dating technique known as carbon-14. The collection consists of correspondence, notebooks, research materials, publications,
lectures, and memorabilia related to Libby's career as a chemist, and items related to Libby's involvement in the U.S. Atomic
Energy Commission, tritium experiments, radiocarbon dating, the Institute of Geophysics and Planetary physics, and UCLA.
Physical location: Stored off-site at SRLF. Advance notice is required for access to the collection. Please contact the UCLA Library, Department
of Special Collections Reference Desk for paging information.
Language:
English.
COLLECTION STORED OFF-SITE AT SRLF: Advance notice required for access.
Restrictions on Use and Reproduction
Property rights to the physical object belong to the UCLA Library, Department of Special Collections. Literary rights, including
copyright, are retained by the creators and their heirs. It is the responsibility of the researcher to determine who holds
the copyright and pursue the copyright owner or his or her heir for permission to publish where The UC Regents do not hold
the copyright.
[Identification of item], Willard F. Libby Papers (Collection 1276). Department of Special Collections, Charles E. Young Research
Library, University of California, Los Angeles.
Provenance/Source of Acquisition
Gift of Leona M. Libby, 1981-83.
Libby was born December 17, 1908; BS (1931) and Ph.D (1933), UC Berkeley; part of the Manhattan Project, 1941-45; professor,
Institute for Nuclear Studies, University of Chicago, 1945-54; commissioner, U.S. Atomic Energy Commission, 1954-59; became
a professor, UCLA Department of Chemistry, 1959; director, Institute of Geophysics and Planetary Physics at UCLA; received
the 1960 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for developing the radio-active dating technique known as carbon-14; died September 8, 1980.
Collection consists of correspondence, notebooks, research materials, publications, lectures, and memorabilia related to the
career of chemist Williard F. Libby. Contains items related to Libby's involvement in the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission, tritium
experiments, radiocarbon dating, the Institute of Geophysics and Planetary physics, and UCLA. Also includes cassette and reel-to-reel
tapes, video tapes, and film materials.
The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the repository's online public access catalog.
Libby, Willard F.--Archives.
University of California, Los Angeles. Dept. of Chemistry--Faculty--Archival resources.
University of California (System). Institute of Geophysics and Planetary Physics.
U.S. Atomic Energy Commission.
Chemists--United States--Archival resources.
Radiocarbon dating--Research.
Nobel Laureate [oral history transcript] / Willard F. Libby, interviewee. UCLA Oral History Department interview, 1983. Available at Department
of Special Collections, UCLA.