Papers and recordings relating to a conference held at the National Museum of History and Technology (now called the National Museum of American History) on October 23, 1978. The Conference was a joint effort by the Smithsonian, the Washington, D.C. chapter of the Association for Computing Machinery, the Washington, D.C. chapter of the Data Processing Management Association, and the Washington, D.C.chapter of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers. The collection includes: a program signed by participants; photographs taken at the conference; planning documents such as invitations to speakers to participate and responses to them, proposed guest lists, proposed agendas, press releases, minutes of the planning committee for the Conference; documents relating to budgeting for the conference; and audiocassette and reel-to-reel tapes of the conference.
Scope and Contents:
This collection is currently unprocessed.
Arrangement:
1 series
Biographical / Historical:
The concept for this conference was developed by Sol Rosenthal and Bill LaPlante, both considered pioneers in the field of computing. The conference was planned to honor the upcoming 20th anniversary of the Washington chapter of the Association for Computing Machinery in 1979. An additional impetus was the awareness that many of the original members of the chapter were at advanced ages, and the fear that early computer history would become lost if not recorded. A committee was formed with Rosenthal and Smithsonian Curator Uta Merzbach as chairs, a program was developed, and speakers and participants invited. The conference, held on October 23, 1978 was considered very successful as participants provided a wealth of historical detail. Notable participants include Grace Murray Hopper, former NASA astronaut Michael Collins, and Jacob Rabinow, among others.
Provenance:
Immediate source of acquisition unknown.
Restrictions:
Collection open for research on site by appointment. Unprotected photographs must be handled with gloves.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
