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Finding Aid to the Records of the High Voltage Engineering Corporation, 1933-1969

Sponsor:

This finding aid has been encoded by the Center for History of Physics, American Institute of Physics as part of a collaborative project supported by a grant from the National Endowment of the Humanities, an independent federal agency. Collaboration members in 1999 consisted of: American Institute of Physics, California Institute of Technology, Harvard University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Northwestern University, Rice University, University of Alaska, University of Illinois, and University of Texas.

Publisher:

American Institute of Physics. Center for History of Physics.
One Physics Ellipse
College Park, MD 20740
nbl@aip.org

Published in 2000

Encoding Information:

Machine-readable finding aid encoded in EAD v.1.0 by Clay Redding on March 28, 2000 from an existing finding aid using NoteTab Pro and C++ scripts created by James P. Tranowski (provided by Elizabeth Dow, Special Collections, University of Vermont). Any revisions made to this finding aid occurred as part of the editing and encoding process. Reviewed by Elizabeth Andrews and Ewa Basinska, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, on August 18, 2000 .

Finding aid written in English.

Description of the Collection

Location of collection:

Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Institute Archives and Special Collections.
Cambridge, MA 02139

Title and dates of collection:

Records of the High Voltage Engineering Corporation, 1933 - 1969

Papers/Records created by:

High Voltage Engineering Corporation.

Size of collection:

6 records cartons and 1 folder, oversize drawings

Short description of collection:

The collection documents the High Voltage Engineering Corporation (HVEC). Manufacturing operations began in 1947 with the development and manufacture of particle accelerators. The records consist of technical notes and drawings left by Robert J. Van de Graff, chief scientist and one of the company's founders, at the time of his death in 1967.

Languages Represented:

English

Selected Search Terms

These papers have been indexed in the International Catalog of Sources for History of Physics and Allied Sciences (ICOS) using the following terms. Those seeking related materials should search under these terms.

History of the High Voltage Engineering Corporation

The High Voltage Engineering Corporation (HVEC) was founded by Robert J. Van de Graaff, Denis M. Robinson, and John G. Trump for the production of particle accelerators. The company develops and manufactures particle accelerator systems, electric power regulators, surface analysis instruments, vehicle monitoring equipment, and modular power connectors. It started manufacturing operations in April 1947 and soon began supplying electrostatic generators used in cancer therapy, radiography, and in studies of nuclear structure. By 1967 the corporation included four subsidiaries, Electronized Chemicals Corporation, Glass Grinding Corporation, HVE Europa The Netherlands, and Ion Physics Corporation.

Scope and Contents of Collection

The High Voltage Engineering Corporation collection consists for the most part of records, technical notes, and drawings of the company, left by Robert J. Van de Graaff, chief scientist and one of the companyf founders, at the time of his death in 1967. The records describe both Van de Graaff's work as a scientist at High Voltage Engineering Corporation between 1947 and 1967, and the development and marketing of research tools during the same period.

The records are arranged into three series.

Series I. Administrative, 1947-1969: consists of routine administrative records of company meetings, annual reports, memoranda, and financial records. Correspondence contains information about filing for patents, including the Van de Graaff generator.

Series II. Technical: includes proposals and reports about various projects including the Tandem accelerator (projects 1961, 1962, n.d.), Owl (Projects 1959), and particle accelerators (1960s).

Technical notes contain Van de Graaff's notes and calculations, and rough drafts about specific projects, some of which are not clearly identified. The projects are organized by date. Records of patents, and reprints are filed chronologically.

Series III. Subject File: describes the range of projects worked on at High Voltage Engineering Corporation. Most of the project files contain Van de Graaff's working notes and drawings, as well as detailed meeting notes. The Research and Development Policy Committee notes give a sense of the kind of work done in preparation for discussion of major projects.

The business side of High Voltage Engineering Corporation is discussed as well in Van de Graaff's notes. Concerns for patenting and marketing, as well as development, document Van de Graaff's activities as an administrator and businessman as well as a scientist.

Of particular interest is a series of memoranda to Denis Robinson from Van de Graaff (Tandem Research Lab #2) on the role of the research laboratory at High Voltage Engineering Corporation, and notes recorded by John L. Danforth of his conversations with Van de Graaff in the mid-1960s.

Organization of Collection

Organized into the following series: I. Administrative, 1947-1969; II. Technical, 1933-1967; III. Subject File, 1951-1960.

Access to Collection

There are no restrictions on access to this collection.

Restrictions on Use of Collection

Requests for permission to publish material from the collection should be directed to the Institute Archivist.

Provenance and Acquisition Information

The High Voltage Engineering Corporation (HVEC) papers were given to the Institute Archives in March 1980 by Denis M. Robinson.

Accession number: 77-29

Processing Information

This collection was processed by Page Edwards in June 1982, and edited by Elizabeth Andrews and Ewa Basinska in August 2000.

Container List

Series I. Administrative, 1947-1969
Box 1 Meetings, minutes, and agendas, 1947-1968
Board of Directors, 1947, 1962-1966
Executive Committee, 1962-1966
Financial and Technical Control Committee, 1964-1967
Special projects, 1962-1966
Annual Reports, 1962-1966
Memoranda, 1947-1969
Financial records, 1961-1966
Box 2 Correspondence, 1947-1969
Publicity, advertising, and newsletters, 1954-1968
 
Series II. Technical, 1933-1967
Box 2 Project proposals and reports, 1948-1967
Box 3 Technical notes, 1946-1967
Patents, 1950-1966
Reprints, abstracts, and addresses, 1933-1967
 
Series III. Subject File, 1951-1960
Box 4 Atomic Energy of Canada, Ltd., electromagnetic generator project
Correspondence, 1966-1967
Technical notes, 1966-1967
Intense neutron generator program, technical notes and correspondence, 1967
Axial magnetic generator, technical notes, 1965
Bonner Prize, letters of nomination, 1967
Boston Museum of Science, Van de Graaff Generator, correspondence and reports re installation, 1954-1961
Brookhaven National Laboratory, accelerator project, technical notes and contracts, 1964
Buechner, W. W., correspondence, 1966
Cloud, Robert W., correspondence, 1966-1967
Danforth, John L., correspondence, 1966
Electromagnetic generator
Design notes, 1965
Technical notes, 1966
Engineering notes, 1965-1967
M P Model Accelerator Tank, technical notes, 1964-1965
Notes on conversations with R. J. Van de Graaff, 1964-1966
Drawings (see also 2 oversize folders)
Drawing and diagrams, n.d., 1946-1957
Charts, tables, and graphs, n.d., 1953-1966
Notes to drawings and photographs, n.d.
Transparencies, 1964-1967
Box 4 Dust strippers, project notes, 1966
Electromagnetic generator
Budget, 1966-1967
Correspondence, 1967
Design notes, 1965-1966
Development program notes, 1966
Development program, report, 1966
Parts list, 1967
Production schedule, 1967
Project proposal, 1966
Progress reports, 1967
Purchase orders, 1967
Resister evaluation, report, 1967
Scale model, test results, 1966
Box 5 Technical notes, 1965-1967
Test apparatus, budget, 1967
Electrostatic analyzer, project proposal and technical notes, 1966
Enge, H.A., technical notes, n.d.
Heavy Ion Laboratory at Burlington (HILAB)
Correspondence, 1968-1969
Financial Records, 1967
Memoranda, 1966-1967
Publicity, 1969
Technical notes, 1967
Hydrazine, technical notes, 1951
Insulating Core Generator, technical notes, 1965-1966
Irradiation, reports, 1965
M P Model Accelerator, design notes, 1963
Photographs, 1946-1969
Pittsburgh Injector Project, technical notes, 1964
Research and Development Policy Committee
Dust target, technical notes, 1964-1966
M P Model Accelerator development, technical notes, proposals, and memoranda, 1964-1965
Large generator, technical notes, 1963-1967
Magnetic generators, design and technical notes, 1964-1965
T U Accelerator, technical and design notes, 1965-1967
T U tank, technical notes, memoranda, correspondence, 1965
Box 6 Robinson, Denis M., correspondence, 1966
Rose, P. H., report, ca. 1966
Technical notes and reports, 1963-1964
Technical notes, 1966
Tandem Accelerator, design notes, 1965-1966
Tandem Research Laboratory
Budgets, 1966
Memoranda, correspondence, 1967
Uranium acceleration tests, technical notes and reports, 1965-1966
Uranium program, daily reports, 1966
Van de Graaff, R. J., atomic radiation
Design notes, 1952-1953
Correspondence, 1955-1967
Devices, notes and drawings, 1960-1967
Insulating Core Transformer, design notes and patent, 1956-1957
Type A terminals, design notes, 1953
Yale University, Nuclear Structure Laboratory, address, 1966
Wegner, Harvey, technical notes, 1966