History of physics in the Caltech Archives, and now on the Web: Hale, Glaser, and more

The Caltech Archives is digitizing two major collections in the history of physics and astronomy, consisting of the papers of solar astronomer George Ellery Hale (1868–1938) and particle physicist Donald A. Glaser (1926–2013). We are also contributing to the history of physics through new acquisitions of Caltech scientists’ papers and a new exhibition on visual thinking in the work and life of Richard Feynman. The Hale Papers, wrote Daniel Kevles in 1968, “is one of the richest sources for the history of science in the United States in the early twentieth century.” In 1968, Caltech and the Carnegie Institution of Washington celebrated the centennial of Hale’s birth by publishing this manuscript collection, edited by Kevles, on 100 reels of microfilm. Now, 50 years later, Caltech, the Carnegie Institution, and the Huntington Library are collaborating to scan this microfilm and publish the papers on the web. We plan to have them publicly available by Hale’s 150th birthday, June 29, through our website and the Online Archive of California