Henry Way Kendall Papers
Scope and Contents
This collection comprises documents, publications, correspondence, photographs, recordings and memorabilia that provide a comprehensive view of the life, professional work, and personal avocations of Henry Way Kendall (1926-1999). The collection also includes papers of the Union of Concerned Scientists, of which Dr. Kendall was a founder and leader, and academic materials from MIT, where he spent his career as a professor of physics. The collection includes some materials from his childhood, but most are from his adult life.
Dates
- Creation: 1930-2000
Conditions Governing Access
In general, there is no restriction on access to the collection for research use. Particularly fragile items may be restricted.
All requests for materials from this collection must be made in advance. Contact archives@amherst.edu to arrange access.
Conditions Governing Use
Requests for permission to publish material from the collection should be directed to the Archives and Special Collections. It is the responsibility of the researcher to identify and satisfy the holders of all copyrights.
Biographical / Historical
Henry Way Kendall was born December 9, 1928 in Boston, MA, the eldest child of Henry P. and Evelyn Way Kendall. He grew up on Moose Hill Farm in Sharon, attending area schools and Deerfield Academy, and Sharon remained his primary residence for the rest of his life. He attended the Merchant Marine Academy in 1945-1946, then enrolled in Amherst College, graduating in 1950. He earned a doctorate in physics from MIT in 1955. He did post-graduate work at Brookhaven National Laboratory and then a research appointment at Stanford, where he began the long collaboration with Jerome Friedman and Richard Taylor on researching subatomic particles that would later earn them the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1990. He returned to MIT in 1961 to join the physics faculty there, and was later appointed to the Julius Stratton Chair in Physics. In the 1960s he was a member of the JASON Defense Advisory Group. In 1969 he was one of the founders of the Union of Concerned Scientists, in which he remained a leader, serving as its chair from 1974 until his death. Active and highly influential on matters concerning energy, environmental preservation, and nuclear disarmament, he wrote, spoke and gave testimony on all of these issues. He and Ann Goldman Pine were married in 1972 and divorced in 1988. Among his many interests, he was an accomplished mountain climber, deep sea diver, and nature photographer. He died while diving in Wakulla Springs, Florida on February 15, 1999.
Extent
tbd Linear feet
Language of Materials
English
A Note on Folder Titles
Most folder titles within quotation marks designate folder titles imposed by Henry Way Kendall.
- Author
- Jessica Dampier, Norfolk Charitable Trust Transition Archivist
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
Repository Details
Part of the Amherst College Archives and Special Collections Repository
Amherst College Archives & Special Collections
Robert Frost Library
61 Quadrangle Drive
Amherst MA 01002-5000
(413) 542-2299
archives@amherst.edu