Wednesday, February 27, 2013

The Early Years of JPL: The Guggenheim Family and U.S. Rocketry



Monday, March 25, 7:00 p.m.
Nick Curry, Presenter

As a philanthropist, Daniel Guggenheim is best known as an aviation pioneer. He and his family created the Daniel Guggenheim Fund for the promotion of Aeronautics June 16, 1926 which provided individual support for physicist Robert Goddard and aviation pioneer Charles Lindberg. Goddard was a physics professor whose contributions to rocket science included one of the first high altitude rockets. Charles Lindberg was most well-known for the first non-stop Atlantic flight.

The Daniel Guggenheim Aeronautical Engineering Laboratory was established at Caltech in May of 1929 and the family continued to finance the Laboratory through 1945. While serving as the Director, Dr. Theodore von Karman participated in the formation of what was the beginning of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL).

Learn more about this fascinating era of Southern California aviation on Monday, March 25th when NICK CURRY presents a program sponsored by the San Marino Historical Society and Crowell Public Library. Nick is a 1961 graduate of San Marino High School and history has been his lifetime avocation. He has contributed to works on the Doheny family, the Chandlers, the Huntingtons, the Hearsts, the Gettys and the San Marino Centennial publication, just to name a few. He attended USC and Woodbury universities and worked for many years in the savings and loan industry.
Seating is limited and attendance to this free monthly series has been to capacity so arrive early!