Converted to EAD3 : Encoded Archival Description (EAD), Version 3 : Release: 1.1.1 : Release Date: 2019-12-16. Validating against latest version of schema.
Contact information: http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.mss/mss.contact
Catalog Record: https://lccn.loc.gov/mm97084060
Collection material in English
The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the LC Catalog. They are grouped by name of person or organization, by subject or location, and by occupation and listed alphabetically.
The papers of Nathaniel C. Gerson, research physicist, were given to the Library of Congress by Gerson in two installments from 1997 to 1999.
The Gerson Papers were processed in 1999. The finding aid was revised in 2007.
The status of copyright in the unpublished writings of N. C. Gerson is governed by the Copyright Law of the United States (Title 17, U.S.C.).
The papers of N. C. Gerson are open to research. Researchers are advised to contact the Manuscript Reading Room prior to visiting. Many collections are stored off-site and advance notice is needed to retrieve these items for research use.
Researchers wishing to cite this collection should include the following information: Container number, N. C. Gerson Papers, Manuscript Division, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C.
The papers of Nathaniel Charles Gerson (1915-2002) span the years 1928-1998, with the bulk of the items concentrated in the period 1950-1970. The collection focuses on Gerson's career as a research physicist, particularly on his involvement with the International Geophysical Year (1957-1958). The collection consists of four series: General Correspondence, United States National Committee for the International Geophysical Year, Writings, and Subject File. Included in the papers are biographical material, correspondence, drafts and offprints of scientific papers, memoranda, minutes, notes and equations, reports, research material, rosters, schematics, and miscellaneous material.
The General Correspondence series consists of letters sent and received primarily from family members, friends, colleagues, employers, business suppliers, and professional organizations, such as Mitre Corporation, Syracuse University Research Corporation, American Geophysical Union, National Academy of Sciences, and companies supplying scientific equipment for expeditions. The series also contains correspondence relating to the education of Gerson's children, recommendations for membership in the Cosmos Club, with which Gerson was very involved, and lists of books and serials on physics donated to the library at Brandeis University.
The United States National Committee for the International Geophysical Year series is the largest in the collection. From 1953 to 1957 Gerson served as secretary of both the organization and its executive committee. The series provides information regarding the planning and execution of projects and expeditions undertaken during the International Geophysical Year. Subjects include budget estimates on projects, ballistics research and rocket exploration of the upper atmosphere, expeditions to the Arctic and Antarctica, and cooperative efforts with the Soviet Union.
The Writings series is organized in two parts. Writings by Gerson include drafts and offprints of scientific papers dealing with various aspects in physics. Writings by others represent drafts and offprints by colleagues and associates. Used frequently by Gerson as reference material, these relate to meteorology, geomagnetism, aurora and airglow, ionospheric physics, solar activity, cosmic rays, glaciology, radio propagation, oceanography, rockets and satellites, seismology, and gravity.
The Subject File consists of both personal and professional material. The former includes biographical material and information relating to the Cosmos Club. Files more professional in nature include lists of classified records destroyed, notes and equations on physics, and issues of
This collection is arranged in four series:
Letters sent and received with attached and related material.
Arranged chronologically.
Budget material, correspondence, memoranda, minutes, reports, research material, rosters, schematics, and miscellaneous material.
Arranged by type of material and chronologically therein.
Drafts and offprints of scientific papers and articles.
Arranged under authorship by Gerson or by others and chronologically therein.
Biographical material, lists, notes, schematics, and miscellaneous material.
Arranged alphabetically by subject, type of material, or name of individual or organization and chronologically therein.