Guide to the Fred Terry Rogers papers, 1929-1956

Fred Terry Rogers (1914-1956) was a notable geophysicist, astrophysicist, mathematician and university professor during the 1930s through the 1950s. He was born in Henderson, Kentucky but was raised in Dallas, Texas from the age of seven. Rogers attended the Rice Institute in Houston, Texas from 1931 to 1939 where he received both his undergraduate and graduate training in physics and mathematics. His professional career started at the Rice Institute as a research assistant and continued at a number of other academic institutions and government agencies. While at Rice, Rogers met his future wife, Marguerite Moilliet, who also was studying physics at the Institute. They married in 1937 and became a research team during World War II. They had five children, Alexander and Fred Terry III, Charles Galton Rogers, Robert Barclay Rogers, and Alison Marguerite Rogers. Fred Terry Rogers died in 1956 whille working at the University of South Carolina.

Scope and Contents

The Fred Terry Rogers Papers, consisting of 13 document boxes and twenty-five bound volumes, are a record of the professional career in academia and physics of Fred and Marguerite Rogers from 1931 to 1956. This collection is comprised primarily of correspondence, research and lecture notes and published works.

These papers provide a detailed record of Fred and Marguerite's work during their studies and employment at a number of academic and government institutions. From their early beginnings at the Rice Institute in the 1930s, this collection follows these two scientists to the Universities of Chicago, California, New Mexico and Houston, through the Lukas-Harold Corporation and Naval Ordnance Plant during the Second World War, to the Naval Research Laboratory, the Oak Ridge National Laboratory, the Naval Ordnance Test Station and the Universities of North and South Carolina. Much of their research did not stop at one particular institution but spanned over a number of them and lasted several years. Particular research areas include: Beta-particle decay, the fracture of metals, radioactivity, convection currents and ballistic penetration.

In addition to his research work, Fred Rogers also had duties as a lecturer at some of the scholarly institutions that employed him. Both Fred and Marguerite belonged to a number of professional societies that reflected their interests such as the American Physical Society, the American Mathematics Society, and the American Society of University Professors. The information in this collection, therefore, is quite varied and provides a deep look into the lives, work and interests of physical scientists from the 1930s to the 1950s

Restrictions

Access Restrictions

This material is open for research.

Restrictions on Use

Permission to publish from the Fred Terry Rogers papers must be obtained from the Woodson Research Center, Fondren Library, Rice University.

Related Material

Administrative Information

Preferred Citation

The Fred Terry Rogers Papers, 1929-1956, MS 29, Woodson Research Center, Fondren Library, Rice University

Acquisition Information

The Fred Terry Rogers Papers came to Rice University in November of 1969 via the American Institute of Physics. Marguerite Rogers sent the papers to the American Institute of Physics in 1968 for examination and recommendation concerning a permanent repository.

Detailed Description of the Collection