Archives Center, National Museum of American History

David Taylor Model Basin Collection

Summary

Collection ID:
NMAH.AC.1563
Creators:
David W. Taylor Model Basin
Dates:
1856, 1878, 1925-1971
bulk 1940s
Languages:
Some materials in
Russian
.
Physical Description:
2 Cubic feet
4 boxes
Repository:
Collection documents the activities of the David Taylor Model Basin.

Content Description

Content Description
Collection consists of a report by Mills Dean III, titled "Frontier Days of Electronic Measurements of the Taylor Model Basin." The report contains photographs of the model basin and diagrams of its construction. The photographs document equipment, facilities staff, and testing activities of the David Taylor Model Basin in the 1940s. Photographs are of cathode ray tubes recording channels; circuits; diagrams; a dynamometer; sections of ships at sea; and a static and dynamic ship analog computer. Also included are photographs of the David Taylor Model Basin (exterior and interior shots); electronics laboratory; Model Basin staff; and the 24th Annual Meeting of the Eastern Section of the Seismological Society of America.

Arrangement

Arrangement
Collection is arranged into 5 series.
Series 1: Vernon E. Benjamin Materials, 1946-1947
Series 2: George W. Cook Materials, 1945-1973
Series 3: Mills Dean III Materials, 1946-1969
Series 4: Papers, Reports and Writings, 1856, 1878, 1925-1971
Series 5: Photographs, 1943-1952

Historical

Historical
The David Taylor Model Basin (DTMB) was conceived, designed, and built from 1937-1939 by the United States Navy for building and testing ship models in accordance with the most modern and accurate methods.
The facility was named after David Watson Taylor (1864-1940), a naval architect, rear admiral and the chief of the Bureau of Construction and Repair for the Navy. Taylor oversaw the design and construction of naval aircraft and ships. Taylor conceived of and designed the Washington Navy Yard's Experimental Model Basin (EMB) in 1896. By the 1930s, the EMB had become inadequate for research, and a new research facility--David Taylor Model Basin--was built in West Bethesda, Maryland. It is now known as the Naval Surface Warfare Center (NSWC)
Source
Historic Mechanical Engineering Landmark, David Taylor Model Basin, 1939, Naval Surface Warfare Center, Carderock Division, West Bethesda, Maryland, January 30, 1998

Administration

Author
Alison Oswald
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Acquired circa 1979; immediate source of acquisition unknown.
Processing Information
Collection processed by Alison Oswald, archivist, 2023.
Custodial History
Collection transferred to the Archives Center from the Division of Work and Industry in February 2022.

Using the Collection

Conditions Governing Access
Collection is open for research. Unprotected photographs must be handled with gloves.
Preferred Citation
David Taylor Model Basin Collection, Archives Center, National Museum of American History
Conditions Governing Use
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.

Keywords

Keywords table of terms and types.
Keyword Terms Keyword Types
Diagrams Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Field notes Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Patents Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Photographs Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Publications Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Ships Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Testing Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
United States--Navy Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
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