The records of the Department of Aeronautics span the entire period that the department existed in the School of Engineering, 1946-1961. The record group is arranged as follows: Subgroup 1: Departmental Administration, 1946-1960 Series 1: Departmental Subject Files, 1946-1960 Series 2: University Subject Files, 1946-1960 Subgroup 2: Professional Papers of Francis H. Clauser, 1946-1961 Series 1: Correspondence with Colleagues and Corporations, 1946-1960 Subseries 1: Subject Files, 1946-1960 Subseries 2: Alphabetical Correspondence, 1948-1960 Series 2: Correspondence with Professional Organizations, 1946-1960 Series 3: Correspondence with Government Agencies, 1946-1961 These records are those of Francis H. Clauser, chairman of the department and are almost solely his correspondence with colleagues at Johns Hopkins, other universities, governmental agencies and laboratories, industry and professional societies. The records cover such subjects as the plans and construction of the Aeronautics Building and the supersonic wind tunnel, the development of the curriculum of the School of Engineering and the research carried on by the members of the Department of Aeronautics. The records present a complete history of the department and reflect the efforts necessary to build a new department largely reliant on government contracts and funding. Clauser's files also reflect the standing of the members of the department individually and collectively in the field of aeronautics for the time period, through such records as research proposal files, papers presented at professional societies, and membership on government committees.