Physics History Network
Over 1000 biographies of physicists and histories of institutions with information pertaining to their lives, careers, and research.
Tip: Search within this page by using Ctrl + F or ⌘ + F
Search Our Catalogs
Archives BooksCollections
Emilio Segré Visual Archives Digital Collections Oral Histories Archival Finding Aids Physics History Network Member Society Portals Ethical Cataloging StatementPreservation and Support
Donating Materials Suggest a Book Purchase Saving Archival Collections Grants to Archives Documentation Projects History NewslettersCenter for History of Physics
Scholarship & OutreachMain Navigation
HomeAboutTopic GuidesFeedbackTable of Contents
Biography
AbstractImportant DatesOccupationPlacesSubjectsRelationships
PeopleInstitutionsResources
Archival as AuthorArchival as SubjectPublished as AuthorPublished as SubjectAlbert A. Michelson
Dates
December 19, 1852 – May 9, 1931
Authorized Form of Name
Michelson, Albert A. (Albert Abraham), 1852-1931
Additional Forms of Names
Michelson, A. A. (Albert Abraham), 1852-1931
Michelson, Albert Abraham, 1852-1931
Майкельсон, Альберт Абрахам, 1852-1931
אלברט אברהם, מיכלסון, 1852-1931
Biography
Abstract
Albert A. Michelson was a phyicist studying electromagnetism and optical physics at the University of Chicago. He was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics for "his work on optical precision instruments and the spectroscopic and metrological investigations carried out with their aid."
Important Dates
December 19, 1852Birth, Strzelno (Województwo Kujawsko-Pomorskie, Poland).
1873Obtained degree, United States Naval Academy, Annapolis (Md.).
1875 – 1879Professor of Chemistry and Physics, United States Naval Academy, Annapolis (Md.).
1883 – 1889Professor of Physics, Case School of Applied Physics, Cleveland (Ohio).
1890 – 1893Professor of Physics, Clark University, Worcester (Mass.).
1893 – 1929Professor and First Head of Departmen tof Physics, University of Chicago, Chicago (Ill.).
1900President, American Physical Society.
1907Awarded Copley Medal, Royal Society.
1907Awarded Nobel Prize in Physics "his work on optical precision instruments and the spectroscopic and metrological investigations carried out with their aid".
1916Awarded Draper Medal, National Academy of Sciences.
1923 – 1927President, National Academy of Sciences.
May 9, 1931Death, Pasadena (Calif.).
Occupation
Electromagnetism and optical physicist.
Places
Birth
Strzelno (Województwo Kujawsko-Pomorskie, Poland)
Undergraduate Education
Graduate Education
Employment
Death
Subjects
Optical physics and engineering.
Relationships
People
Family
Livingston, Dorothy Michelson
Daughter.
Michelson, Edna Stanton
Wife.
Advisors & Collaborators
Gale, Henry Gordon, 1874-1942
Advised by Michelson at University of Chicago.
Helmholtz, Hermann von, 1821-1894
PhD advisor at Physikalish-Technische Reichsanstalt.
Millikan, Robert Andrews, 1868-1953
Advised by Michelson at Columbia University.
Morley, Edward Williams, 1838-1923
Conducted Michelson-Morley experiment which failed to detect evidence of the existence of the luminiferous ether and both employed at University of Chicago.
Colleagues
Both employed at University of Chicago.
Both employed at University of Chicago.
Both employed at University of Chicago.
Swann, W. F. G. (William Francis Gray), 1884-1962
Both employed at University of Chicago.
Thomas, Tracy Y. (Tracy Yerkes), 1899-1983
Both employed at University of Chicago.
Additional
Birge, Raymond T. (Raymond Thayer), 1887-
Cady, Walter G. (Walter Guyton), 1874-1974
Chladek, Edward A.
Compton, Betty Charity McCloskey, 1916-
Darrow, Karl K. (Karl Kelchner), 1891-
Gingrich, Newell Shiffer, 1906-
Goldberg, Stanley
Hale, George Ellery, 1868-1938
Heaviside, Oliver, 1850-1925
Hoag, J. Barton, 1898-1962
Jaffe, Bernard, 1896-1986
Jesse, William Polk, 1891-1974
Knudsen, Vern Oliver, 1893-1974
Lenzen, Victor F. (Victor Fritz), 1890-1975
Loeb, Leonard B. (Leonard Benedict), 1891-
Loeb took graduate courses from Michelson at University of Chicago.
McAllister, D. T.
Newton, Isaac, 1642-1727
Pease, F. G. (Francis Gladheim), 1881-
Rayleigh, John William Strutt, Baron, 1842-1919
Richardson, O. W. (Owen Willans), 1879-1959
Rowland, Henry Augustus, 1848-1901
Sawyer, Ralph A. (Ralph Alanson), 1895-1978
Severinghaus, Willard L. (Willard Lesly), 1882-1947
Shackelford, Benjamin Estill, 1891-
Silberstein, Ludwik, 1872-1948
Stratton, Samuel W. (Samuel Wesley), 1861-1931
Wadsworth, Frank Lawton Olcott, 1867-1936
Wolcott, Edson Ray, 1877-1966
Zeleny, Anthony, 1870-1947
Institutions
Major Positions
Case Western Reserve University. Department of Physics
Professor of Physics.
Clark University (Worcester, Mass.) Department of Physics
Professor of Physics.
United States Naval Academy
Obtained degree (1873). Professor of Chemistry and Physics.
University of Chicago. Department of Physics
Founded the department and Professor of Physics.
Professional Activities & Affiliations
Académie française
Associate.
American Association for the Advancement of Science
President.
President.
Carnegie Institution of Washington
Mount Wilson Observatory
National Academy of Sciences (U.S.)
President and awarded 1916 Draper Medal.
Optical Society (Great Britain).
Royal Astronomical Society
Fellow.
Royal Society (Great Britain)
Fellow.
United States Naval Observatory
United States. National Bureau of Standards
Resources
Archival Resources
Author
Albert A. Michaelson papers, 1891-1969.
The Joseph Regenstein Library. Department of Special Collections
University of Chicago
1100 East 57th Street, Chicago, IL 60637, USA
Albert Michelson papers and notebook on the velocity of light, 1878-1930.
Niels Bohr Library & Archives
American Institute of Physics
One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA
Albert Michelson papers, 1803-1989 (bulk 1861-1965).
Nimitz Library Special Collections Division
United States Naval Academy
Annapolis, MD 21402, USA
Edward Williams Morley papers, 1833-1923 (bulk 1863-1899).
Manuscript Division
Library of Congress
James Madison Memorial Building, First Street and Independence Avenue SE, Washington, DC 20540, USA
Experimental determination of the velocity of light: treatise, circa 1882.
The John Hay Library. University Archives
Brown University
Providence, RI 02912, USA
University Archives
Northwestern University
Evanston, IL 60201, USA
Mount Wilson Observatory records of George Ellery Hale, 1901-1925.
Henry E. Huntington Library
1151 Oxford Road, San Marino, CA 91108, USA
O. W. Richardson papers, 1897-1959 (bulk 1920-1940).
Harry Ransom Humanities Research Center
University of Texas at Austin
P.O. Drawer 7219, Austin, TX 78713-7219, USA
Willard L. Severinghaus papers, 1895-1947.
Rare Book and Manuscript Library
Columbia University
Butler Library, 6th Floor East, New York, NY 10027, USA
Subject
A tribute to Albert A. Michelson, 1969.
Niels Bohr Library & Archives
American Institute of Physics
One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA
Albert Abraham Michelson, undated.
Niels Bohr Library & Archives
American Institute of Physics
One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA
American Astronomical Society records, 1897-1988 (bulk 1920-1980).
Niels Bohr Library & Archives
American Institute of Physics
One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA
Anthony Zeleny autobiography, circa 1945.
Niels Bohr Library & Archives
American Institute of Physics
One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA
Baron John William Strutt Rayleigh papers, 1864-1919 [microfilm].
Phillips Laboratory. Geophysics Directorate. Research Library.
United States Air Force
Hanscom Air Force Base, MA 01731, USA
Benjamin E. Shackelford papers, 1913-1916.
The Joseph Regenstein Library. Department of Special Collections
University of Chicago
1100 East 57th Street, Chicago, IL 60637, USA
Bicentennial session on the history of pioneering American physicists [sound recording], 1976 April 28.
Niels Bohr Library & Archives
American Institute of Physics
One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA
Case Western Reserve University Physics Department history [website], 2009.
Niels Bohr Library & Archives
American Institute of Physics
One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA
Clark University records, circa 1891-1950.
Goddard Library. Archives and Special Collections
Clark University
Worcester, MA 01610-11477, USA
Collection on Sir Isaac Newton, 1684-1949.
Department of Special Collections and University Archives
Stanford University
Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305, USA
Edson Ray Wolcott autobiography, 1951.
Niels Bohr Library & Archives
American Institute of Physics
One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA
Edward Morley collection on Albert A. Michelson.
Manuscript Division
Library of Congress
James Madison Memorial Building, First Street and Independence Avenue SE, Washington, DC 20540, USA
Engineering drawings for Edward Williams Morley and Albert Abraham Michelson's laboratories at Adelbert College of Western Reserve University.
Niels Bohr Library & Archives
American Institute of Physics
One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA
F. L. O. Wadsworth correspondence, circa 1889-1892.
Goddard Library. Archives and Special Collections
Clark University
Worcester, MA 01610-11477, USA
Francis G. Pease papers, 1850-1937 (bulk 1905-1937).
Henry E. Huntington Library
1151 Oxford Road, San Marino, CA 91108, USA
Francis Gladheim Pease addenda, 1908-2001 (bulk 1908-1937).
Henry E. Huntington Library
1151 Oxford Road, San Marino, CA 91108, USA
From midshipman to physicist, 1964.
Niels Bohr Library & Archives
American Institute of Physics
One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA
George Ellery Hale papers, 1882-1938.
Institute Archives
California Institute of Technology
1201 East California Blvd. (Mail Code 015A-74), Pasadena, CA 91125, USA
Henry Augustus Rowland papers, 1793-1970.
Special Collections, Milton S. Eisenhower Library
Johns Hopkins University
3400 N. Charles St., Baltimore, MD 21218, USA
Henry Crew papers [microform], 1833-1967, (bulk 1880-1940).
Niels Bohr Library & Archives
American Institute of Physics
One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA
History of metrology and today's frontiers of measurement [sound recording], 2012 March 1.
Niels Bohr Library & Archives
American Institute of Physics
One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA
History of physics at Clark [University] [website], 2009.
Niels Bohr Library & Archives
American Institute of Physics
One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA
J. Barton Hoag papers, 1914-1963 (bulk 1917-1962).
Niels Bohr Library & Archives
American Institute of Physics
One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA
Leonard B. Loeb student notebooks, 1914-1915.
Niels Bohr Library & Archives
American Institute of Physics
One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA
Letter and annotated reprints relating to the application of interference methods to astronomical measurements, 1890.
Niels Bohr Library & Archives
American Institute of Physics
One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA
Ludwik Silberstein letters from Oliver Heaviside, Max Planck, and Albert Abraham Michelson, 1892-1923.
Niels Bohr Library & Archives
American Institute of Physics
One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA
Michelson and his beloved aether, undated.
Niels Bohr Library & Archives
American Institute of Physics
One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA
Newell S. Gingrich student notebooks, 1927-1929.
Niels Bohr Library & Archives
American Institute of Physics
One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA
Niels Bohr scientific correspondence, supplement, 1910-1962.
Niels Bohr Archive
Blegdamsvej 17, Copenhagen, Denmark
Oral history interview with Betty Compton, 1968 April 11 and 15.
Niels Bohr Library & Archives
American Institute of Physics
One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA
Oral history interview with Elmer Hutchisson, 1970 October 22.
Niels Bohr Library & Archives
American Institute of Physics
One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA
Oral history interview with Harvey Fletcher, 1964 May 15.
Niels Bohr Library & Archives
American Institute of Physics
One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA
Oral history interview with J. Barton Hoag, circa 1965.
Niels Bohr Library & Archives
American Institute of Physics
One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA
Oral history interview with Karl K. Darrow, 1964 April 2 and 10 June.
Niels Bohr Library & Archives
American Institute of Physics
One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA
Oral history interview with Leonard B. Loeb, 1962 August 7.
Niels Bohr Library & Archives
American Institute of Physics
One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA
Oral history interview with Max Born, 1960 June 1, 1962 October 17 and 18.
Niels Bohr Library & Archives
American Institute of Physics
One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA
Oral history interview with Robert S. Shankland, 1974 August 20 and 21.
Niels Bohr Library & Archives
American Institute of Physics
One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA
Oral history interview with Ronald Lyman McFarlan, 1979 December 18.
Niels Bohr Library & Archives
American Institute of Physics
One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA
Oral history interview with Vern Oliver Knudsen, 1964 May 18.
Niels Bohr Library & Archives
American Institute of Physics
One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA
Oral history interview with Vern Oliver Knudsen, 1964.
University Research Library. Department of Special Collections
University of California, Los Angeles
Los Angeles, CA 90024-1575, USA
Oral history interview with Vern Oliver Knudsen, 1966 December 20 to 1969 June 3.
University Research Library. Department of Special Collections
University of California, Los Angeles
Los Angeles, CA 90024-1575, USA
Oral history interview with Walter Guyton Cady, 1963 August 28 and 29.
Niels Bohr Library & Archives
American Institute of Physics
One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA
Papers of physicists and astronomers in Hoover Library, 1918-1965.
Herbert Hoover Presidential Library
West Branch, IA 52358, USA
Ralph Alanson Sawyer student notes, 1916-1917.
Niels Bohr Library & Archives
American Institute of Physics
One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA
Recorded version of the speeches at the unveiling of the bust of Albert Abraham Michelson for the Hall of Fame for Great Americans at New York University, 1973.
Niels Bohr Library & Archives
American Institute of Physics
One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA
Samuel W. Stratton papers, 1881-1934.
Institute Archives and Special Collections
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
M.I.T. Libraries, Rm. 14N-118, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA
Scientists and science collection, 1870-1948.
Department of Special Collections and University Archives
Stanford University
Stanford, CA 94305, USA
Teacher, researcher, and administrator: transcript, 1966-1969.
University Research Library. Department of Special Collections
University of California, Los Angeles
Los Angeles, CA 90024-1575, USA
Three glimpses of Albert Abraham Michelson at the peak of his career [motion picture] /assembled and edited by the staff of the Michelson Museum at the Naval Ordnance Test Station.
Niels Bohr Library & Archives
American Institute of Physics
One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA
United States Naval Observatory records, 1830-1900.
Manuscript Division
Library of Congress
James Madison Memorial Building, First Street and Independence Avenue SE, Washington, DC 20540, USA
Victor F. Lenzen letter to Dorothy Michelson Stevens, 1965.
Niels Bohr Library & Archives
American Institute of Physics
One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA
William P. Jesse scientific autobiography, 1968.
Niels Bohr Library & Archives
American Institute of Physics
One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA
William Polk Jesse student notebooks, 1919-1921.
Niels Bohr Library & Archives
American Institute of Physics
One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA
Published Resources
Author
Studies in optics by A.A. Michelson.
Subject
Albert A. Michelson Nobel Prize biography.
Albert A. Michelson; America's first Nobel prize physicist.
Albert Abraham Michelson National Academy of Sciences biographical memoir.
Michelson and the speed of light.
Raymond T. Birge comments on A. A. Michelson, 1962.
Science and the instrument-maker: Michelson, Sperry, and the speed of light / Thomas Parke Hughes.
The Michelson era in American science, 1870-1930 / editors, Stanley Goldberg, Roger H. Stuewer.