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History
Our laboratory originated in the Physical Laboratory of the Physics
department, which was established by Professor Edward C. Pickering in
1870. The Heat Measurements Laboratory became a separate entity in 1889,
under the leadership of Professor Silas W. Holman ('76). Professor Charles
L. Norton ('93) took charge of the laboratory in 1897. The original lab,
at MIT's Boston Campus, is shown in some of the photos that MIT submitted
to St. Louis World's Fair in 1904 (photo1, photo2). Professor Gordon B.
Wilkes ('11) became the director of the lab during the 1920's. In 1934,
the Heat Measurements Laboratory (and Wilkes) joined the Mechanical
Engineering Department, and the lab soon moved into the basement of
Building 7. Professor Warren M. Rohsenow succeeded Wilkes as lab director
in 1956, a position he held until 1985. The lab was named in Rohsenow's
honor in 1992.
Complete history of the Rohsenow lab, 1870-present.
History of heat engineering in ME, 1865-1945.
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