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Hugh S. Lippman Papers

 Collection
Identifier: MS-370

Scope and Content

The Hugh S. Lippman Papers document many of the projects completed and correspondence exchanged at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, as well as the order of personnel in many divisions. By using these documents, researchers can discover how Mr. Lippman was involved in these projects, a vast majority of which took place during the Cold War.

Series I: Personal Papers

This series documents Mr. Lippman's career at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in the form of official job descriptions, newspaper articles, and work-related correspondence. Also included are transcriptions of several talks and speeches that he gave at various conferences and meetings.

Series II: Materiel Division

The departments in which Mr. Lippman worked went through several name changes and fell under different areas of command; therefore, the series are arranged according to the area of command under which the documents fall. All materials related to Mr. Lippman's time at Materiel Division are collected in this series. Most prominent in this series are the technical reports and memos relating to projects undertaken in the Materiel Division between 1929 and 1942.

Series III: Aeronautical Systems Division

The largest part of this series is the extensive collection of staff rosters and flow charts for the ASD, WADC, and WADD. The series also includes project descriptions for the ASD.

Series IV: Aircraft Laboratory

Mr. Lippman directed the Aircraft Laboratory for a portion of his career, so this series is the largest of the different divisions in the collection. Included this series are project lists and reports, technical reports and memos, staff rosters, and general information, including history, about the Aircraft Laboratory.

Series V: Patent Litigation Papers

The papers in this series relate to patents filed by the departments in which Mr. Lippman worked throughout his career at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base. The patents are arranged numerically by ascending patent number, and the names of inventions are noted in the finding aid. Because patents fall under different categories and because patent issue dates vary, the patent files are not in chronological order. Many of the patent files include blueprint drawings of the inventions, as well as hand-written notes regarding court cases. Blueprints for Patent #1,400,177 are located in the oversize area, as well as blueprints for C.C. (Court of Claims) #43479. (Location 74, Folders 1 and 2)

Series VI: Dayton-Wright Company Correspondence

While it is unclear as to why Mr. Lippman had these documents as a part of his work-related papers, they remain in the collection because the whereabouts of the administrative papers of the Dayton-Wright Company are unknown. The main part of this series is the correspondence composed between the Dayton-Wright Company and the Manufacturer's Aircraft Association. This correspondence, composed between 1919 and 1923, documents the communication between the two companies, including letters regarding the exchange of funds as they bought ideas from each other.

Series VII: McCook Field Alumni Reunion

Hugh Lippman was instrumental in planning this reunion, which took place in 1967. Among his planning materials were staff lists and charts, photographs, and phone directories. Mr. Lippman also recorded "Memories of McCook Field" in 1989. The photographs are located in Series VIII.

Series VIII: Photographs

Included in this series are photographs of airplanes taken by Materiel Division. Also, the photographs Mr. Lippman used in preparation for the McCook Field Alumni Reunion are in this series. Many of the photographs are general photographs of airplanes and personnel at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base. Box 7 contains, in its original order, the pages of a scrapbook given to Mr. Lippman by coworker M. Cassell.

Series IX: Aircraft Blueprints and Data Charts (Oversize)

The data tabulation charts list hundreds of different aircraft types and models and their performance results in areas such as weights and areas, speed, stress analysis, and many others. In addition, blueprints for the Driggs Dart Metal Wing airplane and other miscellaneous aircraft blueprints can be found in this series. The final oversize folder contains oversize photographs and flight maps.

  1. WADC--Wright Air Development Command
  2. WADD--Wright Air Development Division
  3. ASD--Aeronautical Systems Division

Dates

  • Creation: 1923-1989
  • Creation: Majority of material found within 1923-1967

Creator

Restrictions on Access

There are no restrictions on accessing material in this collection.

Restrictions on Use

Copyright restrictions may apply. Unpublished manuscripts are protected by copyright. Permission to publish, quote or reproduce must be secured from the repository and the copyright holder.

Biography of Hugh S. Lippman

Hugh S. Lippman was born in Dayton, Ohio, on October 19, 1902. He attended Van Cleve School and graduated from Steele High School before beginning his studies at the University of Illinois and the Ohio State University. He started his career at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in 1923, working in experimental airplane component design at McCook Field. One project in which he was involved during this time was developing the first United States Air Force cockpit, as well as creating a scale mannequin to be used in testing.

In 1945, Mr. Lippman, along with nine other civilian employees at Air Technical Services Command, was awarded an emblem for meritorious civilian service during World War II. He received this for his overall work on Air Force aircraft. Newspapers lauded him as a great contributor, but Mr. Lippman was very humble, insisting that he was just doing his job.

Mr. Lippman moved on to take a number of different roles at WPAFB, including Project Engineer, Civilian Director of Evaluations (Engineering Division), Laboratory Staff, Civilian Chief of Operations, Technical Director of the Aircraft Laboratory, and finally Technical Director/Deputy for Test and Support. He retired from WPAFB in 1965 after a nearly 43-year career. Mr. Lippman passed away in 1989.

Extent

4.5 linear feet

Language of Materials

English

Abstract

The collection includes biographical and career information about Mr. Lippman; business correspondence; technical reports from Materiel Division, Aeronautical Systems Division, and the Aircraft Laboratory; staff rosters and flow charts for Wright-Patterson Air Force Base; records from litigation cases involving aircraft component patents; correspondence between the Dayton-Wright Company and the Manufacturers Aircraft Association, and photographs from McCook and Wright Fields. Most items are related to the work that Mr. Lippman was involved in at Wright Patterson Air Force Base.

Statement of Arrangement

The Hugh S. Lippman Papers are organized into nine series:

  1. Series I: Personal and Biographical Information
  2. Series II: Materiel Division
  3. Series III: Aeronautical Systems Division
  4. Series IV: Aircraft Laboratory
  5. Series V: Litigation Records for Aircraft Patents
  6. Series VI: Dayton-Wright Company Correspondence
  7. Series VII: McCook Field Alumni Reunion Materials
  8. Series VIII: Photographs
  9. Series IX: Airplane Blueprints and Data Charts

Acquisition Information

The Hugh S. Lippman Papers were given to Wright State University Special Collections and Archives by Nancy Lippman Hoke, Mr. Lippman's daughter, in January of 2007.

Title
Guide to the Hugh S. Lippman Papers (MS-370)
Status
Completed
Author
Finding aid prepared by Andrea Green, March 2008.
Date
2015
Description rules
Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language of description
English
Script of description
Latin

Repository Details

Part of the Special Collections Repository

Contact:
Wright State University Libraries
Special Collections and Archives
3640 Colonel Glenn Hwy
Dayton OH 45435-0001 USA
937-775-2092