William J. Hammer Papers

This series consists of correspondence, mostly incoming, from 1879-1935, but also includes diaries, notebooks, biographical information, patent material, pamphlets, writings by Hammer, and a badge, 1925. The correspondence consists mostly of letters to and from Hammer regarding his project of thirty-four years, his Historical Collection of Incandescent Electric Lamps for which he built a permanent home in New York City. There are also many letters from companies and businesses, universities and individuals, for whom Hammer served as a consultant. Some of Hammer's correspondents were well known scientists of the day: Alexander Graham Bell, Henri Becquerel, Pierre and Madam Curie, Lord Kelvin, and Secretary S.P. Langley of the Smithsonian Institution, to mention a few. There is extensive correspondence related to Hammer's research, including his work on selenium and radium. Also included is correspondence between Hammer and professional societies in which he held membership. The correspondence between 1925 and 1935 is devoted to the cataloguing of his collection and to the establishment of a museum at Dearborn, Michigan, in honor of Thomas A. Edison, a project Henry Ford agreed to fund.