History of Technology Memorials

The Society for the History of Technology has had thousands of members since its founding in 1958. In the past, our journal Technology and Culture occasionally posted memorials of distinguished contributors to our field. With this new online feature, the Society aims to honor the contributions of many more. It is an effort to encourage interest in the history of technology and make information about historians of technology more widely accessible.

The memorials are intended to recognize people who have contributed to the study and understanding of the history of technology. Membership in SHOT is not a requirement for potential nominees, but SHOT is a natural venue in which candidates are expected to be found. Scholarship is a primary realm in which contributions have been made, but not the sole one: consideration will be given to advancement of public and scholarly understanding of technology, no matter the venue or career path.

The SHOT Council has asked the Memorials Committee of SAGE (SHOT: A Gathering of Elders), a SHOT Special Interest Group, to assume responsibility for managing this process with the support of the editorial team of Technology and Culture and the SHOT Secretary’s office. The SAGE Memorials Committee identifies, recruits, and advises authors of memorials; edits draft memorials; and recommends memorials for confirmation and posting on the SHOT web page.

The SAGE Memorial Committee consists of: Fred Allen, Wiebe Bijker (chair), Ruth Cowan, Arne Kaijser, Pamela Long, Bob Post, Alex Roland, Rosalind Williams.

Nominations for memorialization can be made at any time to the chair of the SAGE Memorial Committee: Wiebe Bijker ([email protected]). Anyone may make a nomination, suggest the merits of the nominee, and even volunteer to draft a memorial, though the last is not required. Other reactions and suggestions are welcome too.

To get started, we have posted memorials previously published in Technology and Culture, which are identified with a link to the prior publication.

2025

Harry Lintsen

International Scholar | Advisory Council | Executive Council Member

Founder of the history of technology as an academic field in the Netherlands

Bruce Sinclair

SHOT President | da Vinci Medal

Historian at the University of Toronto’s Institute for the History and Philosophy of Science and Technology

2009

Edward T. Layton, Jr.

Leonardo da Vinci Medal (life-time achievement) | SHOT President | Dexter Prize

American historian of technology

2004

Eugene S. Ferguson

SHOT President | Abbott Payson Usher Award | Leonardo da Vinci Medal (life-time achievement) | Co-Founder of SHOT

American historian and author of the first Bibliography of the History of Technology in the United States

Robert P. Multhauf

Leonardo da Vinci Medal (life-time achievement) | SHOT President | Usher Prize

American historian, museum curator, director, scientific scholar, and author

2001

Brooke Hindle
SHOT President | Leonardo da Vinci Medal (life-time achievement) | Dibner Award
American historian and director of the Smithsonian’s National Museum of History and Technology (later renamed the National Museum of American History)