William Hough "Bill" Cook Jr. Papers

Collection

Identifier: 2017-10-26

The William Hough “Bill” Cook, Jr. Papers are comprised of documents, photographs, newspaper clippings, and memorabilia pertaining to the life and work of Bill Cook, Jr. A significant portion of this collection is made up of correspondence, both personal and professional. Major topics include the Boeing high-speed wind tunnel, the B-17, B-29, and B-47 bombers, the development of the YC-14 STOL aircraft, and research on supersonic transport. Some files contain contextual information prepared by Tandy Cook Hennings.

Series 1, Professional Work, 1940-2011, consists of six subseries: correspondence, project files, patents, research files, awards, and photographs and memorabilia. The correspondence subseries contains the office correspondence files maintained by Cook’s secretary from 1953-1974. These files were kept in their original reverse chronological order and each year contains a correspondence tracking log created by his secretary. These files are primarily carbon copies of outgoing communications, but there are also received letters and memos. The bulk of these letters are professional in nature, although some do contain personal information. Included in this subseries are interoffice communications and memos, formal letters with contacts outside Boeing, and telegrams. All the files include additional related materials such as report drafts, drawings, diagrams, articles, newspaper clippings, presentation transparencies, and photographs. Notable correspondents include fellow Boeing employees George S. Schairer and Maynard Pennell, MIT professor Charles Stark Draper, and Brigadier General Guy M. Townsend, then a colonel in the United States Air Force. Common subjects contained in these files include personnel management memos, the Boeing 707, 727, and 737 jet airliners, the YC-14 experimental STOL aircraft, and supersonic transport research.

The project files subseries contains Cook’s work files for some of his biggest projects, which include the Boeing high-speed wind tunnel, the B-17, B-29, and B-47 bombers, and the YC-14. Record formats include correspondence, diagrams, charts, work orders, report drafts, photographs, and presentation transparencies.

The patent files subseries contains records relating to various patents that Cook applied for and received over the course of his career. The records include applications, correspondence, diagrams, photographs, and legal documentation relating to those patents. Some are accompanied by booklets containing the details of the patent.

The research files subseries is comprised of reports, presentations, and product information booklets. George S. Schairer, Charles Stark Draper, and William Hough Cook, Jr. are all listed as authors on these reports, and it is likely they were kept for reference. Topics include the Boeing high-speed wind tunnel, B-47 Stratojet, and Advanced Medium STOL Transport (AMST) aircraft.

Cook’s award files include related correspondence, programs, and newspaper clippings. The awards are represented by certificates, which are located in the oversize box.

The last subseries contains photographs and assorted memorabilia. The photographs are comprised of black-and-white images of aircraft, as well as of Cook and his colleagues. They are primarily formal group portraits, but there are also a few snapshots of Cook and his friends at leisure. Tandy Cook Hennings has identified many of the individuals and events depicted in the photographs. Also included in this subseries are memorabilia such as a Boeing management album, a calendar given to Cook by Glenn E. Odekirk, and a Boeing employee roster. There is also a file of obituaries and funeral programs for some of Cook’s colleagues maintained by Hennings after her father’s death. One item of note in this subseries is Cook’s scrapbook. The scrapbook contains photographs, cards, and postcards, as well as aviation-related newspaper clippings, primarily of crashes and other accidents. A major topic of the scrapbook is the 1939 Boeing 307 Stratoliner crash, which killed all passengers.

Series 2, Personal Papers, 1925-2012, consists of six subseries: correspondence, research files, retirement writings, glider and piloting documents, death, and education. This series contains some materials from Cook’s education prior to joining Boeing, while the bulk of this series is made of research and writings from his retirement. The correspondence subseries includes a 1930 letter from W. Selkirk Owen, as well as correspondence concerning Cook’s retirement. Also included are letters from various colleagues and correspondence regarding his Cook’s retirement writings.

The research subseries is comprised of three major topics grouped and identified by Hennings: wind tunnel research, aviation history research, and assorted topics. Hennings also identified these files as research for Cook’s book Road to the 707. The files include related correspondence, reports, writing drafts, photographs, and drawings.

The retirement writings subseries includes reports and manuscript drafts written by Cook about various aviation topics, in particular the Boeing high-speed wind tunnel. Record formats include reports, manuscript drafts, and newspaper clippings.

The glider and piloting documents subseries consists of the construction manual and blueprints for the Gotha Glider that Cook completed in 1928, as well as his glider, private pilot, and mechanic licenses. In addition, this subseries also includes his private pilot logbooks from 1935-1988.

Also included in this series are records relating to Cook’s death, including related correspondence, his obituary, and text of the eulogies given at his memorial service, which was held at The Museum of Flight. Eulogies were given by Tandy Cook Hennings, F. Wyatt Cook, Richard “Dick” Taylor, and Buzz Nelson. There is also a program from his memorial service and some printed pages from the online guestbook.

The last subseries contains records relating to Cook’s education at Montclair Academy, Rensselaer, and MIT. Records include Cook’s diplomas from each institution, as well as his high school yearbook and portrait. This subseries also contains his membership certificate to the Rensselaer chapter of Sigma Xi, the Scientific Research Honor Society. In addition to his MIT diploma, these files also include a program booklet for the engineering department, some of Cook’s student workbooks, and two reports written by Cook during his time there.

Dates

1925-2012
Majority of material found within 1938 - 1974

Creator

Cook, William Hough, Jr., 1913-2012 (Creator, Person)

Language of Materials

Some research materials are in German. All other materials are in English.

Conditions Governing Access

TThis collection is open for research and is accessible in the Dahlberg Research Center by appointment. For more information contact us.

Conditions Governing Use

The Museum of Flight (TMOF) Archives is the owner of the physical materials in the archives and makes available reproductions for research, publication, and other uses. Written permission must be obtained from TMOF archives before any publication use. TMOF does not necessarily hold copyright to all of the materials in the collections. In some cases, permission for use may require seeking additional authorization from copyright owners. Consult repository for more details.

Extent

10.1 Cubic Feet (13 full-width letter size boxes, 7 full-width legal size boxes, 1 oversize box, and 1 poster tube.)

Additional Description

Abstract

Biographical Note: William Hough "Bill" Cook, Jr.

William Hough “Bill” Cook, Jr. (1913-2012) was an aeronautical engineer who worked for Boeing from 1938-1974. He designed the Boeing high speed wind tunnel and served as the lead engineer on projects such as the B-29 and B-47 bombers. In 1954 Cook was promoted to Chief of Technology Staff for Boeing’s missile program and in 1956 he was placed in charge of the Transport Division which would later become the Commercial Airplane Group. Cook was also the lead for Boeing’s supersonic transport development team from 1959-1967. He retired in 1974 as the Director of Advanced Technology Applications, Commercial Airplane Division Product Development. In addition to his work with Boeing, Cook also served on the NASA Research and Technology Advisory Subcommittee on Aircraft Operating Problems in the 1960s. Cook received many awards for his work, including the Elmer A. Sperry award in 1965, the Sylvanus Albert Reed Award in 1968, and the Museum of Flight’s Pathfinder Award in 1993. He was also inducted into the PanAm Clipper Club in 1962. In addition, he received the Distinguished Alumni award in 1999 from his high school alma mater, the Montclair Kimberley Academy.

Cook was born in 1913 to William Cook, Sr. and Clara Tandy, in Plainview Texas. He spent his early childhood in Tampico, Mexico until 1923 when the family moved to Montclair, New Jersey. Cook graduated from the Montclair Academy, then an all-boys school, in 1930 where he completed a science-focused program of study. During his time at Montclair, Cook built a Gotha Glider which he completed in 1928. His interest in aviation is also shown in his 1930 yearbook in which he listed his desired occupation as “aviator.” Cook earned a degree in mechanical engineering from the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, New York in 1934 and went on to receive a Master’s of Science degree in 1938 from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He moved to Seattle, Washington and began working at Boeing shortly thereafter.

Although Cook did not become a professional aviator, he did earn both a glider’s license and a private pilot’s license. Cook and his family also owned two planes, a Grumman Widgeon and a Piper Super Club. His wife, Priscilla Osler Cook, and children, F. Wyatt Cook, Carrie Elkins, and Tandy Cook Hennings, also all received their private pilot’s licenses. Cook spent much of his free time flying with friends and family, often visiting remote camping and fishing locations throughout Alaska and Canada. After he retired from Boeing, Cook researched and wrote a book on aviation titled The Road to the 707 which was published in 1991. He also continued to work on the development and improvement of commercial supersonic transport until 2009. Cook died in his home in Bellevue, Wash. on April 9, 2012 at the age of 98.

Source: Biography derived from collection materials and information provided by Bill’s daughter, and donor of his papers, Tandy Cook Hennings.

Biographical Note: Tandy Cook Hennings Tandy Cook Hennings is the daughter of William Hough “Bill” Cook, Jr. and Priscilla Osler Cook. She is also the niece of Boeing test pilot E. Scott Osler. Hennings worked as a programmer for Boeing. She has also taken on the role of family historian and in addition to donating this collection, she has also donated materials concerning her uncle.

Source: Biography derived from collection materials and information provided by the donor, Tandy Cook Hennings.

Arrangement

Arranged in two series: 1. Professional Work, 1940-2011. 2. Personal Papers, 1925-2012.

The records are arranged in two series, both of which have been further arranged into six subseries. Subseries were determined by record function, topic, and contextual information provided by the donor. Most subseries are organized in chronological order with the exception of series 1, subseries 6, photographs and memorabilia and series 2, subseries 2, research files. The photographs and memorabilia are organized by general format, while the research files are organized by three major topics identified by Hennings. Records within each file have been maintained in their original order. Original file titles have been maintained whenever possible, however a few file titles in series 2, subseries 2, research files have been edited for descriptive clarity. In addition, the folder titles and organizational scheme of series 2, subseries 4, glider and piloting documents were created by the processing archivist. Oversize items have been removed from their original folders and grouped together in box eighteen. All items have been organized and labelled according to their folder of origin and are represented in the collection inventory in the intellectually appropriate space.

The addendum is arranged physically according to its original order. Most files have been maintained in their entirety, however a few were separated into subsections such as the reports found in Box Twenty, Folders 22-23 and Box Twenty One, Folders 1-2. Original file titles were also maintained whenever possible, although a few titles in series 2, subseries 2, research files have been edited for descriptive clarity. Oversize items have been removed from their original folders and grouped together in box eighteen. All such items have been organized and labeled according to their folder of origin. All folders from this addendum are represented in the collection inventory in the intellectually appropriate space.

The series and subseries arrangement is as follows:

Series 1, Professional Work, 1940-2011

Subseries 1, Correspondence, 1953-1974
Subseries 2, Project files, 1940-1974
Subseries 3, Patents, 1950-1972
Subseries 4, Research files, 1944-1994
Subseries 5, Awards, 1962-1999
Subseries 6, Photographs and memorabilia, 1940-2011

Series 2, Personal Papers, 1925-2012

Subseries 1, Correspondence, 1925-2012
Subseries 2, Research Files, 1926-2009
Subseries 3, Retirement writings, 1979-2009
Subseries 4, Glider and Piloting documents, 1925-1988
Subseries 5: Death, 2012
Subseries 6: Education, 1930-1938

Please note: the larger rolled copy of the Boeing employee roster dated 1932 [1937?] is located in a separate container from the flattened copy.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

The William Hough “Bill” Cook, Jr. Papers were donated to The Museum of Flight by Tandy Cook Hennings.

Accruals

No further accruals are expected.

Existence and Location of Copies

Materials from this collection have been digitized and are available at The Museum of Flight Digital Collections.

Related Materials

Related Materials at The Museum of Flight:

The George Schairer Aeronautical Engineering Collection (accession 2005-01-10).
The Tandy C. Hennings Collection of E. Scott Osler Materials (accession 2015-07-08).
Edward Scott Osler Logbooks and Photographs (accession 2016-07-20).
Philatelic Materials in the Holdings of the Museum of Flight (ARTIFICIAL.Philatelic)

Separated Materials

The following items have been removed from the archival component and are kept in the Library:

The Road to the 707 by William H. Cook, Jr. (1991)
Boeing News Magazine (1939-1944)

The following items have been removed from the archival component and are kept in Objects Storage:

Engineering slide rule and manual (circa 1930s)
Drafting tool kit (circa 1930s)
Hollis tri-strand fiber sample (circa 1972)
Hollis plate carbide samples (circa 1972)

Processing Information

The original order of files was maintained whenever possible. All photographs were placed in archival sleeves and newspaper clippings were photocopied and sleeved. The scrapbook was disassembled due to preservation concerns, but the original order in which the scrapbook was received was maintained, and contextual photographs were taken. The collection contains a large number of oversize items which were removed from their original order. These records have been clearly marked with their originating folder information and stored in box eighteen. All the materials in this collection were identified and labeled by Tandy Cook Hennings prior to their donation and many of those labels are still present in the collection.

The original order and titles of files in the addendum were maintained whenever possible. All photographs were placed in archival sleeves and metal fasteners were removed. Oversize items were removed from their original order and stored in box eighteen. Contextual information provided by Tandy Cook Hennings for this addendum can be found in the collection information folder at the front of box one.