Tuxedo Park
Page 44
Thorne, Landon, III, 40
Thorne, Landon K.: and America’s Cup, 92–95
and banking crisis, 83
congressional testimony of, 90
death of, 297
and Fisher, 290
and gold standard, 85
and Hilton Head Island, 95–99, 216, 297
liquidation of securities by, 76
Loomis’ partnerships with, 37–42, 88, 91–99, 291, 297
Loomis’ relationship with, 39–40, 74, 75, 91–92
and Loomis’ scientific projects, 88, 111
personality of, 40, 91
post–World War II activities of, 297
reputation of, 42, 80–81, 86
“retirement” of, 86, 87, 90–91
Stimson’s relationship with, 78, 297
and stock market crash of 1929, 74–77. See also Bonbright & Company
Thorne Loomis & Co., 39
Thorne Loomis Investment Company, 88
Thorne, Samuel, 39
three-centimeter radar system, 230, 269
Tibbets, Paul, 276–77
Tizard, Henry, 178, 179–81, 190, 193, 198, 207, 231
Tizard Mission: and Bowen’s trip to U.S., 183–87
Bush’s views about, 208
Loomis’ early meetings with, 188–89
and Loran system, 234
members of, 180, 181–82
night bombing as primary concern of, 210
and NRDC, 188
obscurity of, 284
and radar research, 178, 181, 182, 187–88, 191–194, 198, 207
results of, 222
Tizard proposes, 179–80
and Tizard-Roosevelt meeting, 181
trip to U.S. by members of, 181–87
in U.S., 187–94. See also specific member
Tolman, Richard, 166
Tower House (Tuxedo Park, New York) home of Loomis Laboratory: “Certain Aspects of Atomic Physics” conference at, 53–54
closing of, 207–8
description of, 48–49, 60–61, 159
and double life of Loomis, 58
as end of era, 14–15
as family affair, 64
guests at, 15, 50, 60–61, 74, 104, 108–12
heating of, 119
history of, 47–48
Hobart as responsible for day-to-day running of, 63–64
and Loomis’ campaign to win over influential scientists, 105
and Loomis-Ellen relationship, 53
Loomis establishes, 36
Loomis as happiest at, 99
Loomis purchases, 5, 47, 48
and Loomis’ transient attention, 70
publicity for, 55, 56–57
radar research at, 158–59, 161, 176–78, 190–92, 197–99
re-design and restoration of, 5, 48, 50, 51
reputation of, 54, 105, 106
Richards’ writings as take-off on, 4, 7, 14, 125
and scientists as tutors and companions to Loomis children, 64
selling of, 288–89
“sleeping room” at, 109–11
social activities at, 6, 61
staff of, 61, 78–79
Tuxedo Park residents’ reactions to, 57–60, 62, 67, 107
war-related research at, 8, 14, 132, 197–98
and Wood, 6, 48–49
Tower, Joseph Tuckerman, 47–48
Townsend, Francis, 85
Trask, Katrina, 47
Trask, Spencer, 47
Trinity bomb test, 275, 276
Truman, Harry, 276, 286–87, 290
Trump, John, 268
Tuller, William, 158, 210
Tuve, Merle, 134, 170, 240, 243, 272
Tuxedo Club, 58
Tuxedo Park Association, 48, 59–60, 78, 288
Tuxedo Park, New York: decline of, 288–89
during Depression, 78–79
description of, 61–62
Loomis meets Stimson in tank in, 34
Loomis moves to, 29
Lorillard’s vision for, 4–5, 46–47
reaction to Tower House in, 57–60, 62, 67, 107
restrictions on club membership in, 57–58
social life of, 59–60, 62
Twain, Mark, 62
U-boats, 128, 224, 245, 253–54, 266, 284. See also submarines
ultra-high-frequency program: at MIT, 158
ultrasound, 6–7, 43–45, 50–52, 53
United Corporation, 41, 75, 76
United Power, 87
United States: British exchange of information with, 179–208
German competition with, 11, 12, 13, 242, 246, 247, 249, 268
Germany and Italy declare war against, 252
isolationism in, 13, 127, 163, 164, 224
lack of preparation for World War II in, 13, 223–26, 251
University of Berlin, 66
University of California, Berkeley: fission/uranium research at, 156, 239–40, 242
Henry Loomis at, 296
Loomis accepts position at, 154
Loomis receives honorary degree from, 245
Loomis’ visits to, 159, 161
physics research program at, 135
radar research at, 141–42, 160–61, 191. See also specific person
University of Chicago. See Compton, Arthur
University of the City of New York, 21
University of Göttingen, 66
University of Rochester, 202
uranium, 8–13, 155–58, 160, 161–63, 238–40
in Richards’ manuscript, 8–10
and U-235, 239, 242, 245–46, 247, 248–49, 275, 276–77
and U-238, 240n. See also Briggs Advisory Committee on Uranium; fission/atomic research; specific scientist
Urey, Harold, 239
Vanderbilt family, 76, 93
Vanderbilt, Harold S., 92, 95
Varian, Russell, 141–42, 158
Varian, Sigurd, 141–42, 158
Villa Apartments (Tuxedo Park, New York), 289
V-J Day, 284
Von Laue, Max, 66
Wahl, Arthur, 240, 293
Walcott, F. W., 85, 86, 144
Wall Street: American public’s attitude toward, 88–89
Thorne and Loomis quit, 90–91
“Wall Street bomb case,” 35, 173
Wallace, F. C., 180
Wallace, Henry, 248
Walter Roberts’ High Altitude Observatory (Colorado), 290
War Department, U.S., 194
Washington National Airport: Mark I demonstration at, 262–63
Watson-Watt, Robert, 171, 179–80
Weaver, Warren, 145, 146, 147–48, 149–50
Wells, H. G., 156
Wesleyan University, 286
West Point Academy, 30–31
Western Electric, 195
Westinghouse Electric, 150, 169–70, 195, 200, 236
Whirlwind (yacht), 92–95
White & Case, 88
Wigner, Eugene, 13, 156
Willis, Hugh, 169
Willkie, Wendell, 18, 89
Wilson, Carroll, 191, 198, 206
Winslow, Pearson, 86
Winthrop & Stimson, 27–29, 36, 38, 39, 89–90, 281
Winthrop, Bronson, 28
Winthrop, Stimson, Putnam & Roberts, 81
Wood, Robert W.: as Anglophile, 60
autobiography of, 36
and Chicago World’s Fair, 105
and clocks, 65–66
and cyclotron research, 149
death of, 294
European tours with Loomis of, 49–50, 65–67
as “father of ultrasonics,” 51–52
fluorescence studies of, 52
Hobart as admirer of, 63, 64
home of, 283
inventions of, 35–36
Kistiakowsky’s views about, 61
Loomis first meets, 34
Loomis’ funding for, 43, 44
Loomis’ relationship with, 34, 36, 43–45, 52, 144, 159, 294
a
nd Loomis’ scientific reputation, 106
and Morgan Bank bombing, 35, 173
Nobel nomination for, 52
oscillator research of, 44–45
personal and professional background of, 34–36, 294
personality of, 34, 286
presentation of material by, 45–46
publications of, 51, 52, 53
reputation of, 34–35, 45, 46
spectral studies of, 43, 49, 52, 61
and supersonics research, 43–45, 50–51
taste for limelight of, 55
at Tower House, 6, 54, 159
Tower House described by, 48–49
and ultraviolet radiation, 35
unforgetable meal of, 67
and X-ray machine, 50
Woodward-Nutt, Arthur, 180, 185, 186–87
World War I, 30–34, 35, 127
World War II: and Congress’s declaration of war against Japan, 248
and German activities in late 1930s, 82, 126–29, 130, 140, 164–65
government enlists scientists to help with, 14
Hilton Head Island during, 98
Italian theater in, 268–69
opening days of, 252–54
Pacific theater in, 252. See also Germany; Great Britain; Japan; United States; specific research project
Wright brothers, 27
XT-1 automatic tracking fire-control radar, 258, 259
Yale University, 25–27, 106, 134
Zacharias, Jerrold, 204
Ziegfeld, Florenz, 35
Zmenov, Boris (fictional character), 8–9, 12, 14
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Copyright © 2002 by Jennet Conant All rights reserved, including the right of reproduction in whole or in part in any form.
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The Library of Congress has cataloged the hardcover edition as follows: Conant, Jennet.
Tuxedo Park : a Wall Street tycoon and the secret palace of science that changed the course of World War II / Jennet Conant.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
1. Loomis, Alfred L. (Alfred Lee), 1887–1975. 2. Physicists—United States—Biography. 3. Atomic bomb—United States—History—20th century. 4. Research—New York (State)—Tuxedo Park—History—20th century. 5. World War, 1939–1945—Science—United States. I. Title.
QC16.L647 C66 2002
530'.0092'274731—dc21 2002021001 [B]
ISBN-13: 978-0-684-87287-2
ISBN-10: 0-684-87287-0
ISBN-13: 978-0-684-87288-9 (Pbk)
ISBN-10: 0-684-87288-9 (Pbk)
ISBN-13: 978-1-4767-6729-1 (ebook)