EDSON W. SPENCER: An Inventory of His Oral History at the Minnesota Historical Society Finding aid prepared by Jennifer Huebscher Minnesota Historical Society
St. Paul, MN.

Oral History Collection

 Finding aid encoded by Jennifer HuebscherAugust 2010 Finding aid written in English. OVERVIEW Minnesota Historical Society Spencer, Edson W., interviewee. Oral history interview with Edson W. Spencer. 2009. Materials in English. Edson W. Spencer discusses his early life and education, his service in the U.S. Navy, his careers at Sears and Honeywell and the international aspects of both careers, his time as president and CEO at Honeywell, Honeywell Inc.'s ventures into the computer industry, and his work with the Ford and Mayo Clinic Foundations. Sound recordings: 4 sound cassettes (60 min. ea.) Transcript: 35 pages; 28 cm. OH 122: See Detailed Description for shelf locations. BIOGRAPHICAL

Edson W. Spencer was born in Illinois in 1926, and was educated at Williams College and at Oxford University, where he was a Rhodes Scholar. He worked for Sears Roebuck before joining Honeywell, Inc. in 1954. He became president and CEO of Honeywell in 1974 until his retirement in 1987. He was elected a trustee of the Ford Foundation in 1977, and served as the Foundation’s chairman from 1988-1992.

CATALOG HEADINGS

This collection is indexed under the following headings in the catalog of the Minnesota Historical Society. Researchers desiring materials about related topics should search the catalog using these headings.

Topics: Computer industry. United States. History. Consolidation and merger of corporations. United States. International business enterprises. United States. History. Organizations: Honeywell Inc. History. Document Types: Oral histories. Interviews. ADMINISTRATIVE INFORMATION Preferred Citation:

[Indicate the cited item and/or series here]. Spencer, Edson W., Oral history interview with Edson W. Spencer. Minnesota Historical Society.

See the Chicago Manual of Style for additional examples.

Accession Information:

Accession number: AV2010.44

 Processing Information:

Catalog ID number: 007171750

 DETAILED DESCRIPTION Edson W. Spencer, December 1, 2009.

Scope and Content: Subjects discussed include early life in Chicago and Pennsylvania; education at Williams College and at Oxford University; service in the U.S. Navy; work with Sears Roebuck and life in Venezuela as a Sears representative. He discussed the decision to join Honeywell 1954, life in postwar Japan developing Honeywell business; lifelong interest in Japan and in Asian affairs; service as president and CEO of Honeywell; the company’s ventures in to computers and aviation technology; and his work with the Ford Foundation and the Mayo Clinic Foundation.

Interviewed by: James E. Fogerty.

Use Restrictions: None.

 OH 122 35 pages. OH 122 2 master cassettes (60 min. ea.) and 2 user cassettes.