Access to primary evidence documenting mathematical ideas, their context, and the people who developed them is critical for moving civilization forward. The Archives of American Mathematics, founded in 1975 at The University of Texas at Austin, provides a rich source of material that spans more than a century of American mathematics. It is a unique resource for research focused on mathematical history and development providing students and historians of mathematics with the resources to describe societal and cultural influences on the discipline’s evolution, explore education methods, and inspire new ideas. Knowledge and insight gleaned from research in the Archives contributes to articles, books, digital projects, and more in order to tell the story of mathematics—and of ourselves.
One of a handful of mathematical archives in the United States, the Archives of American Mathematics encompasses some 130 collections, covering over 1,000 linear feet of archival material and continues to grow. Comprised of primarily twentieth-and twenty-first-century American mathematicians and mathematics organizations, the Archives of American Mathematics’ major strengths include a variety of important research areas including geometry, topology, mathematics education, number theory, logic, and the mathematical foundations of physics. The papers of individual mathematicians including Paul Halmos, Max Dehn, Paul Erdős, Carl Pomerance, and Otto Nikodym are preserved in the Archives for future generations to study. Students and scholars from around the world visit the center to conduct research in the Archives of American Mathematics for dissertations, articles, books, and other projects.
The collection is comprised of three overarching categories of material:
- papers documenting the history and work of the Mathematical Association of America, including the personal papers of many former MAA presidents;
- material documenting mathematics teaching methodologies;
- collections of representative mathematicians.
Learn more about resources held in the Archives of American Mathematics.
—J. W. L. Glaisher (1848–1928) Cambridge University; Fellow of the Royal Society
Mathematics is at the foundation of our comprehension of the world. Whether contemplating the form of a beehive or developing the next form of artificial intelligence, mathematics and its history informs, illuminates, and inspires. The history of American mathematics is pivotal for understanding our relationship to science and technology and is crucial for understanding our evolution as a nation and our nation’s contributions to the world.
Now more than ever, as we continue to make huge strides in science and technology, it is important to learn from our history in order to effectively move forward. It is critical to trace the steps of mathematical inquiry in order to shed light on our present and our future. Collecting, preserving, and sharing mathematical records helps guarantee that the evolution of American mathematics remains rooted in historical evidence.
The Briscoe Center is seeking gifts to help reach our goal of a $2 million endowment that will support the Archives, including an archivist dedicated to collecting, preserving, and making the Archive of American Mathematics accessible to a wide audience in perpetuity.
The Archives of American Mathematics Endowment will provide:
- the salary, benefits, and professional development for the AAM Archivist;
- funds to transport donated papers of individuals and records of organizations, as well as process the myriad of formats that document the history of American mathematics;
- a stipend for student interns assisting the AAM Archivist;
- resources to support activities and programs associated with collecting, preserving, accessing, curating, and using the AAM.
The AAM Archivist will:
- develop relationships with mathematicians, historians of mathematics, and associated organizations to ensure rare material is collected and preserved;
- provide valuable research services to visiting students and scholars based on the tremendous knowledge of the collection material the archivist acquires;
- ensure the collection is readily accessible by creating and maintaining finding aids;
- oversee the digitization of archival documents, photographs, and audio-visual material for online accessibility;
- rehouse material into archival boxes;
- identify items needing conservation and arrange for item-level assessment and treatment as needed;
- collaborate with faculty to teach their students how to use primary source evidence in their research;
- promote the research value of the collection to both new and established scholars.
Comprised of volunteer leaders in the mathematics community with a keen interest in preserving mathematical records, the Archives of American Mathematics Endowment Steering Committee is nearly halfway to their goal of raising $2 million to endow the Archives. The endowment will support an archivist focused on building and managing the collections and providing research services to mathematics students, scholars, and other interested researchers. Their volunteer leadership and generosity are very much appreciated.
Archives of American Mathematics Endowment campaign progress
As of November 1, 2021, $842,756 in gifts, pledges, and deferred gifts has been raised towards the $2 million goal.
Archives of American Mathematics Endowment steering committee
Dr. Thomas F. Banchoff
Dr. Thomas F. Banchoff is a professor emeritus of mathematics at Brown University, where he taught for almost 50 years. He received his undergraduate degree from Notre Dame and his Ph.D. from Berkeley under Professor Shiing-Shen Chern. His distinguished teaching career includes positions around the world. Even after retiring in 2014, Dr. Banchoff has continued to serve as a visiting professor, most recently as the first Paul Halmos Visiting Professor at Santa Clara University in 2018. He was president of the Mathematical Association of America from 1999 to 2000, where he initiated the donation of the organization’s records to the Briscoe Center’s Archives of American Mathematics. The experience was his first serious immersion into the archival process, helping to structure storied material so that it becomes accessible for scholars and students who want to tap into the records of the creation and presentation of mathematical ideas and the lives of the people who create and profess them. He has been active with the Mathematical Association of America as a board member and is currently chair of the Joint Committee on Archives of the Mathematical Association of America and the American Mathematical Society. Dr. Banchoff’s interests include the life and work of Edwin A. Abbott, and he co-wrote Flatland: An Edition with Notes and Commentary with William F. Lindgren after decades of research. He is also fascinated in connecting mathematics and art. He lectures about the fourth dimension and shares his personal anecdotes about Salvador Dali.
Dr. Albert Lewis
After obtaining a Ph.D. in the history of mathematics from The University of Texas at Austin in 1975, Albert Lewis helped to preserve the personal papers of R. L. Moore and several of Dr. Moore’s doctoral students. This became a starting point of the Archives of American Mathematics. He subsequently worked on scholarly editing projects, first with the Bertrand Russell Project at McMaster University in Canada, and then on the C. S. Peirce Editorial Project at Indiana University – Purdue University, Indianapolis, before returning to Austin in 2008 as a trustee of the Educational Advancement Foundation. The foundation, under the leadership of Harry Lucas, Jr., for a number of years provided operational seed money to the Archives of American Mathematics towards its self-sufficiency. Beginning with his dissertation work on Hermann Grassmann, Dr. Lewis’s publications in the history of mathematics have made use of archives in the United States and abroad and these have been a constant reminder of the vital importance of preserving documentation of personal and institutional histories.
Dr. Eileen L. Poiani
Dr. Eileen L. Poiani is a Phi Beta Kappa graduate of Douglass College with a Ph.D. in mathematics from Rutgers, the state university of New Jersey. Active with the Mathematical Association of America, she served as governor of the New Jersey section; founding director of the Women and Mathematics (WAM) lectureship program; chair of the United States Commission on Mathematical Instruction for the National Academy of Sciences; member of the joint American Mathematical Society-Mathematical Association of America Archives Committee; and received the Mathematical Association of America New Jersey Section Award for Distinguished College Teaching. The first woman elected President of Pi Mu Epsilon, the National Mathematics Honor Society, in its 75-year history, she was named a Fellow of the Association for Women in Mathematics. Among her many awards are NJ Woman of Achievement, Humanitarian Award from the American Conference on Diversity, and Nutley Hall of Fame. A former Charter Trustee of Rutgers and trustee of Saint Peter’s Preparatory School, she currently serves on several boards including being a public member of the New Jersey State Board of Accountancy.
Thank you to our Archives of American Mathematics Endowment donors
Amy Ackerberg-Hastings in memory of Uta Merzbach
Thomas F. Banchoff
Laurie C. Beu
Lisa M. Doering
Judith Grabiner in memory of Henry Alder
Helen Kim
Albert C. Lewis
Mathematical Association of America-History of Mathematics SIGMAA
Kim L. Plofker
Eileen L. Poiani
John M. Worrell, Jr.
Recognizing donors of gifts received prior to April 18, 2023
Every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of this list. If you find an error or an omission, please accept our sincere apologies and notify Morgan Skaggs at morgan.skaggs@austin.utexas.edu.
Every gift helps. Give online now at www.giving.utexas.edu/briscoe
or
mail a check or money order made out to The University of Texas at Austin with “BCAH-AAM Endowment” in the memo line to:
Briscoe Center for American History
The University of Texas at Austin
P.O. Box 7458
Austin, TX 78713-7458
Please contact us for assistance with gifts of stock, IRA charitable transfers, beneficiary designations, or bequests towards the Archives of American Mathematics Endowment.
Archives of American Mathematics archival donations and special project support
The Briscoe Center continues to seek immediate-use funding for special projects in the Archive until the endowment is fully funded as well as new material to further develop the depth and scope of the Archives of American Mathematics. To discuss donating archival material or if you are interested in supporting a particular collection or project within the Archives of American Mathematics, please contact:
Carol Mead
Head of Archives and Manuscripts
carolmead@austin.utexas.edu
