This collection, digitized here in its entirety, consists of photographs depicting the facilities, machinery, and operations of the Aeronautical Materials Laboratory, part of the Naval Air Material Center located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The photographs document the production and testing of assorted plastics, rubbers, coatings, and primers used in the construction of naval aircraft, with an emphasis on machinery used to evaluate the effects of weathering and various environmental conditions. The majority of photographs are drawn from a 1949 report on compounding rubber, though the entire collection spans 1949 to 1968. The photographs were collected by J. (Joseph) Hartley Bowen, Jr., who served as the Supervisory Chemist at the Aeronautical Materials Laboratory during this period.
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Retirement ceremony in honor of Edward K. Rishel
- 1968-Apr-22
Retirement ceremony in honor of Edward K. Rishel, chemist at the Naval Air Engineering Center's Aeromaterials Laboratory. Rishel (center left) holds a certificate reading "Honorably Retired as a Civilian Employee of the…
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Polymer Laboratory at the Naval Air Engineering Center
- 1968-Apr-19
Group photograph taken to mark the development of the NARPOL aircraft coating system at the Naval Air Engineering Center's Aeronautical Materials Laboratory, Polymer Division. NARPOL is a partially fluorinated…
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Laboratory staff examines first batches of new polymers
- 1968-Apr-19
Laboratory staff in the High Polymer Division of the Naval Air Engineering Center's Aeromaterials Laboratory examining the first batches of new NARPOL polymers used to coat aircraft metals. The individuals in the…
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Polymer laboratory at the Naval Air Engineering Center
- Circa 1966
Group photograph of staff members at the Naval Air Engineering Center Polymer laboratory. At left, chemist Irving Custis is seen demonstrating a machine used in the production of polymers at the laboratory. The…
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Aeronautical Materials Laboratory test site trailer
- Circa 1966
Three chemists from the Naval Air Engineering Center (Philadelphia, Pa.) posed in front of the Aeronautical Materials Laboratory test site trailer bound for Florida. The chemists are identified as follows (from left):…
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Research chemist in the Aeromaterials laboratory at the Naval Air Engineering Center
- Circa 1965
Research chemist Stanley Supkis using a distillation apparatus in the Aeromaterials laboratory at the Naval Air Engineering Center (Philadelphia, Pa.).
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Patent award ceremony in honor of John Ohlson
- 1965
Patent award ceremony at the Aeronautical Materials Laboratory in honor of John Ohlson. The individuals in the photograph are identified as follows (from left): Bob Lamson (chemist); John Ohlson (patent award…
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Award presentation in honor of Sally J. Ketcham
- Circa 1965
Award ceremony in honor of Sally J. Ketcham, Metallurgist at the Naval Air Engineering Center located in Johnsville, Pennsylvania. The individuals in the photograph are identified as follows (from left): J. Hartley…
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Retirement dinner in honor of George B. Cook
- 1965-Nov-18
Retirement dinner in honor of George B. Cook, the first chemist to join the Naval Air Engineering Center's aircraft factory in Philadelphia. Technical Director J. Hartley Bowen, Jr. (center) is seen presenting Mr. Cook…
- Creator Of Work United States. Navy, Naval Air Engineering Center (U.S.)
- Subject Employees, Retirement, Naval Air Engineering Center (U.S.)
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Rubber Laboratory at the National Air Engineering Center
- 1965-Aug-04
General view of the Rubber Laboratory at the National Air Engineering Center's Aeronautical Materials Laboratory. At left, Technician Armand Rindone operates an unidentified machine before a group of observers. The…
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Nuclear Chemistry Laboratory at the Naval Air Engineering Center
- 1964
Three chemists in the Nuclear Chemistry Laboratory at the Naval Air Engineering Center in Johnsville, Pennsylvania. The individuals in the photograph are identified as follows (from left): Alfred Glass (Chemist); Dr.…
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Award presentation in honor of George B. Cook
- Circa 1963
Award presentation in honor of George B. Cook, the first chemist to join the Naval Aircraft factory in 1922. The individuals in the photograph are identified as follows (from left): Jack Smith (Laboratory Supervisor);…
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Plastics Laboratory at the Naval Air Engineering Center
- 1963-Mar-28
Color photograph showing two technicians removing a plastic dome from an unidentified machine in the Plastics Laboratory at the Naval Air Engineering Center.
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Naval Air Engineering Center at Mustin Field
- Circa 1962
Aerial view of the Naval Air Engineering Center located at Mustin Field in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, showing the assorted laboratory and manufacturing facilities.
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Aeronautical Materials Laboratory staff
- 1961-Jun-02
Group photograph of Aeronautical Materials Laboratory staff members (from left) J. Hartley Bowen, Jr. (Technical Director); Martin J. Devine; and E. Robert Lamson. Assorted machinery, as well as a sign for the…
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Autoclave at the Aeronautical Materials Laboratory
- 1950s – circa
General view of an autoclave, used for the fabrication of plastics, at the Naval Air Engineering Center's Aeronautical Materials Laboratory. In the foreground, Laboratory Technical Director J. Hartley Bowen, Jr.…
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Eleanor Vadala and C.A. Cassola working with radioactive material at Aeronautical Materials Laboratory
- 1959-Dec-10
Color photograph of Eleanor Vadala, Chemist, and C.A. Cassola, Division Superintendent, working with a barrel of radioactive material at the Naval Air Material Center's Aeronautical Materials Laboratory. Ms. Vadala…
- Creator Of Work United States. Navy, Naval Air Engineering Center (U.S.)
- Subject Women in science, Aerospace Research Laboratories (U.S.), Employees, Scientific apparatus and instruments, Radiation, Women employees, Naval Air Engineering Center (U.S.), Women chemists, Chemists, Vadala, Eleanor, 1923-
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Eleanor Vadala and Dr. Earl Hayes at the Naval Air Material Center
- 1959-Mar-19
Eleanor Vadala, chemist, and Dr. Earl Hayes, U.S. Defense Department, examining a display of airship fabric produced at the Naval Air Material Center. Ms. Vadala demonstrates the threads on an airship model while Dr.…
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PK-2 Pararaft Kit display at the Naval Science Symposium
- 1959-Mar-18
General view of the PK-2 Pararaft Kit display at the Naval Air Engineering Center's Naval Science Symposium. Laboratory Technical Director J. Hartley Bowen, Jr. (right, wearing glasses) is seen explaining the Pararaft…
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Ultra-Violet and Visible Spectrum Spectrophotometer
- Circa 1958
General view of the Ultraviolet and Visible Spectrum (UV/Vis) Spectrophotometer used in the Naval Air Material Center's Aeronautical Materials Laboratory. UV/Vis spectroscopy is routinely used in analytical chemistry…
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Testing of new developments in hydraulic systems
- 1958
General view of workers testing the features of new hydraulic systems at the Naval Air Material Center's Aeronautical Materials Laboratory. Two workers are seen turning valves on the machinery while a third worker looks…
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Testing electrical resistivity of high polymers at the Naval Air Material Center
- 1958
View of two technicians using assorted apparatus to determine the electrical resistivity of high polymers at the Naval Air Material Center's Aeronautical Materials Laboratory. At the laboratory, assorted equipment was…
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Spectrographic analysis
- 1958
General view of assorted equipment and apparatus used to conduct spectographic analysis at the Naval Air Material Center's Aeronautical Materials Laboratory.
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RCA Model EMU electron microscope in the Aeronautical Materials Laboratory
- 1958
General view of a RCA Model EMU electron microscope used in the Naval Air Material Center's Aeronautical Materials Laboratory. Electron microscopes use a beam of accelerated electrons as a source of illumination and…
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General view of the Plastics Testing area
- 1958
General view of the Plastics Testing area at the Naval Air Material Center's Aeronautical Materials Laboratory. Technicians are seen working with assorted equipment used to simulate various service conditions and test…
