The Guggenheim Schools Of Aeronautics: Where Are They Today?

The purpose of this paper is to present a brief summary and history of the seven original Guggenheim schools. Between 1925 and 1930, the family of Daniel and Harry Guggenheim invested more than $2.6 million in aviation-related programs at Universities around the United States. During this period, funding was given to New York University, the California Institute of Technology, Stanford University, the University of Michigan, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, the University of Washington and the Georgia School (later Institute) of Technology to establish Guggenheim schools of aeronautics. In addition, Harvard University, Syracuse University, Northwestern University, and the University of Akron were given funds to establish research centers. Of the original seven Guggenheim schools, all have active aeronautics programs except New York University, which dropped its aeronautics program in 1973. The remaining six generally rank as top aerospace programs in the country. This paper reviews the history of the Guggenheim schools and research centers, and discusses how the original contributions have led to the existing programs of today.