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William 'Skip' Marquet papers

 Record Group
Identifier: MC-67

Scope and Content Note

The papers span the years 1964-1992, and include correspondence, notes, drawings, reports, and proposals primarily relating to various imaging systems, navigation software, underwater lighting systems, and fiber optic cables. The papers also include information on submersibles Alvin , Jason , Argo , Angus , and Dolphin . There are also a few folders on mine warfare.

Dates

  • Creation: 1964-1992

Language of Materials

The records are in

English.

Access

Open: materials are available for research.

Use

Copyright: Permission to publish material from the collection must be authorized by the Institution Archivist.

Biographical Information

William Morgan 'Skip' Marquet was born in Syracuse, New York, and graduated from Brooklyn Technical High School in 1947. He received his BS in engineering from Princeton University in 1951 and MS in engineering from Columbia University in 1952. Shortly after graduation from Columbia he went to work for Pennsylvania Electric Company in Johnstown, PA, as an Incremental Load Engineer. In 1954 he joined the U.S. Army and became a member of the Army’s scientific and technical program. After leaving the Army in 1956 Skip joined the aeronautical division of Minneapolis Honeywell as a field engineer and team leader. While working for Honeywell in France, Skip met his wife, Claudine. Hoping to pursue careers where they could make personal contributions, Skip and Claudine left Honeywell in 1961 to travel and study. While in Europe, Skip met and worked with Edwin Link on the development of underwater instruments. Link convinced Skip that oceanography was a field where an engineer could make a personal contribution. Link, a WHOI Corporation Member, told Skip of an institution in Woods Hole that was building a submarine.

Skip joined the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution staff in 1963 as a submarine electronics technician, and worked for Earl Hays and William Rainnie in the early days of the ALVIN program. Skip’s capabilities as a systems engineer quickly became apparent. Earl Hays commented that Skip “was the anchor man in practically all phases of the submersible development. He carried a heavy load of first class technical work, often being the first to point out the need for something, laying out the design specifications, and doing the detailed design and testing.” In 1969 Skip received a Navy Meritorious Public Service Citation for his contribution to the ALVIN team that located a hydrogen bomb lost off the coast of Palomares, Spain. During the years when members of the ALVIN team literally lived and breathed technology into it, Skip gained a reputation for his abilities to prepare winning proposals, manage finances, and inspire men and women. He developed deep-sea navigation and underwater imaging systems for ALVIN which were later incorporated into his work on the ANGUS vehicle system. Skip also participated in many of the major expeditions which took place during the 1960’s and 1970’s, including Project FAMOUS. In 1970 Skip was promoted to Research Specialist, and from 1978 to 1980 served as the manager of the ALVIN’s Deep Submergence Engineering team. In 1980 he was promoted to Senior Research Specialist, in 1991 renamed to Principal Engineer, the Institution’s highest position for engineers.

After a year’s sabbatical in France during 1979-1980, Skip returned to WHOI to establish the Deep Submergence Laboratory (DSL) with Bob Ballard. Skip played a key leadership role in the formulation, funding and development of DSL, and of the ARGO, JASON Jr., and the MEDEA/JASON systems. In 1989 he established the Oceanographic Systems Laboratory with Chris von Alt, where he has been instrumental in the development of next generation, fiber-optic based underwater vehicles.

Skip Marquet died January 11, 1992 in Jacksonville, Florida.

[Taken from Marquet's WHOI Obituary.]

Extent

15 boxes (8.5 lin. ft.)

Overview

The William 'Skip' Marquet papers span the years 1964-1992, and include correspondence, notes, drawings, reports, and proposals primarily relating to various imaging systems, navigation software, underwater lighting systems, fiber optic cables, submersibles, and mine warfare.

Arrangement

Arranged in two series:

List of Series:

Custodial History

Gretchen McMenaman found Marquet's files when she moved into his former office.

Acquisitions Information

The papers were received from Gretchen McMenaman on February 6, 2002, and were given the accession number 2002-06.

Related Material

See also MC-62, the Arnold G. Sharp papers; and MC-57, the David Hosom papers, for related material.

Processing Information

First-level processing completed by Marisa Hudspeth on June 1, 2005.

Title
A Guide to the William 'Skip' Marquet papers, 1964-1992
Author
Marisa Hudspeth
Date
June 1, 2005
Language of description
English
Script of description
Latin
Language of description note
Finding aid written inEnglish

Repository Details

Part of the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Data Library and Archives Repository

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