Kenneth N. Trueblood papers, 1947-1998

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Summary

Creators:
Trueblood, Kenneth, N.
Abstract:
Kenneth N. Trueblood, a pioneering crystallographer, contributed to research that led to two Nobel Prizes, received awards for his renowned teaching, and served as Chair of the Department of Chemistry at UCLA and Dean of the College of Letters and Science at UCLA. The collection contains his research files, laboratory notebooks, computer programs, lecture notes, speeches, correspondence, grant applications, annotated publications, and documents related to his involvement with professional crystallography organizations.
Extent:
34.8 Linear Feet (31 record storage cartons, 6 document boxes, 1 flat box, and 1 oversize flat box)
Language:
Materials are in English.
Preferred citation:

[Identification of item], Kenneth N. Trueblood Papers (Collection 589). UCLA Library Special Collections, Charles E. Young Research Library, University of California, Los Angeles.

Background

Scope and content:

The Kenneth N. Trueblood papers include materials that document his research, including computer programs, notes and programs related to the discovery of the structure of vitamin B-12, lab notebooks, and grant applications; correspondence; UCLA Department of Chemistry files; lecture notes, including those from his studies under Linus Pauling; speeches Trueblood gave in academic and professional settings; annotated publications; professional organization materials related to Acta Crystallographica, where he served in an editorial capacity, and the American Crystallographic Association, which he co-founded; and photos, awards, and memorials.

Biographical / historical:

Kenneth N. Trueblood, a pioneering crystallographer known also for his exceptional teaching, was born on April 24, 1920 in Dobbs Ferry, New York. He received his A.B. from Harvard College in 1941 and his Ph.D. from California Institute of Technology for research in chromatography and spectrophotometry in 1947. However, inspired by the ground-breaking work of his professor Linus Pauling, Trueblood went on to work in crystallography. After two years of post-doctoral work at Caltech, he became an instructor in the Department of Chemistry at UCLA in 1949 and was made an assistant professor in 1950. He became a full professor in 1960 and was awarded the newly created UCLA Distinguished Teaching Award in 1961. This same year, he also became President of the American Crystallographic Association, which he co-founded. He served as Chair of the Department of Chemistry at UCLA from 1965-1970 and became Dean of the UCLA College of Letters and Science in 1971. Teaching throughout his time as Chair and Dean, he stepped down from his position as Dean in 1974 in order to return to teaching full-time. However, he returned to administrative service as Chair of the Academic Senate from 1983-1984 and chaired the Department of Chemistry once again from 1990-1991.

Trueblood's research contributed to the Nobel prize-winning research of Dorothy Hodgkin and Donald J. Cram. After receiving a Fulbright research award, Trueblood worked with Hodgkin from 1956-1957 at Oxford on the chemical structure of vitamin B-12. Hodgkin was awarded a Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1964 for discovering the structure of vitamin B-12. Trueblood recommended Cram for consideration for the Nobel Prize, which he received in 1987.

A popular and respected teacher, Trueblood was known for his warmth, dedication, personability and for learning all of his students' names in classes that often contained over 350 students. Trueblood continued his research through the end of his life, and his last paper, with Verner Schomaker, was published posthumously in Acta Cryst. Kenneth N. Trueblood died in Los Angeles on May 7, 1998.

Acquisition information:
Jean Trueblood and Emily Maverick, 1999.
Processing information:

Processed by Kelly Besser and Rebecca Bucher with assistance from Kamarin Takahara, 2014.

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Arrangement:

The collection has been arranged in the following series:

  • 1. Computer program print-outs.
  • 2. Correspondence.
  • 3. Publications.
  • 4. Talks.
  • 5. Professional organization files.
  • 6. UCLA Department of Chemistry files.
  • 7. Grant applications.
  • 8. Lecture notes and teaching materials.
  • 9. Photos, awards and memorials.

Physical location:
Stored off-site. All requests to access special collections material must be made in advance using the request button located on this page.
Rules or conventions:
Describing Archives: A Content Standard

Access and use

Restrictions:

Open for research. All requests to access special collections materials must be made in advance using the request button located on this page.

Terms of access:

Property rights to the physical objects belong to UCLA Library Special Collections. All other rights, including copyright, are retained by the creators and their heirs. It is the responsibility of the researcher to determine who holds the copyright and pursue the copyright owner or his or her heir for permission to publish where The UC Regents do not hold the copyright.

Preferred citation:

[Identification of item], Kenneth N. Trueblood Papers (Collection 589). UCLA Library Special Collections, Charles E. Young Research Library, University of California, Los Angeles.

Location of this collection:
A1713 Charles E. Young Research Library
Box 951575
Los Angeles, CA 90095-1575, US
Contact:
(310) 825-4988
AskLSC@library.ucla.edu
Website