The Oliver E. Williamson papers document his career at the University of California, Berkeley, the University of Pennsylvania, and Yale University. The collection has been divided into six series: Correspondence, Administrative Materials and Personalia, Ronald H. Coase, Professional Activities, Writings and Research Notes, and Course Materials.

Oliver E. Williamson was born in Superior, Wisconsin in 1932. He received a BS from MIT, an MBA from Stanford University in 1960, and his PhD from Carnegie Mellon University in 1963. From 1963 to 1965 he was Assistant Professor of Economics at the University of California, Berkeley, after which he became Professor of Economics, Law and Public Policy at the University of Pennsylvania. In 1983 he joined the faculty at Yale where he founded "The Journal of Law, Economics, & Organization." He returned to the University of California, Berkeley in 1986, where he held professorships in business administration, economics, and law. He was appointed the Edgar F. Kaiser Professor Emeritus of Business, Economics and Law in the Haas School of Business in 1988. He retired in 2004. In addition to his faculty positions, Williamson served as Special Economic Assistant to Donald F. Turner at the US Department of Justice Antitrust Division from 1966 to 1967. In 2009, Williamson was awarded the Nobel Prize in Economics for his analysis of organizational economics and his insights into what is known as the make or buy decision. He shared the award with Elinor Ostrom, professor of political science and professor of public and environmental affairs at Indiana University. Williamson passed away in California in 2020.

16.25 linear feet (13 cartons)

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Cartons 1-13 are open for research. Born-digital materials are in-process.