EDSON W. SPENCER:

Edson W. Spencer was born in Illinois in 1926, and was educated at Williams College and at Oxford University, where he was a Rhodes Scholar. He worked for Sears Roebuck before joining Honeywell, Inc. in 1954. He became president and CEO of Honeywell in 1974 until his retirement in 1987. He was elected a trustee of the Ford Foundation in 1977, and served as the Foundation’s chairman from 1988-1992.

Return to top

Availability:

The collection is open for research use.

Preferred Citation:

[Indicate the cited item and/or series here]. Spencer, Edson W., Oral history interview with Edson W. Spencer. Minnesota Historical Society.

See the Chicago Manual of Style for additional examples.

Accession Information:

Accession number: AV2010.44

Processing Information:

Catalog ID number: 990071717500104294

Return to top

Use Restrictions: None.

Scope and Content: Subjects discussed include early life in Chicago and Pennsylvania; education at Williams College and at Oxford University; service in the U.S. Navy; work with Sears Roebuck and life in Venezuela as a Sears representative. He discussed the decision to join Honeywell 1954, life in postwar Japan developing Honeywell business; lifelong interest in Japan and in Asian affairs; service as president and CEO of Honeywell; the company’s ventures in to computers and aviation technology; and his work with the Ford Foundation and the Mayo Clinic Foundation.

Interviewed by: James E. Fogerty.

Return to top

This collection is indexed under the following headings in the catalog of the Minnesota Historical Society. Researchers desiring materials about related topics, persons or places should search the catalog using these headings.

Topics:

Computer industry. United States. History.

Consolidation and merger of corporations. United States.

International business enterprises. United States. History.

Organizations:

Honeywell Inc. History.

Document Types:

Oral histories (document genres)

Interviews.

Return to top