History of Computing

The University of Pennsylvania has an important role in the early history of modern computing. Collections in this field are significant and include early materials from John W. Mauchly as well as contemporary research.

Collection Overview

Given the history of computing at Penn, it is no surprise that that collections would be strong in this field. Since Penn was part of the very origins of modern computing, many of the early source materials are available. In recent years, faculty in the history of science have written extensively on it. Needless to say, part of Penn's significant reputation in the computing discipline involves history as a major field of study. We attempt to collect the history of computing comprehensively.

The History of the ENIAC and Related Materials

The Kislak Center holds the papers of John W. Mauchly who, along with J. Presper Eckert, invented the Electronic Numerical Integrator and Computer (ENIAC), the Electronic Discrete Variable Automatic Computer (EDVAC), the Binary Automatic Computer (BINAC), and the Universal Automatic Computer (UNIVAC).