William Mrazek Collection

Collection

Identifier: MC-38

Staff Only

Scope and Contents

Flight evaluation reports, magazines, memos, NASA publication, Mrazek’s obituary, reports, documents regarding Saturn V.

Dates

Creation: 1940 - 2017

Creator

Mrazek, William (Person)

Conditions Governing Access

This collection is open for research in the Archives & Special Collections reading room. Handling guidelines and use restrictions will be communicated and enforced by archives staff members.

Conditions Governing Use

This material may be protected under U. S. Copyright Law (Title 17, U.S. Code) which governs the making of photocopies or reproductions of copyrighted materials. You may use the digitized material for private study, scholarship, or research. Though the University of Alabama in Huntsville Archives and Special Collections has physical ownership of the material in its collections, in some cases we may not own the copyright to the material. It is the patron's obligation to determine and satisfy copyright restrictions when publishing or otherwise distributing materials found in our collections.

Biographical / Historical

William Anthony Mrazek “(October 20, 1911 to February 8, 1992)” received his education at Deutsche Technische Hochschule, Brünn, Germany, graduating with an engineering diploma in 1935 (Wade, Lundquist). Mrazek worked at Peenemünde from 1941 to 1945 as a loads engineer (Lundquist, Wade). He worked with Wernher von Braun at Peenemünde.

Mrazek was brought to America through Operation Paperclip and arrived at Fort Bliss on April 8, 1946 (Wade, Lundquist). In 1950, Mrazek moved to Huntsville, Alabama, and worked for the U.S. Army’s rocket programs until 1960.

By 1960, Mrazek became Director, Structures and Mechanics Division at the George C. Marshall Space Flight Center, and by February 1969, he became the Assistant Director for Engineering for Industrial Operations (Wade, Lundquist). Mrazek later served as the “Chief Engineer for all Saturn development and fabrication work, reporting to the Saturn V Project Manager,” from “1965 to 1970” (Lundquist).

Mrazek retired from the Marshall Space Flight Center in 1973 (Lundquist).

Works Cited

Lundquist, Charles. "Transplanted Rocket Pioneers," 2015.

Wade, Mark. "Mrazek, Willi." Encyclopedia Astronautica, http://www.astronautix.com/m/mrazek.html.

Extent

3 Linear feet (3 boxes and 1 oversize.)

Language of Materials

English

Additional Description

Immediate Source of Acquisition

Gift of Ursula Vann, 2008.

Existence and Location of Copies

View digitized items from this collection

Processing Information

Collections are processed to a variety of levels, depending on the work necessary to make them usable, their perceived research value, the availability of staff, and competing priorities. The library attempts to provide a basic level of preservation and access for all collections as they are acquired and does more extensive processing of higher priority collections as time and resources permit.