Leland F. Belew Collection
Scope and Contents
This collection is 5.5 linear feet of personal materials, such as notes, correspondence, and professional papers, from the career of Leland F. Belew. Material is mostly print with some AV and artifacts.
Dates
- Creation: Majority of material found within 1960 - 1990
Creator
- Belew, Leland F. (Person)
Conditions Governing Access
This collection is open for research in the Archives and 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
Leland Belew (1925 to 2008) graduated from Salem High School in 1945. That same year, he married his Helen Jerena Scheidemantel and left for combat duty. He served until 1946, earning both the Purple Heart and the Bronze Star.
When Belew returned to the United States, he graduated from “the Missouri School of Mines and Metallurgy, University of Missouri (presently the University of Missouri-Rolla)” with a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering.
After working for the Tennessee Valley Authority in Knoxville, Tennessee, Belew joined the “von Braun Rocket Development Program as a Design Engineer in May 1951, working in the field of rocketry and propulsion systems,” and at the Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC), “he continued his work in the design, testing and production of rocket engines,” contributing to the “fast start system for large rocket propulsion engines” that would eventually put man on the moon.
In 1958, Belew was appointed Manager of Engine Programs, a position in which he “planned and directed the research, development, and production of engine projects for various vehicles in NASA's Apollo Manned Space Flight Program, including the Saturn V engines that took man to the moon.” Belew was also the program manager for NASA's MSFC Skylab Program, and he was later appointed “Deputy Director of Science and Engineering.”
Belew retired from NASA and joined United Technologies in Huntsville, Alabama, serving as a vice president. He retired in 1992.
Summarized from Belew's obituary at https://www.ancientfaces.com/person/leland-forrest-belew-birth-1925-death-2008/76513653#obituary.
Source
“Leland Forrest Belew.” AncientFaces, www.ancientfaces.com/person/leland-forrest-belew-birth-1925-death-2008/76513653#obituary.
Extent
3 Linear feet (3 boxes.)
Language of Materials
English
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.
- Author
- Reese Boynton
- Date
- 2020
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- Undetermined
- Script of description
- Code for undetermined script
Repository Details
Part of the The University of Alabama in Huntsville Archives & Special Collections Repository
M. Louis Salmon Library
301 Sparkman Drive
Huntsville, AL 35899 Alabama 35899 United States of America
256-824-6526
archives@uah.edu