Sources and methods for cryptologic history: the William and Elizebeth Smith Friedman collections

Abstract

This article, the third in a series of columns devoted to sources and methods for cryptologic history, profiles the William and Elizebeth Smith Friedman Collections at the George C. Marshall Research Library. After providing an overview of how the Friedmans assembled their collections, the article details their scope and organization and notes the inventories, guides, and finding aids that they and others have compiled over the years. A number of digitized documents are identified, as are other notable items in each collection. A final section offers brief description of other sources of information about the Friedmans.

Keywords:

• Cryptologic outreach
• Elizebeth Friedman
• William Friedman

Additional information

Notes on contributors

David Sherman

David Sherman retired from the Federal Government’s Senior Executive Service in 2017. He served for 32 years at NSA, where he held a variety of managerial, analytic, and staff positions. He also held positions on the staffs of the National Security Council and National Economic Council and represented NSA to the Office of the Secretary of Defense and the Joint Chiefs of Staff. He was Dean of Academic Programs and Visiting Professor at the National War College from 2007 to 2010. Prior to joining government, he was Adjunct Faculty at Cornell University, where he taught for four years.