Jet Propulsion and Princeton

I have been collecting the International Series of Monographs in Aeronautics and Astronautics for some time now. The series dates back to the 1950’s, and features some of the biggest names in Aeronatuics and Astronautics, including Von Karman himself. I have several stories related to my collection and research of this series, and those can be found on this website. However, some of the titles I have collected come from some pretty interesting places.

Photo of the other titles in the the International Series of Monographs in Aeronautics and Astronautics, I have a story about these and some unsolved mysteries, but that is found elsewhere on this site.

Part of the International Series of Monographs in Aeronautics and Astronautics Divsions 3 on Propulsion Systems Including Fuels is a text titled Jet Propulsion Fuels. I got my hands on an original copy of this 1961 work in mid 2024, and have enjoyed it ever since. The author is one Nikandr Andreevich Ragozin, a Russian engineer or scientist. Unfortunatley, I was unable to find much about Ragozin, and this tracks considering the time period and the state of Russian, the then Soviet Union’s heart. The book was translated, printed, and bound by the Pergamon Press, one of my favorite dearly departed publishers. The Pergamon Press was sold off in 1991, but remains a historical titan of scientific and technical publishing.

Photo of the publisher note, where a Pergamon Press publisher apologizies for the “quality” and price of this work (considering it is near new condition 60+ years later, a bit exagerated). The Pergamon Press adhered to the highest quality standards of almost and publisher I have seen thus far, and that is why they are one of my favorites. The symbol of the Pergamon Press is the ancient coin of Alexander the Great, as shown in the second image.

So, in addition to this being an original 1st edition Pergamon Press copy, what else is interesting about it? Well, this copy of mine comes from the Princeton University Library, and has a stamp from both the Edith H. DeLong Memoria and the Forrestal Library. Additionaly, the inside front cover has the name of one John Popovich written. I was not able to track down John Popovich, so that line of inquiry is done for now.

Photo of the Princeton University Library stamp memorializng Edith H. DeLong, and the Forrestal Library stamp

I couldnt find much on the Forrestal Library, but I am waiting on a response from Princeton on it. However, I did find some info on Edith H. DeLong. Edith DeLong was born in 1858 in San Francisco, California. She married Richard Purdy Lounsbery, who was a wealthy buisnessman, finacier, and sportsman. Upon her death in 1940, she donated assets to form the Edith H. DeLong collection at Princeton University, where this book was later added. In the back of the book, a library checkout card was found.

Photo of the library checkout card in the rear of the book

I then searched the legible names, and found information on the R. F. Sawyer entry. For more info what I found, see this story. Anyways, I hope you found something interesting about the books origins!

-Ethan