Waldemar Kaempffert

Waldemar Kaempffert (September 27, 1877 - 1956) was a US science writer and museum director.

Waldemar (Bernhard) Kaempffert was born and raised in New York City. He received his B.S. from the City College of New York in 1897. Thereafter he was employed by "Scientific American", first as a translator (1897-1900) then as managing editor (1900-1916). In 1916, he started working as the editor of "Popular Science Monthly". In 1922, he left to become the Editor of Science and Engineering at the "New York Times".

In 1928, following a nationwide search for a director, the Museum of Science and Industry Chicago asked Kaempffert to become its first director. He enthusiastically devoted himself to the work of laying out the history of the sciences and of the industries. He encouraged his curators and exhibit designers to base their exhibits on careful research in order to be as objectively true as possible. This devotion to objectivity, however, led to disputes with the board of directors, especially around the appointment of George Ranney, who was also a director of International Harvester. This appointment created an apparent conflict of interest in the museum, as International Harvester was contributing to an exhibit on farm tractors that claimed that an IH predecessor company was responsible for the invention of the tractor. Research by both Kaempffert and his staff showed otherwise, but he could not antagonize donors to the museum nor his board of directors.

The board also found issue with Kaempffert's cost accounting. The board, all business executives, kept careful track of every dollar spent. Kaempffert, however, was more lax in his accounting. No wrongdoing was alleged, but the board wanted greater oversight. To achieve that, the board created a new layer of management, "assistant directors," who reported not only to Kaempffert but also directly to the Board. It was the usurpation of Kaempffert's authority that led him to ask, in January of 1931, the "New York Times" if he could have his old job back. The "Times" agreed. He remained with the "Times" until his retirement in 1956. He was succeeded as science editor by William L. Laurence.

Kaempffert was a member of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, History of Science Society, National Association of Science Writers (serving as the president in 1937), and the Newcomen Society.

References

*Jaques Cattel, ed., "American Men of Science: A Biographical Directory", 9th ed., vol. 1, Physical Sciences (Lancaster, PA: The Science Press, 1955), s.v. "Kaempffert, Waldemar Bernhard."
*For information on Kaempffert's tenure with the Museum of Science and Industry Chicago see Jay Pridmore, "Inventive Genius: The History of the Museum of Science and Industry Chicago" (Chicago: Museum of Science and Industry, 1996), pp. 26-48.