Section History

Since its inception, IEEE has had a standing History Committee advising the IEEE Board of Directors on matters of the legacy and heritage of IEEE and its members and their related professions and technologies, and carrying out some activities in those areas.

In 1980, in anticipation of its Centennial celebration in 1984, IEEE established the IEEE History Center to be the staff arm of the History Committee.  In 1990, the Center moved to the campus of Rutgers University, which became a cosponsor.  In 2010, the Center also entered into a cooperative agreement with the University of California, Merced, in order to have a presence near the high-tech centers of the U.S.’s west coast. Today, IEEE’s central historical activities are carried out largely by the staff of the History Center, under the guidance of the History Committee.

The IEEE History Center is a not-for-profit organization which relies on your support to preserve, research, and promote the legacy of electrical engineering and computing.