CHAPTER V 



Development of the Armor 

 and Projectile Laboratory* 



Dr. Ralph A. Sawyer 



Dr. Sawyer was born in Atkinson, New Hampshire, on January 5, 1895. He 

 received his PhD in physics and mathematics from the University of Chicago in 

 1919 after serving with the Army in World War 1. Following graduate work at 

 the University of Chicago, he was appointed Professor of Physics at the Univer- 

 sity of Michigan and held several teaching and research positions before being 

 recalled to active duty as a Lieutenant Commander with the Navy on March 25, 

 1941. 



Dr. Sawyer reported to the Naval Proving Ground, Dahlgren, on June 14, 

 1941, and supervised construction of new physics equipment. In December 

 1944, he was designated Officer in Charge of Laboratories at the Proving 

 Ground where he remained until August 1945. The following interview with 

 Dr. Sawyer was conducted by Jack Brooks, Jr., at the University of Michigan on 

 May 22, 1974. 



Why were you assigned to Dahlgren in 1941? 



Leonard Loeb** had suggested to me, since he was getting the A&P Lab 

 started at Dahlgren, that he wanted spectrographic equipment for quantitative 

 analysis, and he hoped that I would take a commission and come down there to 

 advise them since I knew something of that type of work. So I took the 

 commission and reported to the Naval Proving Ground in June 1941. Loeb was 

 there then, and he was Commander of the Naval Reserve. The A&P Lab had 

 been built, and he was ordering equipment. 



*The Armor and Projectile (A&P) Laboratory was constructed at Dahlgren in 1941 to conduct 

 reduced-scale tests of armor and projectiles. These tests were to determine the composition of 

 armor and the relative effectiveness of different projectiles and armor. 

 **Captain Leonard B. Loeb was Commander of the Naval Reserve at Dahlgren from February 

 1941 until the summer of 1941. 



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