Harry Woolf was an American educator and historian of science who served as provost of The Johns Hopkins University

Johns Hopkins University

The Johns Hopkins University, commonly referred to as Johns Hopkins, JHU, or simply Hopkins, is a private research university based in Baltimore, Maryland, United States...

 and was later the fifth Director of the Institute for Advanced Study

Institute for Advanced Study

The Institute for Advanced Study, located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States, is an independent postgraduate center for theoretical research and intellectual inquiry. It was founded in 1930 by Abraham Flexner...

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Born in New York City, Woolf received his B.A. and M.A. degrees in 1948 and 1949 from the University of Chicago

University of Chicago

The University of Chicago is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was founded by the American Baptist Education Society with a donation from oil magnate and philanthropist John D. Rockefeller and incorporated in 1890...

 in mathematics, physics, and history. His Ph.D. in 1955 was from Cornell University in the history of science. Between 1953 and 1961, Woolf was a faculty member at Boston University

Boston University

Boston University is a private research university located in Boston, Massachusetts. With more than 4,000 faculty members and more than 31,000 students, Boston University is one of the largest private universities in the United States and one of Boston's largest employers...

, Brandeis University

Brandeis University

Brandeis University is an American private research university with a liberal arts focus. It is located in the southwestern corner of Waltham, Massachusetts, nine miles west of Boston. The University has an enrollment of approximately 3,200 undergraduate and 2,100 graduate students. In 2011, it...

, and the University of Washington

University of Washington

University of Washington is a public research university, founded in 1861 in Seattle, Washington, United States. The UW is the largest university in the Northwest and the oldest public university on the West Coast. The university has three campuses, with its largest campus in the University...

. In 1961 he moved to The Johns Hopkins University

Johns Hopkins University

The Johns Hopkins University, commonly referred to as Johns Hopkins, JHU, or simply Hopkins, is a private research university based in Baltimore, Maryland, United States...

, where he was the Willis K. Shepard professor of the history of science, department chairman from 1961 to 1972, and finally provost (1972–1976).

Woolf's organizational talents caught the eye of the board of the Institute for Advanced Study

Institute for Advanced Study

The Institute for Advanced Study, located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States, is an independent postgraduate center for theoretical research and intellectual inquiry. It was founded in 1930 by Abraham Flexner...

, and he was appointed Director in 1976, succeeding Carl Kaysen

Carl Kaysen

Carl Kaysen was an economist and professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and co-chair of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences' Committee on International Security Studies. He is the father of Girl, Interrupted author Susanna Kaysen. He was married for 50 years to Annette Neutra...

 and serving until 1987 when he was succeeded by Marvin L. Goldberger. During Woolf's term, the Institute grew significantly in both physical size and endowment, the latter growing from $51.7 million in 1975 to $187.9 million in 1987, the year that Woolf stepped down as Director.

Woolf was the author of The Transits of Venus: A Study of Eighteenth-Century Science (1959), and the editor of several journals and multiple monographs, including the sixteen-volume Dictionary of Scientific Biography (1964–1980). His awards and honors include the Alexander von Humboldt-Stiftung Medal in 1990, and fellowship in the American Philosophical Society

American Philosophical Society

The American Philosophical Society, founded in 1743, and located in Philadelphia, Pa., is an eminent scholarly organization of international reputation, that promotes useful knowledge in the sciences and humanities through excellence in scholarly research, professional meetings, publications,...

 and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences

American Academy of Arts and Sciences

The American Academy of Arts and Sciences is an independent policy research center that conducts multidisciplinary studies of complex and emerging problems. The Academy’s elected members are leaders in the academic disciplines, the arts, business, and public affairs.James Bowdoin, John Adams, and...

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