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Birth
John Vincent Atanasoff was born in Hamilton, New York into a very prestigious family. His father, Ivan Atanasoff and mother, Iva Lucena Purdy had nine children including John. -
Becomes Professor
John takes the position of a professor's assistant at Iowa State College teaching mathematics and physics. There he succeeded in numerous projects, experiments, and demonstrations consisting of vacuum tubes and radio signals. His main focus was to advance the technology of computers. -
Designing of ABC
In 1939,John Vincent Atanasoff and his assistant, Clifford E. Berry worked together to design the first special purpose computer, the Atanasoff-Berry Computer, later named the ABC. It was designed to solve linear equations, and other softwares we now use today in computers. Their creation was finished in 1941. -
World War 2
World War 2 began on September 1st, 1939 and lasted until September 2nd, 1945. The work of the ABC was halted in 1941. -
Leaves Iowa for Defense-Related Position
After the ABC, John moved to Washington D.C. for a new profession at the Naval Ordnance Laboratory in 1942. There he worked as a theoretical physicists. Many of his projects were related to: bombs, mines, rockets, etc. -
John Mauchly visits Atanasoff
Throughout 1943, Mauchly visited John in Washington D.C., discussing computer mechanics, but did not mention he wanted to create his own machine in 1944. -
Large Scale Computer
In 1945, the United States Navy built a large-scale computer. Atanasoff was put in charge of designing it, asking Mauchly to help with job positions for appropriate staff. John was also asked to design acoustic systems and monitor atomic bomb-related experiments. -
The Ordnance Engineering Corporation
John founded The Ordnance Engineering Corporation in 1952 alongside of David Beecher. The company was located in Rockville, Maryland. -
IBM seeks out Atanasoff
In 1954, A.J. Etienne, IBM's attorney sought out the help from Atanasoff in breaking the Eckert-Mauchly patent. The patent was for a revolving memory drum. Atanasoff agreed to work with Etienne on the patent. -
Company sold to Aerojet General Corporation
John sold company to Aerojet General Corporation then becomes manager of the Atlantic Region/ Division from the years 1957 through 1959. He then moved up to Vice President from the years 1959-1961. -
Honeywell v. Sperry Rand
The suit was filed in Minneapolis and the trial began on June 1, 1971. -
Decision was made
On this date, the court case came to the conclusion that Mauchly, indeed did get his work from Atanasoff. -
The Film "From One John Vincent Atanasoff"
Director, Carl Hamilton, wanted to create a film based off of John Vincent Atanasoff's life and development of the ABC computer. -
Film was released
The film, "From One John Vincent Atanasoff" was released. John was highly recognized for his accomplishments and achievements by the Iowa State University Alumni Association. His relatives and widow were there to witness these honors as well. -
John Vincent Atanasoff Passes Away
John suffered from a lengthy illness, and on June 15th, passed away from a stroke.
