W.E. Milne Collection, 1905-1981

Mathematics Professor William Edmund (Ted) Milne headed the Mathematics Department at Oregon State College from 1932 until 1955.

Born in Pendleton, Oregon, Milne earned an A.B. degree in Mathematics from Whitman College in 1912 and A.M. and Ph.D. degrees from Harvard University in 1913 and 1915. He served on the faculty of Bowdoin College from 1915 until 1918 and then spent one year during World War I working with a group of mathematicians at Aberdeen Proving Ground on problems of ballistic path calculations. In 1919 he returned to Oregon as a faculty member in mathematics at the University of Oregon. In 1932, he became head of the Mathematics Department at Oregon State College, a position he held until his retirement in 1955. In 1950-1951, he held a substitute position in the National Bureau of Standards Institute for Numerical Analysis.

Milne was a pioneer in numerical analysis and computer mathematics and was known around the world for the "Milne method" of solving differential equations and for his three textbooks and many technical papers. He continued his research after retirement and was awarded the OSU Distinguished Service Award posthumously in June 1971. The Milne Computer Center was dedicated in his name in April 1972.