MenuInventory of the Robert E. Lucas Papers, 1960-2004 and undated
Abstract
Economist at the University of Chicago and Nobel Prize laureate.
The Robert E. Lucas Papers span the years 1960-2004, and document the professional work and career of Lucas during his appointments at the Graduate School of Industrial Administration at Canegie-Mellon University, and at the Department of Economics at the University of Chicago. The collection is arranged into the following series: Correspondence; Professional Service; Research Files; and Teaching Material, with the most substantial material in the research series. Folders assembled and maintained by Lucas over many years contain notes, correspondence, drafts, clippings, reports, course and departmental files, and other material related to topics such as business cycles, monetary theory, rational expectations, economic growth, supply-side economics, and unemployment.
Descriptive Summary
- Repository
- David M. Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library, Duke University
- Creator
- Lucas, Robert E.
- Title
- Robert E. Lucas Papers, 1960-2004 and undated
- Language of Material
- English
- Extent
- 22.8 Linear Feet, Approximately 13,875 Items
- Location
- For current information on the location of these materials, please consult the Library's online catalog.
Collection Overview
The Robert E. Lucas Papers span the years 1960-2004, and represent the professional work and career of Lucas during his appointments at the Graduate School of Industrial Administration at Canegie-Mellon University, and at the Department of Economics at the University of Chicago. The collection is arranged into the following series: Correspondence; Professional Service; Research Files; and Teaching Material. Lucas is best known for for having developed and applied the hypothesis of rational expectations, and thereby having transformed macroeconomic analysis and deepened the understanding of economic policy. His work in these and other areas is profiled in the Research Files Series, the most substantial of the collection. Folders assembled and maintained by Lucas over many years contain notes, correspondence, drafts, clippings, reports, and other material related to topics such as business cycles, monetary theory, rational expectations, economic growth, supply side economics, and unemployment. No less significant is the Correspondence Series, nine boxes of exchanges with such economists and colleagues such as Lucas' collaborators Edward C. Prescott and Thomas Sargent, as well as James Tobin, Neil Wallace, Karl Brunner, David Cass, Edmund S. Phelps, Robert J. Gordon, Robert J. Barro, Leonard A. Rapping and John B. Taylor. These letters amplify the documentation in the research files on Lucas' career and research, as well as topics and debates in economics in the 20th century.
In addition to documenting Lucas' work in theoretical economics, the collection also follows his professional activities through documents found in the Professional Service Series. Items relate to his participation on various committees, his editorial and presidential commitments, and his work with institutions such as the American Economic Association (AEA), the National Science Foundation (NSF), and the National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER).
Finally, the Teaching Material Series, offers administrative files and course materials, such as notes, transparencies and exam subjects, dating from the 1960s to the 1990s and relating to Lucas' academic departmental service and teaching career.
Detailed descriptions on the arrangement and content of each series can be found in the respective sections of this collection guide.
Administrative Information
Collections are on the move for the renovation of the David M. Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library. Contact Rubenstein Library staff before visiting. Read More »
Access Restrictions
Collection is restricted. Access is by permission for the lifetime of the donor.
In addition, patrons must sign the Acknowledgment of Legal Responsibility and Privacy Rights form before using this collection.
All or portions of this collection may be housed off-site in Duke University's Library Service Center. Consequently, there may be a 24-hour delay in obtaining these materials.
Please contact Research Services staff before visiting the David M. Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library to use this collection.
Use Restrictions
The copyright interests in this collection have not been transferred to Duke University. For more information, consult the copyright section of the Regulations and Procedures of the David M. Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library.
Contents of the Collection
Browse List of Series
Collapse All
Expand AllCorrespondence Series, 1963-1998
This correspondence series is predominantly constituted by letters between Lucas and his colleagues on research issues. With the exception of the final box, all the correspondence was filed by Lucas by year.
Constituted by Lucas' exchanges with professional colleagues on research matters, including comments on the work of other economists, debates on current issues, recommendations and advising exchanges. Among his most frequent correspondents are his collaborators Edward C. Prescott and Thomas Sargent, from the early days at the Graduate School of Industrial Administration at Carnegie-Mellon University (1963-1974), to the most recent years at the Department of Economics of the University of Chicago (1990s). Major twentieth-century economists such as James Tobin, Neil Wallace, Karl Brunner, David Cass, Edmund S. Phelps, Robert J. Gordon, Robert J. Barro, Leonard A. Rapping and John B. Taylor, among others, are represented by smaller amounts of correspondence. This subseries, then, is a rich source of information that contains a very large amount of material written by and received by Lucas throughout his career. Chronologically filed by Lucas by year.
Brief subseries that includes correspondence on specific subjects, much of it routine, which Lucas filed separately from his general correspondence files. Arranged in alphabetical order by last name or subject.
Professional Service Series, 1971-2004
Contains materials concerning Lucas' connections to organisations involved with both the direction and funding of the discipline, and to other professional associations. Includes budget and committee meetings, correspondence, editorial and presidential duties, conference proceedings, and peer reviews written by Lucas for journal submissions. Arranged in alphabetical order by last name or subject.
Research Files Series, 1960-2000 and undated
Contains extensive documentation related to Lucas' research and to the writing of his articles, papers, or book-length works. The series is divided into ten subseries that describe the wide range of Lucas' research and which are listed alphabetically: Business Cycles, Growth and Development, International Economics, Investment, Labor and Unemployment, Miscellaneous Subject Files, Monetary Theory, Prices, Rational Expectations, and Supply-Side Economics. It includes drafts, notes, comments and different versions of Lucas' papers, articles and books, with emphasis on monetary theory, business cycles and growth. Overall, the subseries is further enhanced by the frequent presence of related correspondence between Lucas and his co-authors or commentators, as well as printed materials (such as reports, clippings, reprints and journal articles) and writings by others, both published and unpublished, related to Lucas' research.
The Administrative Files Subseries chiefly contains letters of recommendation and of reference and general reports related to departmental affairs. In the second subseries, course materials chiefly consist of course notes, transparencies, comments on students' work and exam subjects. Arranged alphabetically by folder title.
Historical Note
Robert Emerson Lucas Jr. was born September 15, 1937, in Yakima, Washington. He received his B.A. in History in 1959 and Ph.D. in Economics in 1964, both from the University of Chicago. He taught at the Graduate School of Industrial Administration at Carnegie-Mellon University from 1963 until 1975, when he returned to the University of Chicago. In 1980, he was named the John Dewey Distinguished Service Professor at University of Chicago. In 1995, he received the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences in 1995 for his work on macroeconomics.
Subject Headings
- Lucas, Robert E.
- Barro, Robert J.
- Brunner, Karl, 1916-1989.
- Cass, David.
- Phelps, Edmund S.
- Gordon, Robert J. (Robert James), 1940-
- Prescott, Edward C.
- Rapping, Leonard A.
- Sargent, Thomas J.
- Taylor, John B.
- Tobin, James, 1918-2002.
- Wallace, Neil.
- Carnegie-Mellon University. Graduate School of Industrial Administration.
- University of Chicago. Dept. of Economics.
- Business cycles.
- Economists--Correspondence.
- Economists--United States.
- Fiscal policy.
- Keynesian economics.
- Macroeconomics.
- Monetary policy.
- Rational expectations (Economic theory).
- Supply-side economics.
- Unemployment.
Preferred Citation
[Identification of item], Robert E. Lucas Papers, David M. Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library
Provenance
The Robert E. Lucas Papers were received by the David M. Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library as a gift in 2004.
Processing Information
Processed by Danilo Silva, Chris Payne, August 2010
Encoded by Paula Jeannet Mangiafico, Chris Payne, Danilo Silva, August 2010
Accession 2005-0063 is described in this finding aid.
Descriptive sources and standards used to create this inventory: DACS, EAD, NCEAD guidelines, and local Style Guide.
This finding aid is NCEAD compliant.