Kreiling, Frederick C., 1923-2004

Frederick C. Kreiling was a professor in the Humanities and Social Sciences (HuSS) Department at Polytechnic from 1948 to 1992. He was first hired as a German instructor and transitioned into a history of science professor. In the fall of 1964, Kreiling was appointed head of the newly founded History of Science program at Polytechnic. In its first year, the program offered only three courses: Introduction to the History of Science, Topics in the History of Science, and Seminar in the History of Science.

Kreiling joined Polytechnic soon after serving in WWII as a German translator for POWs. During his career at Poly, his main research focus was on Gottfried W. Leibniz, an 18th-century German philosopher and mathematician. Besides teaching courses in the history of science, he also taught a course on the history of jazz. An accomplished bass player, Krieling played with the likes of Roy Eldridge, Coleman Hawkins, and John Lewis.

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