Marx, Guido H., 1871-1949

BIOGRAPHICAL NOTE

Guido H. Marx was born in Toledo, Ohio, in 1871. He attended Cornell University, earning the degree of mechanical engineer in 1893. He worked in industry for two years before joining the Stanford faculty in 1895, at the instigation of Albert W. Smith, his former professor at Cornell who, in collaboration with Guido's brother Charles D. Marx, was developing Stanford's new School of Engineering. He became professor of machine design in 1908; he retired in 1936 with the rank of Professor Emeritus.

In addition to authoring a treatise on Machine Design with Prof. Smith, his professional activities included research in the fields of gearing and bearing lubrication, advocating vocational guidance for Stanford students, co-founding the American Association of University Professors, and holding office in the American Federation of Teachers.

Prof. Marx was also actively involved in many political and social issues. In Palo Alto, he served on the planning commission and the School Board and played an instrumental role in the construction of its first municipal power plant. In 1911 he and Professor R.L. Green organized the local branch of the Progressive Party; Marx was the official delegate to its 1912 national convention. He was active in the American Civil Liberties Union, especially around issues of labor organization and repeal of the Criminal Syndicalism Law.

In 1895 Guido H. Marx married Gertrude Van Dusen, a member of the Cornell library staff; they had four children. He died in 1949.

From the guide to the Guido H. Marx Papers, 1893-1949, (Stanford University. Libraries. Dept. of Special Collections and University Archives.)