Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering

Ervin J. Nutter

Apr 7, 2025, 5:18 PM

Ohio native Ervin J. Nutter enrolled in the undergraduate program in mechanical engineering at UK in 1934. He later dropped out to go to work for, among other companies, Procter and Gamble. During this time he became the youngest person ever in the state of Ohio to pass a professional engineer’s license exam. After a job promotion went to a colleague holding an engineering degree, Nutter moved his family back to Lexington where he convinced UK administrators to allow him to enroll in the middle of the semester. He earned his bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering in 1943.

Margaret Ingels Posthumous

Apr 7, 2025, 5:06 PM

Miss Margaret Ingels came to the University of Kentucky from Paris, Kentucky, hoping to pursue a degree in architecture. Fortunately for the engineering profession, there was no degree program in architecture at UK at that time and Dean F. Paul Anderson persuaded her to pursue a degree in mechanical engineering as “the next best thing.” She was the first female engineering graduate from this institution when she received her Bachelor of Mechanical Engineering in 1916.

Ralph G. Anderson

Apr 7, 2025, 5:06 PM

Ralph Anderson called himself an engineer and a farmer. Born and raised in Harrodsburg, Kentucky, he began his formal education in engineering at the University of Cincinnati after serving approximately two and one-half years as a B-29 flight engineer in the U.S. Air Force. He received his Bachelor of Science degree in mechanical engineering from UK in 1950, working during his two years at UK in the Engineering Machine Shop. He spent the next seven years at General Motors and General Electric Company as a test engineer, and at Kett Corporation in analytical analysis and design.

Robert M. Drake, Jr.

Apr 7, 2025, 4:52 PM

Born in Eagle Cliff, Georgia, Robert M. Drake, Jr., graduated from the University of Kentucky with a Bachelor of Science in mechanical engineering in 1942 and immediately joined the U.S. Army Air Corps. He received his Master of Science (1946) and Doctor of Philosophy (1950) from the University of California at Berkeley. Dr. Drake resigned from the AAF in 1947 and joined the faculty of the College of Engineering at UC-Berkeley.

Thomas A. Auxier

Apr 7, 2025, 4:48 PM

Thomas A. Auxier was born in Auxier, Floyd County, Kentucky. He received his Bachelor of Science in mechanical engineering in 1958 and Master of Science in mechanical engineering in 1962 from the University of Kentucky. From 1965 to 1981, Mr. Auxier held positions with Belcan Corporation and General Electric Company in Cincinnati, Ohio. In 1981, he accepted a position with Pratt & Whitney Aircraft Company.

P. Elaine Duncan

Apr 7, 2025, 4:14 PM

Lawrenceburg, Kentucky native and Anderson County High School graduate Elaine Duncan earned the Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Kentucky in 1974. She was an officer in the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, a member of the Society of Women Engineers and Pi Tau Sigma honor society. In 1984 she earned a Master of Science in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Minnesota while working full time at 3M Corporation.

Wendell S. Norman

Apr 7, 2025, 2:53 PM

B.S. Mechanical Engineering 1956 Dr. Wendell Norman’s distinguished engineering career is highlighted by innovation, leadership, management, teaching and a willingness to work extraordinarily hard to reach a worthy goal. All of those qualities led to a level of expertise described by his peers as “invaluable to the nation” during a critical period in defense and space exploration.

L. Berkley Davis, Jr.

Apr 7, 2025, 1:32 PM

B.S. Mechanical Engineering 1966 M.S. Mechanical Engineering 1970 P.h.D Mechanical Engineering 1972 L. Berkley Davis Jr. is at the center of power. Electric power, that is. Dr. Davis is known internationally for innovations leading to the development and worldwide implementation of low-nitrous-oxide-emission gas turbines for electric-power generation.

J. Ralph King

Apr 7, 2025, 1:31 PM

B.S. Mechanical Engineering 1960 Inventors solve problems, improve productivity and add to the quality of life. Ralph King has found ways to do all that on an even larger scale by helping inventors succeed and encouraging young people to pursue their dreams in an engineering or scientific field.

William T. Young

Apr 7, 2025, 12:16 PM

William T. Young graduated with high distinction from the University of Kentucky in 1939 with a Bachelor of Science in mechanical engineering. After a short employment with Bailey Meter in Cleveland, Ohio, he served as a captain in the U.S. Army from 1941-45. Upon returning to Lexington after World War II, he founded W. T. Young Foods, Inc., a company that became one of the nation’s leading producers of peanut butter. Mr. Young sold his business to Procter and Gamble in 1954, but continued to manage their peanut butter manufacturing operation until 1957, at which time he founded W. T.

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