Sara Arnold 

Who knew Worcester played such a major role in ushering in the space era?

Worcester native Dr. Robert Goddard launched the first modern, liquid-fueled rocket on March 16, 1926. Born in 1882, he grew up on the second floor of his family’s multigenerational home at 1 Tallawanda Drive in Worcester. He attended South High, WPI, and Clark University, where he later became a professor. All of his rockets were built, assembled, and tested in Worcester.

“It’s critical that Worcester and Auburn take credit for their significant role in space technology,” said Charles Slatkin, Executive Director of the Robert Goddard Project and The Wonder Mission.

Goddard was an American engineer, professor, physicist, and inventor who dramatically advanced rocket science. He improved the efficiency of solid-fueled rockets and tested 34 of them in the Worcester area. “He anticipated many of the developments that would make spaceflight possible,” said Slatkin. Goddard’s 1919 monograph is considered one of the classic texts of 20th-century rocket science. Over the course of his career, he received 214 patents and pioneered modern methods such as two-axis control using gyroscopes and steerable thrust. His development of liquid-fueled rockets allowed for sustained and controlled thrust, using gasoline and liquid nitrogen under pressure.

After his death in 1945, Goddard’s wife Esther took on the task of protecting and promoting his legacy. “She moved into the house on Tallawanda Drive and gathered her family around her,” Slatkin explains, “She had an annex built at the rear of the house for her mother and moved an elderly aunt into the upstairs bedroom.” Esther meticulously sorted his papers and worked with Worcester patent attorney Charles Hawley to secure 131 posthumous patents. In 1965, she donated Goddard’s “Magnesium Powder Experiment Box”—developed in 1916—to the National Air and Space Museum. “It is the oldest space-oriented artifact in the museum and possibly the world,” said Slatkin.

The upcoming Centennial will honor Goddard’s extraordinary vision and legacy, and also spotlight today’s innovators. “We want to highlight the scientists, educators, students, engineers, and big dreamers who push the boundaries of human knowledge,” said Slatkin.

Celebratory events are planned across Worcester, with VIP speakers appearing at the Museum of Worcester, Mechanics Hall, and WPI. A major Goddard exhibition will be hosted at the Museum of Worcester for several months around the Centennial. “It will be a significant exhibit,” Slatkin said, noting that Clark University and WPI will collaborate and share Goddard-related artifacts, films, photographs, patents, and more.

The Goddard Project has also restored Robert and Esther Goddard’s historic home on Tallawanda Drive. The home is now being used as a museum, library, and educational resource center.

Additionally, the first phase of the “National Space Trail” will soon be installed, with Worcester as the starting point. It will highlight the key sites and institutions that were “instrumental in Goddard’s growth and development,” said Slatkin.

“The Goddard Project is also republishing Goddard’s only official biography, which has been out of print for over 50 years,” Slatkin said.

The Goddard Project is affiliated with The Wonder Mission (thewondermission.org), a nonprofit dedicated to creating experiences that ignite the imagination of future scientists, engineers, explorers, and dreamers. “The Wonder Mission teams up with schools, science centers, museums, libraries, and aerospace engineers to bring STEAM to the next generation,” Slatkin said.

Worcester helped launch the Space Age, and the Centennial is a chance to finally give that legacy its due.