David Packard | |
|---|---|
 | |
| 13thUnited States Deputy Secretary of Defense | |
| In office January 24, 1969 – December 13, 1971 | |
| President | Richard Nixon |
| Preceded by | Paul Nitze |
| Succeeded by | Kenneth Rush |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1912-09-07)September 7, 1912 Pueblo, Colorado, U.S. |
| Died | March 26, 1996(1996-03-26) (aged 83) Stanford, California, U.S. |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 4; includingDavid Woodley,Susan andJulie |
| Education | Stanford University |
| Known for | Co-founder ofHewlett-Packard. Member ofTrilateral Commission. |
| Awards | Sylvanus Thayer Award (1982) Presidential Medal of Freedom (1988) Public Welfare Medal (1989) |
David Packard (/ˈpækərd/PAK-ərd; September 7, 1912 – March 26, 1996) was an Americanelectrical engineer and co-founder, withBill Hewlett, ofHewlett-Packard (1939), serving as president (1947–64), CEO (1964–68), and chairman of the board (1964–68, 1972–93) of HP. He served asU.S. Deputy Secretary of Defense from 1969 to 1971 during theNixon administration. Packard served as president of theUniformed Services University of the Health Sciences (USU) from 1976 to 1981 and chairman of its board of regents from 1973 to 1982.[1]He was a member of theTrilateral Commission. Packard was the recipient of thePresidential Medal of Freedom in 1988 and is noted for many technological innovations and philanthropic endeavors.
Packard was born inPueblo, Colorado, the son of Ella (Graber) and Sperry Sidney Packard, an attorney.[2][3] He attendedCentennial High School, where early on he showed an interest in science, engineering, sports, and leadership.[4] Packard earned hisB.A. fromStanford University in 1934, where he earned letters in football and basketball and attained membership inPhi Beta Kappa society and was a Brother of theAlpha Delta Phi Literary Fraternity.[5] Stanford is where he met two people who were important to his life, Lucile Salter andBill Hewlett.[6] Packard briefly attended theUniversity of Colorado at Boulder before taking a position with theGeneral Electric Company inSchenectady, New York. In 1938, he returned to Stanford, where he earned amaster's degree inelectrical engineering later that year.[6] In the same year, he married Lucile Salter, with whom he had four children:David, Nancy,Susan, andJulie. Lucile Packard died in 1987 (age 72).[7]
In 1939, Packard and Hewlett establishedHewlett-Packard (HP) inPackard's garage with an initial capital investment of $538 (equivalent to US$12,200 in 2024).[4][6] Packard mentions in his bookThe HP Way that the name Hewlett-Packard was determined by the flip of a coin: HP, rather than PH.[6][8] Their first product was an audio frequencyoscillator, 8 of which were sold toWalt Disney Studios for testing sound equipment used to produceFantasia.[6]
The company grew into the world's largest producer ofelectronic testing and measurement devices.[9] It also became a major producer ofcalculators,computers, andlaser andink jet printers.[6][10]
HP incorporated in 1947, with Packard becoming its first president, serving in that role until 1964. He was then elected chief executive officer and chairman of the board, holding those positions through 1968.[11] Packard left HP in 1969 to serve in the Nixon administration until 1971, at which time he returned to HP and was re-elected chairman of the board, serving from 1972 to 1993.[12] In 1991, Packard oversaw a major reorganization at HP. He retired from HP in 1993. At the time of his death in 1996, Packard's stake in the company was worth more than $1 billion.[13]
Packard was criticized for expanding intoSouth Africa, where HP equipment was used to implementapartheid. In 1980, he presided over the groundbreaking ceremony for HP's headquarters inJohannesburg.[14] WhenNebraska became the first US state government todivest from South Africa, Packard remarked "I'd rather lose business in Nebraska than with South Africa."[15]
At Packard's instruction,[16] thedomain name "HP.com" was registered on March 3, 1986, and as such was one of the earliest to be registered.[17][18]
Upon assuming the US presidency in 1969,Richard Nixon appointed PackardUnited States Deputy Secretary of Defense underSecretary of DefenseMelvin Laird.[6] Packard resigned in December 1971[19][20] and returned to Hewlett-Packard in 1972 as chairman of the board.[12]
While serving in the Department of Defense (DoD), he brought concepts of resource management used in business to the military, as well as establishing theDefense Systems Management College.[21] In 1970, Packard issued a memorandum that contained a number of major reforms designed to address "the real mess we have on our hands."[22] A key reform was elimination of Robert MacNamara'sTotal Package Procurement except in rare situations.[22]
Near the end of his time at DoD, Packard wrote the "Packard Memo" or "Employment of Military Resources in the Event of Civil Disturbances".[23] Enacted in February 1972, the act[24] describes exceptions to the1878 Posse Comitatus Act, which limited the powers of the federal government to use theU.S. military for law enforcement, except where expressly authorized by theConstitution orAct of Congress — noting that the Constitution provides an exception when needed "to prevent loss of life or wanton destruction of property and to restore governmental functioning and public order when sudden and unexpected civil disturbances, disasters, or calamities seriously endanger life and property and disrupt normal governmental functions to such an extent that duly constituted local authorities are unable to control the situations" and "to protect Federal property and Federal governmental functions when the need for protection exists and duly constituted local authorities are unable or decline to provide adequate protection".[25] § 214.5 states that "employment of DoD military resources for assistance to civil authorities in controlling civil disturbances will normally be predicated upon the issuance of a Presidential Executive order or Presidential directive authorizing", with exceptions "limited to:
According to Lindorff, these exceptions reinstate the possibility ofmartial law in the U.S., prohibited since 1878.[27]
In the 1970s and 1980s Packard was a prominent advisor to theWhite House on defenseprocurement and management. He served as chairman ofThe Business Council in 1973 and 1974.[28] From 1985 to 1986, he served as chairman ofThe Packard Commission.[citation needed]
From the early 1980s until his death in 1996, Packard dedicated much of his time and money tophilanthropic projects.[29] In 1964, Packard and his wife had established theDavid and Lucile Packard Foundation. In 1986, they donated $40 million toward building what became theLucile Packard Children's Hospital at Stanford University; the new hospital opened in June 1991. Prompted by his daughters Nancy and Julie, in 1978 David and Lucile had created theMonterey Bay Aquarium Foundation. The couple eventually donated $55 million to build the new aquarium, which opened in 1984 with Julie Packard as its executive director.[4] In 1987, Packard gave $13 million to create theMonterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute.[4] Packard and Hewlett made a combined donation of $77 million to Stanford in 1994,[30] for which the university named the David Packard Electrical Engineering Building in his honor.[31]
Packard was a member of theAmerican Enterprise Institute's board of trustees. He died on March 26, 1996, at age 83 inStanford, California, leaving approximately $4 billion (the bulk of his estate) to the David and Lucile Packard Foundation, including large amounts of valuablereal property inLos Altos Hills. All three Packard daughters sit on the foundation'sboard of trustees.David Woodley Packard, his son, serves as president of thePackard Humanities Institute.[32]
As of 2025, the David and Lucile Packard Foundation has provided $1.2 billion to ocean research and is the leading private benefactor globally.[33]
Packard's old home and garage inPalo Alto, California were placed on the California registry of historic places as "The Birthplace of Silicon Valley".[6] He also had anoil tanker named for him.[42] TheDavid Packard, built in 1977, was operated forChevron, had a capacity 406,592 long tonsdeadweight (DWT) and was registered under theBahamianflag.[citation needed] In 2021,MBARI built a new research vessel namedR/V David Packard in honor of him as their founder.[43]
Letter Accepting the Resignation of David Packard as Deputy Secretary of Defense. December 11, 1971
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| New title | President ofHewlett-Packard 1947–71 | Succeeded by |
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| Chairman ofHewlett-Packard 1964–93 | Succeeded by | |
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| Preceded by | United States Deputy Secretary of Defense 1969–71 | Succeeded by |
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