Grace Hopper
Needed waivers for age and weight to join the Navy; retired at 79 as its oldest active officer.
Grace Hopper was born in 1906 in New York City, US. Grace Hopper's background is described as White American; Dutch and Scottish descent. Growing up, the family was affluent — a comfortable Manhattan household; her insurance-executive father insisted his daughters be educated like sons. Needed waivers for age and weight to join the Navy; retired at 79 as its oldest active officer.
- Born
- 1906 · New York City, US
- Roots
- White American; Dutch and Scottish descent
- Family
- Affluent
- A comfortable Manhattan household; her insurance-executive father insisted his daughters be educated like sons.
- Education
- Vassar → Yale (PhD in mathematics, 1934)
- Started with
- A Navy waiver
- Underweight and over-age in 1943, she needed exemptions to join the WAVES; the Navy sent her to program the Mark I.
- Affiliations & societies
- None documented.
- Information only — claims like these are often unverifiable and may be wrong.
The pathway
- 1943 · age 36Joins the WAVES
Leaves a Vassar professorship for the war effort.
- 1944 · age 37The Mark I
Third programmer of Harvard's room-sized computer, under Howard Aiken.
- 1947 · age 40The first "bug"
Her team tapes an actual moth from a relay into the logbook: "First actual case of bug being found."
- 1952 · age 45The A-0 compiler
"Nobody believed it," she recalled. "I had a running compiler and nobody would touch it."
- 1959 · age 52COBOL
Her FLOW-MATIC becomes the foundation of the business-programming language.
- 1986 · age 79Final retirement
A rear admiral, the Navy's oldest active-duty officer; she hands out nanosecond-length wires to explain latency.
Frequently asked questions
Where is Grace Hopper from?
Grace Hopper was born in 1906 in New York City, US. Their background is described as White American; Dutch and Scottish descent.
When was Grace Hopper born?
Grace Hopper was born in 1906, in New York City, US.
What is Grace Hopper's background or ethnicity?
Grace Hopper's roots are described as White American; Dutch and Scottish descent. These are broad categories drawn from public sources, not statements about how the person identifies.
Where did Grace Hopper go to school?
Grace Hopper's education: Vassar → Yale (PhD in mathematics, 1934).
What was Grace Hopper's family background growing up?
At birth the family was affluent. A comfortable Manhattan household; her insurance-executive father insisted his daughters be educated like sons.
How did Grace Hopper get started?
Grace Hopper started with a Navy waiver. Underweight and over-age in 1943, she needed exemptions to join the WAVES; the Navy sent her to program the Mark I.
Sources
Compiled from these references and contemporaneous press reporting. Figures are approximate; verify before relying on them.