In 1960, the 24 year-old Earlham College mathematics graduate took a software development position at MIT, in an effort to support her husband while he attended Harvard Law School. Margaret Hamilton’s Apollo Code A brief history of the famous 1969 photo of the software that sent humans to the Moon. She made her screen debut in 1933 in Another Language. (Software is the instructions that tell the computer hardware what to do.) Margaret had already built her resume with several performances in film before she came to her most memorable and astronomically successful role, Almira Gulch/ The Wicked Witch of the West in The Wizard of Oz (1939). Net Worth: Under review. She is a computer scientist, a systems engineer, and even a business owner. As a working mother in the 1960s, Hamilton was an outlier. Little did they know, their programming would later become a $400 billion industry. Your email address will not be published. But, as they say, behind every great man is a woman, and for Armstrong that woman was Margaret Hamilton, the programmer who invented the software that made the moon landing possible, not to mention software itself. Share with your friends. Nearly fifty years ago, history was made when Neil Armstrong took his famous first small step on the surface of the moon. Just three years later, more than 400 people were working on Apollo’s software, hoping to win the race to the moon. Categories: Entrepreneurs, Inventors, ScientistsTags: 20th century women, american women, women programmers, women scientists, Your email address will not be published. But recent public policy initiatives have the nation’s higher education institutions placing an increased emphasis on STEM training. Although Armstrong’s triumph ought to be celebrated as a giant leap for mankind, those accomplishments wouldn’t have been possible without the groundbreaking work of the women behind the scenes. Margaret Hamilton may refer to: Margaret Hamilton (nurse) (1840–1922), American nurse in the Civil War Maggie Hamilton (1867–1952), Scottish artist Margaret Hamilton (educator) (1871–1969), American educator Margaret Hamilton (actress) (1902–1985), American … In 1965, Hamilton led the Software Engineering Division. Her image was of a New England spinster, extremely pragmatic and impatient with all manner of "tomfoolery". Hamilton's career as a film actress was driven by the very qualities that placed her in stark contrast to the stereotypical Hollywood glamour girl. She was one of the first computer software programmers. Margaret Heafield Hamilton (born August 17, 1936) is an American computer scientist, systems engineer, and business owner. Father: Kenneth Heafield Today her company, Hamilton Technologies, exists just blocks away from MIT, where her career took off. Hamilton's looks helped to bring steady work as a character actor. Salary: Under review. Indeed, Margaret Hamilton, renowned mathematician and computer science pioneer, is credited with having coined the term software engineering while developing the guidance and navigation system for the Apollo spacecraft as head of the Software Engineering Division of the MIT Instrumentation Laboratory. Quotations by Margaret Hamilton, American Actress, Born December 9, 1902. But, as they say, behind every great man is a woman, and for Armstrong that woman was Margaret Hamilton, the programmer who invented the software that made the moon landing possible, not to mention software itself. She later attended Hathaway Brown School in Shaker Heights, Ohio, and practiced acting doing children's theater while a Junior League of Cleveland member. By Maia Weinstock | MIT News Office August 17, 2016. Margaret Hamilton’s Apollo Code A brief history of the famous 1969 photo of the software that sent humans to the Moon. Margaret Hamilton is an American movie actress who is probably best known for her role as the Wicked Witch of the West in the movie The Wizard of Oz.. Marriages for Margaret Brainard Hamilton By Maia Weinstock | MIT News Office August 17, 2016. Required fields are marked *. Margaret Hamilton, née Margaret Heafield, (born August 17, 1936, Paoli, Indiana, U.S.), American computer scientist who was one of the first computer software programmers; she created the term software engineer to describe her work.