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Who directed the Eugenics Record Office at Cold Spring Harbor?

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eugenics Francis Galton, detail of an oil painting by G. Graef, 1882; in the National Portrait Gallery, London.

The Eugenics Record Office (ERO) at Cold Spring Harbor was founded and directed by the American zoologist Charles Benedict Davenport from 1910 to 1934.1

While Davenport officially oversaw the ERO as the director of the Station for Experimental Evolution, the office's daily activities were directly superintended by Harry H. Laughlin. The ERO functioned as a national repository for eugenics data, training fieldworkers to collect information on human traits and advocating for policies such as involuntary sterilization and restrictive immigration laws.2

It is important to note that the eugenics movement, including the work conducted at the ERO, was based on scientifically invalid assumptions regarding racial and social superiority. The promotion of these ideologies led to profound human rights abuses, and the legacy of those involved is rightfully condemned for its ethical and moral failures.12