Sperry Corporation

Sperry Corporation
Company type	Public
Industry	Electronics, aviation instrumentation, computing, defense contracting
Predecessor	Sperry Gyroscope Company
Founded	April 14, 1910; 116 years ago in Brooklyn, New York, United States
Founder	Elmer Ambrose Sperry
Defunct	September 16, 1986
Fate	Acquired by Burroughs Corporation; merged to form Unisys
Successor	Unisys Corporation
Headquarters	Nassau County, New York (originally); Phoenix, Arizona (later), United States
Area served	Worldwide
Key people	Elmer Ambrose Sperry (founder), Michael Blumenthal (Burroughs CEO during acquisition)
Products	Aviation instruments, gyroscopes, autopilot systems, bombsights, gyro gunsights, computers (UNIVAC), office machinery, electric shavers
Number of employees	Approx. 3,500 (British plants in 1963)
Parent	None (independent until 1986)

Sperry Corporation was a prominent American manufacturer of equipment and electronics, operating for more than seventy years throughout the 20th century. The company ceased to exist in 1986 following a hostile acquisition by Burroughs Corporation, which subsequently merged Sperry’s operations into Unisys. Several former Sperry divisions were later absorbed by companies such as Honeywell, Lockheed Martin, Raytheon Technologies, and Northrop Grumman.

Renowned primarily for its innovations in aviation instrumentation, including the development of the artificial horizon and various gyroscope-based devices like autopilot systems, bombsights, and gyro gunsights, Sperry broadened its scope after World War II to encompass electronics and computing technologies.

Established by Elmer Ambrose Sperry, the firm was incorporated on April 14, 1910, as the Sperry Gyroscope Company in Brooklyn, New York. Its initial focus was on navigation instruments, featuring Sperry’s inventions such as the marine gyrocompass and gyrostabilizer. During the First World War, the company diversified into aircraft components including bomb sights and fire control mechanisms. Originally concentrated in Nassau County, New York, Sperry expanded its geographic presence over time.

In 1918, Lawrence Sperry created a separate entity called the Lawrence Sperry Aircraft Company, competing in the aero-instrument sector until his death in 1923 prompted a merger back into the original company in 1924. After being acquired by North American Aviation in 1929 and reestablished as Sperry Gyroscope Company, Inc., it regained independence in 1933 under the holding company Sperry Corporation, which unified multiple subsidiaries including Ford Instrument Company and Intercontinental Aviation.

Sperry specialized in cutting-edge aircraft navigation technologies such as the Sperry Gyroscope and Radio Direction Finder. The purchase of Vickers, Inc. in 1937 marked its entry into hydraulics. Additionally, the company incorporated pioneering inventions from Stanford researchers Russell and Sigurd Varian, especially advancements related to klystron tube technology.

During World War II, Sperry ranked nineteenth among U.S. companies for defense production contracts, supplying sophisticated equipment including analog computer–controlled bomb sights, airborne radar systems, automatic landing apparatuses, and the Ball Turret Gun used on B-17 and B-24 bombers.

Following the war, Sperry divested its Brooklyn manufacturing plant in 1944 and expanded its electronics and computing offerings with the introduction of SPEEDAC—the first digital computer—debuting in 1953. In the 1950s, much of Sperry Gyroscope’s operations relocated to Phoenix, Arizona (under the name Sperry Flight Systems) to protect defense manufacturing against nuclear threats. The Gyroscope division maintained its headquarters at Lake Success, Long Island—a site that also served as a temporary United Nations headquarters from 1946 to 1952—until the 1980s.

Sperry Rand

In 1955, Sperry acquired Remington Rand and adopted the name Sperry Rand. Through this acquisition and those of Eckert–Mauchly Computer Corporation and Engineering Research Associates, alongside Remington Rand, the company developed the successful UNIVAC computer line and secured an important cross-licensing agreement with IBM. It continued as a leading military contractor and was embroiled in an antitrust legal dispute with Honeywell, Inc. between 1967 and 1973.

By 1961, Sperry Rand was ranked thirty-fourth on the Fortune 500 list of America’s largest corporations.

In 1977, Sperry Rand entered the minicomputer sector by acquiring Varian Data Machines, which was rebranded as Sperry UNIVAC Minicomputer Operation within its Sperry UNIVAC division.

By 1978, the firm refocused on computing by divesting several units including Remington Rand Systems, Remington Rand Machines, Ford Instrument Company, and Sperry Vickers. It also dropped "Rand" from its corporate name to revert back to Sperry Corporation.

Around the period of acquiring Remington Rand, Sperry Gyroscope inaugurated a marine instruments plant in Charlottesville, Virginia. Founded in 1956 as Sperry Piedmont Division, this later evolved into Sperry Marine.

During the 1970s, with headquarters at the Sperry Rand Building in Manhattan, Sperry Corporation functioned as a diversified conglomerate offering typewriters (under Sperry Remington), office machinery, electronic digital computers for commercial and military applications (Sperry Univac), construction and agricultural equipment (Sperry New Holland), avionics including gyroscopes and radar systems (Sperry Vickers/Sperry Flight Systems), as well as consumer goods like electric shavers (Sperry Remington). Its defense contracting arm, Sperry Systems Management, managed numerous U.S. government contracts and oversaw operations at the Louisiana Army Ammunition Plant from 1961 through 1975. In January 1972, Sperry acquired RCA’s Spectra 70 electronic digital computer series. Later in 1983, it sold Vickers to Libbey Owens Ford while purchasing Aircraft Radio Corporation from Cessna.

Burroughs acquisition

On September 16, 1986, Burroughs Corporation, under the leadership of CEO and former U.S. Treasury Secretary Michael Blumenthal, successfully executed a hostile takeover of Sperry Corporation, culminating in their merger. The new organization adopted the name Unisys Corporation, symbolizing the integration of "united," "information," and "systems," while also paying homage to Sperry's UNIVAC heritage. Although Sperry implemented a poison pill defense that significantly inflated its stock price, Burroughs managed to obtain the necessary financing to finalize the purchase.

Following the merger, Unisys divested several of Sperry’s former divisions: Sperry New Holland was sold to Ford Motor Company (which Fiat acquired in 1991), Sperry Marine was transferred to Tenneco (currently part of Northrop Grumman), Sperry Aerospace Group was acquired by Honeywell, and Sperry Defense Products Group was sold to Loral Corporation—these divisions had their origins in the Sperry Gyroscope segment. These sales helped Unisys refine its strategic focus amid its changing corporate landscape and expanding international operations.

British Sperry

British Sperry originated with a manufacturing facility established in Pimlico, London, in 1913 dedicated to producing gyroscopic compasses for the Royal Navy. It was officially named Sperry Gyroscope Co Ltd in 1915. After founder Lawrence Sperry passed away in 1923, the company expanded operations to locations including the Golden Mile in Brentford (1931), Stonehouse (1938), and Bracknell (1957). By 1963, these plants collectively employed approximately 3,500 workers. The Brentford facility was closed in 1967 as activities moved to Bracknell; Stonehouse ceased operations around 1969. At that time, Sperry Gyroscope—then part of Sperry Rand Corporation—employed about 2,500 staff.

The Bracknell site, which served as both a factory and development center before being sold to British Aerospace in 1982, is marked by a 4.5-meter aluminum artwork titled Sperry's New Symbolic Gyroscope (1967) by Philip Bentham. In 1989, Bracknell's operations were scaled down with production shifting to British Aerospace’s Plymouth location. Presently, advanced MEMS gyroscopes and avionics continue manufacturing there under United Technologies Corporation, as part of UTC Aerospace Systems.

Sperry from 1997 onwards

The Sperry name persists through Sperry Marine, based in New Malden, England. Established in 1997 by merging Sperry Marine with Decca and C. Plath, it is currently a division of Northrop Grumman Corporation. Sperry Marine delivers navigation, communication, information, and automation technologies worldwide to both commercial shipping and naval sectors.

Aircraft

Model name	First flight	Number produced	Category
Hewitt-Sperry Automatic Airplane	1917	13	Flying bomb
Sperry Land and Sea Triplane	1918	2	Single-engine triplane reconnaissance aircraft
Verville-Sperry M-1 Messenger	1921	42	Single-engine biplane communication aircraft
Verville-Sperry R-3	1922	3	Single-engine monoplane racing aircraft

Missiles and rockets

Sperry MGM-29 Sergeant

In popular culture

The 1986 comedic film Jumpin' Jack Flash prominently showcases Sperry computers within the bank setting where the main character (portrayed by Whoopi Goldberg) is employed. Jim Belushi appears as a technician responsible for Sperry equipment.

External links

USStexasbb35.com, Mark 51 Gun director
dreadnoughtproject.org, Index of Director Firing Handbook from HMS Dreadnought project
Gunnery Pocket book maritime.org
Sperry Gyroscope Company Ltd in Stonehouse Glos UK
Archival collections at Hagley Museum and Library include: