George Oliver Henderson Jr., of Grumman, Lunar Module GN&C Team Lead

This article draws from historical documents, personal connections, and stories from individuals who worked during the space era. Margot Shetterly's book, "Hidden Figures: The Untold True Story of Four African-American Women Who Helped Launch Our Nation Into Space", introduced this facet of American history. This article closes out #BlackHistoryMonth 2025 and follows my earlier article:

Mr. George Oliver Henderson Jr. was a trailblazer in aerospace engineering and a respected member of the Grumman Aerospace team. Though not widely known, he played a pivotal role as the Lead of the Lunar Module Guidance, Navigation, and Control (GN&C) team. He was also one of two African American technical leads on the team, the other being his close friend and colleague, Oswald "Ozzie" S. Williams Jr., who was the Reaction Control Lead for the Lunar Module.

Born in New Bedford, Massachusetts, Henderson was an exceptional student and served his country with distinction as a member of the U.S. Army Air Corps during World War II. Following his service, he attended the Milwaukee School of Engineering and later earned a Master’s Degree in Electrical Engineering from the University of Wisconsin at Madison. He subsequently became an Assistant Professor of Electrical Engineering at Tennessee State University, a Historically Black College.

In March of 1953, he joined Sperry Corporation as an Assistant Project Engineer and became a Senior Engineer within three years. Before World War II, the Sperry Corporation did not employ any African Americans. However, by the early 1950s, African Americans comprised 10% of its workforce, reflecting national demographics and marking a significant shift toward inclusion and equal opportunity.

A key figure in this transformation was Thomas Alfred Morgan, President of Sperry, who was appointed as the first national campaign chairman of the United Negro College Fund (UNCF) in 1945, a role he held until 1962.

Thomas Morgan was born to sharecroppers in Vance County, North Carolina, which was then a predominantly African American area, he spent his childhood working in the tobacco fields. His leadership in the UNCF came at a time when segregation and limited resources restricted access to higher education for many African Americans. As chairman of the UNCF, he actively fundraised with Black celebrities to support historically Black colleges and universities.

It was during this era at Sperry where George Henderson gained valuable experience in developing navigation instruments for the control of aircraft and submarines. He was also a member of the American Institute of Electrical Engineers (AIEE).

In 1958, Henderson joined Grumman Aerospace, becoming the second African American hired (the first being Ozzie Williams), where he was the Lead of the Guidance, Navigation, and Control System for the Lunar Excursion Module. He formed a close friendship with Ozzie Williams, and they lived on the same street in Long Island.

When the Grumman team was in Houston to sign the Lunar Module contract in 1962, they suffered the indignity of being refused accommodation due to the presence of the two African American team members. In response, project leads Tom Kelly and Joe Gavin courageously refused to divide the team. Ultimately, they found lodging at a Sheraton Hotel in Houston, and later citing the decision as a unifying moment that contributed to the Moon landing’s success.

Henderson left Grumman in 1966 after full-scale production of the LEM began and seemingly disappeared from public view. In reality, he had been recruited to join Perkin-Elmer, where he served as a Program Manager for the top-secret KH-9 (Keyhole-9) Hexagon spy satellite. The KH-9 Hexagon, a school bus-sized reconnaissance satellite, remains one of the most complex satellite systems ever developed. He led the development of electro-optical systems for satellite systems and space-imaging systems.

The KH-9 Hexagon took pictures from space and dropped the film pods from space, which were then caught by a passing C-130 Hercules. He was also responsible for conducting and monitoring all subcontracts and interdivisional transactions at Perkin-Elmer. His work at Perkin-Elmer was only revealed after the declassification of the KH-9 Hexagon program in the mid-2000s.

George Oliver Henderson Jr. was a remarkable individual who is largely unknown. He is held in high regard by Grumman Executives Joe Gavin and Tom Kelly in interviews. After leaving Perkin-Elmer in the late 1970s, he founded a successful consultancy company in the area of renewable energy and waste-to-energy conversion, and was active in local community organizations.

References

1. Gubert BK, Sawyer KL, Finkelman PB. 2010. Distinguished African Americans in Aviation and Space Science. Santa Barbara (CA): Greenwood Publishing Group.
2. Ciancone ML, International Academy of Astronautics. 2010. History of Rocketry and Astronautics: Proceedings of the Thirty-Sixth History Symposium of the International Academy of Astronautics, Houston, Texas, U.S.A., 2002. San Diego (CA): American Astronautical Society. (AAS History Series; vol 33).
3. Kelly TJ. 2009. Moon Lander: How We Developed the Apollo Lunar Module. Washington (DC): Smithsonian Books.
4. Gavin J. 2011. Joe Gavin video interview [Internet]. Cambridge (MA): Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Available from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ALu1jiAPWN4&t=81m17s.
5. National Reconnaissance Office (NRO). 2011. A History of the Hexagon Program. Link: https://www.nro.gov/Portals/65/documents/history/csnr/gambhex/Docs/Critical%20to%20US%20Security.pdf.
6. North Carolina State Historic Preservation Office. 2008. Thomas A. Morgan Farm. Link: https://files.nc.gov/ncdcr/nr/VN0386.pdf.