ABSTRACT
Thurstone was born Louis Leon Thunstrom in Chicago on May 29,1887. His father had been an instructor of mathematics and fortifications in the Swedish army, and later became, in turn, a Lutheran minister, a newspaper editor, and a newspaper publisher. Thurstone's office happened to be in the building that also was occupied by the American Council on Education (ACE). Thurstone enjoyed being an active participant in the Quadrangle Club, the Faculty Club of The University of Chicago. Most weekdays, he would lunch at the Club, usually eating with friends from disciplines other than psychology. Thelma Gwinn Thurstone, when asked by the University administration at UNC to succeed L. L. Thurstone as Director of the Psychometric Laboratory, agreed to be Acting Director for a short term, to fulfill commitments under terms of unexpired research grants and contracts; she firmly declined to continue for a longer term.
