{"id":876,"date":"2026-05-27T12:14:10","date_gmt":"2026-05-27T16:14:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine\/?p=876"},"modified":"2026-05-28T13:11:35","modified_gmt":"2026-05-28T17:11:35","slug":"esther-and-bob","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine\/esther-and-bob\/","title":{"rendered":"Esther and Bob"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<div class=\"wp-block-group alignfull abut-end has-gray-100-background-color has-background is-layout-constrained wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained\"><clark-showcase class=\"reverse-stack  alignfull\" stickTo=\"bottom\">\n\t\n<div class=\"showcase-col\"><div class=\"showcase-col-content\">\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-cover is-light\"><span aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-cover__background has-background-dim-0 has-background-dim\"><\/span><div class=\"wp-block-cover__inner-container is-layout-constrained wp-block-cover-is-layout-constrained\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-group is-layout-constrained wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-columns is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-is-layout-28f84493 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-vertically-aligned-center is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\" style=\"flex-basis:15%\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-vertically-aligned-top padded is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\" style=\"flex-basis:85%\">\n<div style=\"height:7rem\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-align-left has-body-font-family has-x-large-font-size\" id=\"h-esther-amp-bob\" style=\"font-style:normal;font-weight:300\">Esther <br>&amp; Bob<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:4rem\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-left is-style-intro has-large-font-size\">Esther Goddard\u2019s fierce devotion to her husband kept his memory alive, and built a&nbsp;legend<\/p>\n\n\n<div style=\"color:var(--clarku-color-gray-600)\" class=\"eyebrow  has-text-align-left\">by melissa Lynch \u201995, MSPC \u201915<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:2rem\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-small-font-size\">On Friday, August 10, 1945, Esther Goddard opened a pocket-sized diary and turned to the day\u2019s page.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-small-font-size\">Picking up her pen, she carefully wrote, \u201cDarling Bob slipped away.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-small-font-size\">The journal was not her own. Her husband, rocketry pioneer Robert Goddard, was a compulsive diarist, recording his work and activities over nearly 50 years. That summer, when worsening esophageal cancer and hospital visits had made it impossible for him to keep the diary current, Esther did it for him. She would not let his story sit unfinished.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-small-font-size\">Her husband\u2019s life was over, but Esther\u2019s work had just begun.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n<div class=\"showcase-col\"><div class=\"showcase-col-content\">\n\n<div style=\"aspect-ratio:2\/3;min-height:unset;\" class=\"wp-block-cover has-custom-content-position is-position-top-left has-aspect-ratio\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"746\" height=\"1024\" class=\"wp-block-cover__image-background wp-image-805\" alt=\"Esther Goddard at her typewriter\" src=\"https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/90\/Esther-Goddard-at-typewriter-746x1024.avif\" style=\"object-position:46% 30%\" data-object-fit=\"cover\" data-object-position=\"46% 30%\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/90\/Esther-Goddard-at-typewriter-746x1024.avif 746w, https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/90\/Esther-Goddard-at-typewriter-218x300.avif 218w, https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/90\/Esther-Goddard-at-typewriter-768x1055.avif 768w, https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/90\/Esther-Goddard-at-typewriter-1118x1536.avif 1118w, https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/90\/Esther-Goddard-at-typewriter-1491x2048.avif 1491w, https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/90\/Esther-Goddard-at-typewriter.avif 1864w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 746px) 100vw, 746px\" \/><span aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-cover__background has-background-dim wp-block-cover__gradient-background has-background-gradient has-gradient-2-gradient-background\"><\/span><div class=\"wp-block-cover__inner-container is-layout-flow wp-block-cover-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center has-large-font-size\"><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/clark-showcase>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group alignfull abut-end has-background is-layout-constrained wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained\" style=\"background-color:#f2e8b863\">\n<div style=\"height:2rem\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-columns alignfull is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-is-layout-28f84493 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\" style=\"flex-basis:14%\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\" style=\"flex-basis:55%\">\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-small-font-size\" id=\"h-not-a-common-person\">Not a common person<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-small-font-size\">This small, private act of grief is also a window into who Esther Goddard was: meticulous, devoted, and fiercely in control of the narrative. Because while Robert Goddard is remembered today as the father of modern rocketry\u2014the pioneer who launched the world\u2019s first liquid-fueled rocket on March 16, 1926, from a snow-covered field in Auburn, Massachusetts\u2014a key reason we remember him at all is because of her efforts to ensure he never be forgotten.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-small-font-size\">In 1919, Esther Christine Kisk, then 18 and a recent high-school graduate, was working as a typist in the office of Clark College President Edmund Sanford, earning money for her own college tuition. Robert Goddard was a professor and the chair of the Physics Department.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"566\" height=\"797\" src=\"https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/90\/Young-Esther-Goddard-reading.avif\" alt=\"Young Esther Goddard seated in a library reading\" class=\"wp-image-804\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/90\/Young-Esther-Goddard-reading.avif 566w, https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/90\/Young-Esther-Goddard-reading-213x300.avif 213w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 566px) 100vw, 566px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-small-font-size\">Robert and Esther began seeing each other frequently. He visited her at home, where he would play the piano for her, took her for walks and ice cream, and \u201cwrote gushy letters,\u201d according to David A. Clary, author of <em>Rocket Man: Robert H. Goddard and the Birth of the Space Age.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-small-font-size\">It was a perfect match. Esther was intelligent, strong-willed, energetic yet reserved, and physically striking. She was passionate about cultural disruptions, like new books and fresh theories. Clary notes a Clark biologist at the time describing Esther as \u201cnot a common person.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-small-font-size\">They married in 1924.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\" style=\"flex-basis:31%\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:3rem\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group alignfull abut-end has-gray-200-background-color has-background is-layout-constrained wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained\">\n<div style=\"height:2rem\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-columns alignfull is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-is-layout-28f84493 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-vertically-aligned-center is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\" style=\"flex-basis:14%\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\" style=\"flex-basis:55%\">\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-align-left has-small-font-size\" id=\"h-the-curator-the-image-builder-the-facilitator\">The curator, the image builder, the facilitator<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Robert Goddard was raised with an overattentive mother and grandmother who catered to his every need, and Esther continued the tradition of a strong woman taking charge of his well-being, and of the image he projected to the world. She often accompanied her husband to work, documenting his experiments through photography and, later, film. Those photos are now part of Clark\u2019s Robert and Esther Goddard Collection, portions of which have been digitized and are now accessible online.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"819\" src=\"https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/90\/Esther-and-Bob-1024x819.avif\" alt=\"Esther and Robert Goddard seated outdoors in folding chairs\" class=\"wp-image-943\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/90\/Esther-and-Bob-1024x819.avif 1024w, https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/90\/Esther-and-Bob-300x240.avif 300w, https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/90\/Esther-and-Bob-768x614.avif 768w, https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/90\/Esther-and-Bob-1536x1229.avif 1536w, https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/90\/Esther-and-Bob.avif 2000w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cShe is the curator, the image builder, the facilitator,\u201d says Katie Stebbins, digital projects librarian at Clark. \u201cShe managed his life for him. She was a patent-getter, a documenter, a photographer, a filmmaker. Basically, any photo or video we have of him, whether it\u2019s here or New Mexico, was taken by Esther.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In Martin Lehman\u2019s <em>The High Man<\/em>\u2014a biography written after Robert\u2019s death under Esther\u2019s supervision\u2014a family friend notes, \u201cEsther\u2019s job was to see that he was effective and happy; and in her lifelong modeling of Bob\u2019s fa\u00e7ade as that of a \u2018great man,\u2019 she would certainly see that he was constantly encouraged about his own achievement and his qualities, his stature.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>When Robert launched the&nbsp;historic liquid-fueled rocket on March 16, 1926, Esther was there, as she always was, movie camera in hand. She didn\u2019t capture the actual rocket flight, but did take photos of Goddard and his team before and after the launch, memorializing the occasion for posterity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Stebbins and Cynthia Shenette, head of the Clark University Archives, say that Esther\u2019s dedication was evident as they prepared materials for the launch centennial. \u201cShe was there. She lived it\u2014and was always by his side,\u201d Stebbins says. &nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cShe had an emotional attachment to the work that nobody else would have,\u201d Shenette adds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"797\" src=\"https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/90\/Robert-and-Esther-Goddard-1943-1200x934-1-1024x797.jpg\" alt=\"Robert H. Goddard and Esther Goddard\" class=\"wp-image-826\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/90\/Robert-and-Esther-Goddard-1943-1200x934-1-1024x797.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/90\/Robert-and-Esther-Goddard-1943-1200x934-1-300x234.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/90\/Robert-and-Esther-Goddard-1943-1200x934-1-768x598.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/90\/Robert-and-Esther-Goddard-1943-1200x934-1.avif 1200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>After Robert\u2019s death in 1945, Esther made it her mission to secure his legacy. Less than a year after he died, she delivered a speech, \u201cThe Life and Achievements of Dr. Robert H. Goddard,\u201d in which she described a boy from humble beginnings who dreamed big dreams and pursued them throughout his life. She painted a picture of a distinguished but absentminded professor who refused to give up, even in the face of ridicule.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>She gave the same speech for 30 years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Shortly after Robert\u2019s death, Esther\u2019s friend (and her husband\u2019s stalwart supporter) Harry Guggenheim urged her to secure patents for any inventions not yet applied for. She did, with some administrative help and all expenses paid by the Guggenheim Foundation. The long and arduous process resulted in 131 additional patents in Robert Goddard\u2019s name, bringing the total to 214.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>She also joined Guggenheim in a patent-infringement claim against the U.S. government, eventually agreeing to a settlement that paid her $400,000 over 20 years. When that news broke, United Press International reported, \u201cNow he is generally credited with being the \u2018father of modern rocketry,\u2019 the German V-2 missile, the American bazooka of World War II, and eventually the entire family of U.S. space and military rockets.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cThe patents were my primary goal,\u201d Esther told Guggenheim. \u201cTo me, they are quite simply the whole foundation upon which you and I have built the shining image that is Goddard today.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>While the patent negotiations were happening, Esther decided it was time for a biography, and Milton Lehman was hired to write it\u2014but Esther was in control.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>She gave Lehman only those papers she wanted him to see, and edited the manuscript to ensure the biography presented the Robert Goddard she wanted the world to know. Her edited copies of the book\u2019s drafts are housed&nbsp;with her papers at Clark.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"722\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/90\/Goddard-Notebook-1-722x1024.avif\" alt=\"Selection from the journal of Robert H. Goddard with diagrams and handwritten notes, Clark University\" class=\"wp-image-823\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/90\/Goddard-Notebook-1-722x1024.avif 722w, https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/90\/Goddard-Notebook-1-212x300.avif 212w, https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/90\/Goddard-Notebook-1-768x1089.avif 768w, https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/90\/Goddard-Notebook-1-1084x1536.avif 1084w, https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/90\/Goddard-Notebook-1.avif 1411w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 722px) 100vw, 722px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Clark also has a 22-volume set of Goddard\u2019s research notes, drawings, and photos that Esther collected, curated, and presented to Clark, the Smithsonian, the Library of Congress, and the Roswell Museum and Art Center in New Mexico. Later, Guggenheim and Esther curated a three-volume set of her husband\u2019s papers\u2014more than 1,700 pages of diary entries, notes, and correspondence\u2014published by McGraw-Hill in 1970. She left out personal papers and anything that put him in a bad light. Anything that Esther considered significant and worthy of preservation was included.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Along with those multivolume sets, Esther gave all of her husband\u2019s (and later, her own) papers to Clark. She had originally intended for those to go to the Library of Congress but changed her mind in 1964 when she learned of the University\u2019s plans to build the Robert Hutchings Goddard Library.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cShe documented everything meticulously. And then, posthumously, she curated everything\u2014one project after another, making sure different institutions had copies of the work,\u201d Stebbins says. \u201cShe was essentially building his legacy from the ground up.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Along with securing patents and organizing papers, Esther made sure that Robert Goddard received proper recognition from those in power. He was awarded the Congressional Gold Medal in 1959, the Smithsonian\u2019s Langley Medal in 1960, and the Daniel Guggenheim Medal, the highest honor in aeronautics, in 1964 (Orville Wright received the first Guggenheim Medal in 1929). In 1964, he was honored with a U.S. postage stamp. And NASA\u2019s Goddard Space Flight Center opened in 1959.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Since 1958, the National Space Club has given the Robert H. Goddard Memorial Trophy to individuals or groups who made the most impact on space activities in the previous year. It is presented at the club\u2019s Robert H. Goddard Memorial Dinner, which Esther attended for many years.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large hang\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"812\" src=\"https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/90\/Esther-Goddard-LBJ-White-House-1024x812.avif\" alt=\"Esther Goddard in the Oval Office with Lyndon B. Johnson receiving a bronze portrait bust of Robert H. Goddard\" class=\"wp-image-807\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/90\/Esther-Goddard-LBJ-White-House-1024x812.avif 1024w, https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/90\/Esther-Goddard-LBJ-White-House-300x238.avif 300w, https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/90\/Esther-Goddard-LBJ-White-House-768x609.avif 768w, https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/90\/Esther-Goddard-LBJ-White-House-1536x1217.avif 1536w, https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/90\/Esther-Goddard-LBJ-White-House-2048x1623.avif 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Esther was also invited to attend a 1970 presidential dinner celebrating the Apollo 11 space mission, whose astronauts stepped on the moon just two months after the dedication of Clark\u2019s Robert Hutchings Goddard Library. Apollo 11 Lunar Module Pilot Buzz Aldrin, whose father, Edwin Aldrin Sr. 1915, was Goddard\u2019s student, had helped cut the ribbon at the opening ceremony.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Esther invited President Richard Nixon to attend the library dedication, but he was unavailable. Instead, he wrote to Esther, \u201cI share your pride and your excitement,\u201d and noted that the mission to the moon was made possible \u201cby the vision, courage, and generous talent of your late husband.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In 1965, when President Lyndon Johnson declared March 16 \u201cGoddard Day,\u201d Esther said, \u201cI am deeply proud and grateful for what we have done for his memory. It is far more than he, or I, might have dreamed of.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-vertically-aligned-center is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\" style=\"flex-basis:31%\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:3rem\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group alignfull has-gray-600-background-color has-background is-content-justification-center is-layout-constrained wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained\"><clark-showcase class=\"abut-begin  alignfull\" stickTo=\"middle\">\n\t\n<div class=\"showcase-col\"><div class=\"showcase-col-content\">\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-cover is-light has-white-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-e0e0381b1708c935af0cee184c6f61ee\"><span aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-cover__background has-gray-600-background-color has-background-dim-0 has-background-dim\"><\/span><div class=\"wp-block-cover__inner-container is-layout-constrained wp-block-cover-is-layout-constrained\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-group has-white-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-f1867adf5c20b90d24a121c7f4077613 is-layout-constrained wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-columns is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-is-layout-28f84493 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-vertically-aligned-center is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\" style=\"flex-basis:15%\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-vertically-aligned-top padded is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\" style=\"flex-basis:85%\">\n<p>The Robert and Esther Goddard Collection holds more than most people realize. There are pressed flowers from Esther and Robert\u2019s wedding. Boxes of press clippings and editorial cartoons from the 1920s. Photos and film reels. Shelves and shelves of patent files\u2014the legal foundation of a legacy Esther refused to let anyone else claim.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>And then there are the diaries, in which Robert recorded the daily texture of his life beginning in 1898: movies attended, books read, rockets launched (both successfully and failed). In June of 1945, the pages include Esther\u2019s additions, where she described his coughing spells and doctor\u2019s recommendations.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-text-color has-white-color has-alpha-channel-opacity has-white-background-color has-background\" \/>\n\n\n\n<p>On June 14, she observed:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>When I woke, Bob was awake, and said \u201cI\u2019ve been lying here watching you. I didn\u2019t know anyone could be so beautiful.\u201d&nbsp;<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>At the bottom of the page, she added, \u201cI loved him. R was tired to death.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Robert stopped writing in the diary around that time. Esther continued to record their activities; some entries are simply \u201cvery ill,\u201d or \u201cat hosp.,\u201d but others share stories of visitors, treatments, and other interactions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-text-color has-white-color has-alpha-channel-opacity has-white-background-color has-background\" \/>\n\n\n\n<p><em>August 9<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Bob terribly ill. I was alone with him while nurse had lunch\u2014he grasped my hand and arm and squeezed, surprisingly hard, as if in gratitude\u2014I said \u201cYou\u2019re trying to tell me you love me? I love you too, Bob.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>He drifted all afternoon\u2014like an empty boat drifting toward shore. At 5 p.m. he motioned he wanted something\u2014glasses? Clock? All no\u2014it was newspaper\u2014not for news, but ran his finger roughly along date line. Had lost track of time until then.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The next morning, while Esther was at home, Robert died. \u201cHis heart failed under the great, long suffering,\u201d she wrote.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Esther did not include those final diary entries in her curated set of Robert\u2019s papers. They were too personal to fit into the \u201cRobert Goddard\u201d image she was building.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>She kept that part of him to herself.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n<div class=\"showcase-col\"><div class=\"showcase-col-content\">\n\n<div style=\"aspect-ratio:2\/3;min-height:unset;\" class=\"wp-block-cover has-custom-content-position is-position-top-left has-aspect-ratio\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"624\" height=\"1024\" class=\"wp-block-cover__image-background wp-image-930 size-large\" alt=\"Diary entry made by Esther Goddard, on the day before the passing of her husband, Robert H. Goddard, August 9, 1945\" src=\"https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/90\/Diary-page-2-624x1024.avif\" data-object-fit=\"cover\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/90\/Diary-page-2-624x1024.avif 624w, https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/90\/Diary-page-2-183x300.avif 183w, https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/90\/Diary-page-2-768x1261.avif 768w, https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/90\/Diary-page-2-935x1536.avif 935w, https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/90\/Diary-page-2.avif 1218w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 624px) 100vw, 624px\" \/><span aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-cover__background has-gray-600-background-color has-background-dim\"><\/span><div class=\"wp-block-cover__inner-container is-layout-flow wp-block-cover-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center has-large-font-size\"><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/clark-showcase>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Not a common person This small, private act of grief is also a window into who Esther Goddard was: meticulous, devoted, and fiercely in control of the narrative. Because while Robert Goddard is remembered today as the father of modern rocketry\u2014the pioneer who launched the world\u2019s first liquid-fueled rocket on March 16, 1926, from a [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":14,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"wp-custom-template-feature","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"departments":[4],"issues":[32],"class_list":["post-876","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","departments-features","issues-spring-2026"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v27.7 (Yoast SEO v27.7) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Esther and Bob | Clark Magazine | Clark University<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine\/esther-and-bob\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Esther and Bob\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Not a common person This small, private act of grief is also a window into who Esther Goddard was: meticulous, devoted, and fiercely in control of the narrative. Because while Robert Goddard is remembered today as the father of modern rocketry\u2014the pioneer who launched the world\u2019s first liquid-fueled rocket on March 16, 1926, from a [&hellip;]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine\/esther-and-bob\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Clark Magazine\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/ClarkUniversityWorcester\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-05-27T16:14:10+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-05-28T17:11:35+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/90\/Esther-Goddard-at-typewriter.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1864\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"2560\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@clarkuniversity\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@clarkuniversity\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Laurel McLaughlin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"9 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.clarku.edu\\\/magazine\\\/esther-and-bob\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.clarku.edu\\\/magazine\\\/esther-and-bob\\\/\"},\"headline\":\"Esther and Bob\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-05-27T16:14:10+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-05-28T17:11:35+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.clarku.edu\\\/magazine\\\/esther-and-bob\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":1726,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.clarku.edu\\\/magazine\\\/esther-and-bob\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.clarku.edu\\\/magazine\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/90\\\/Esther-Goddard-at-typewriter-746x1024.avif\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.clarku.edu\\\/magazine\\\/esther-and-bob\\\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.clarku.edu\\\/magazine\\\/esther-and-bob\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.clarku.edu\\\/magazine\\\/esther-and-bob\\\/\",\"name\":\"Esther and Bob | Clark Magazine | Clark University\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.clarku.edu\\\/magazine\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.clarku.edu\\\/magazine\\\/esther-and-bob\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.clarku.edu\\\/magazine\\\/esther-and-bob\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.clarku.edu\\\/magazine\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/90\\\/Esther-Goddard-at-typewriter-746x1024.avif\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-05-27T16:14:10+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-05-28T17:11:35+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.clarku.edu\\\/magazine\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/52b739f825143e3becec804195f362f6\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.clarku.edu\\\/magazine\\\/esther-and-bob\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.clarku.edu\\\/magazine\\\/esther-and-bob\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.clarku.edu\\\/magazine\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/90\\\/Esther-Goddard-at-typewriter.avif\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.clarku.edu\\\/magazine\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/90\\\/Esther-Goddard-at-typewriter.avif\",\"width\":1864,\"height\":2560,\"caption\":\"Esther Goddard at her typewriter\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.clarku.edu\\\/magazine\\\/wp-json\\\/wp\\\/v2\\\/posts\\\/876#breadcrumbs\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":0,\"name\":\"ClarkU\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.clarku.edu\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Clark Magazine\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.clarku.edu\\\/magazine\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.clarku.edu\\\/magazine\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.clarku.edu\\\/magazine\\\/\",\"name\":\"Clark Magazine\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.clarku.edu\\\/magazine\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Esther and Bob | Clark Magazine | Clark University","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine\/esther-and-bob\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Esther and Bob","og_description":"Not a common person This small, private act of grief is also a window into who Esther Goddard was: meticulous, devoted, and fiercely in control of the narrative. Because while Robert Goddard is remembered today as the father of modern rocketry\u2014the pioneer who launched the world\u2019s first liquid-fueled rocket on March 16, 1926, from a [&hellip;]","og_url":"https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine\/esther-and-bob\/","og_site_name":"Clark Magazine","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/ClarkUniversityWorcester","article_published_time":"2026-05-27T16:14:10+00:00","article_modified_time":"2026-05-28T17:11:35+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1864,"height":2560,"url":"https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/90\/Esther-Goddard-at-typewriter.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@clarkuniversity","twitter_site":"@clarkuniversity","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Laurel McLaughlin","Est. reading time":"9 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine\/esther-and-bob\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine\/esther-and-bob\/"},"headline":"Esther and Bob","datePublished":"2026-05-27T16:14:10+00:00","dateModified":"2026-05-28T17:11:35+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine\/esther-and-bob\/"},"wordCount":1726,"commentCount":0,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine\/esther-and-bob\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/90\/Esther-Goddard-at-typewriter-746x1024.avif","inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine\/esther-and-bob\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine\/esther-and-bob\/","url":"https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine\/esther-and-bob\/","name":"Esther and Bob | Clark Magazine | Clark University","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine\/esther-and-bob\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine\/esther-and-bob\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/90\/Esther-Goddard-at-typewriter-746x1024.avif","datePublished":"2026-05-27T16:14:10+00:00","dateModified":"2026-05-28T17:11:35+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine\/#\/schema\/person\/52b739f825143e3becec804195f362f6"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine\/esther-and-bob\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine\/esther-and-bob\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/90\/Esther-Goddard-at-typewriter.avif","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/90\/Esther-Goddard-at-typewriter.avif","width":1864,"height":2560,"caption":"Esther Goddard at her typewriter"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/876#breadcrumbs","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":0,"name":"ClarkU","item":"https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Clark Magazine","item":"https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine\/","name":"Clark Magazine","description":"","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"}]}},"fimg_url":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/876","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/14"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=876"}],"version-history":[{"count":20,"href":"https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/876\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1512,"href":"https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/876\/revisions\/1512"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=876"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=876"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=876"},{"taxonomy":"departments","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/departments?post=876"},{"taxonomy":"issues","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/issues?post=876"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}