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  • Context: Oral History
  • Format: Video

Andrew Barr

Date: July 19, 1992
Attribution: Courtesy of the Academy of Accounting Historians, University of Mississippi
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Interviewed By: Dr. Dale Flesher and Gary Previts

Andrew Barr served as chief accountant of the SEC from 1956 to 1972. This oral history is split into seven videos with seven transcripts (most at the bottom of the page). The descriptions for each recording are below the recordings.

PART I

Mr. Barr discusses his early career, focusing on his involvement in the SEC’s McKesson & Robbins fraud investigation.

PART 2

Mr. Barr reflects on early SEC leadership, the evolution of auditing standards and his role in the SEC’s Corporation Finance Division.

PART 3

Mr. Barr discusses his early involvement with the American Accounting Association and early work on price-level accounting.

PART 4

Mr. Barr discusses his appointment as Chief Accountant at the SEC.

PART 5

Mr. Barr discusses his time as Chief Accountant and the ongoing debate over auditor independence.

PART 6

Mr. Barr covers the formation of a professional government accounting group in the 1950s, his leadership roles, efforts to reconcile interagency accounting differences, the recognition of government experience for CPA qualification, and the evolution of membership requirements in accounting organizations.

PART 7

Mr. Barr reflects on his retirement.