Karl Jack Bauer (July 30, 1926 in Springfield, Ohio – September 17, 1987 in Troy, New York), was one of the founders of the North American Society for Oceanic History (NASOH) and a well-known naval historian.
He went on to graduate study at Indiana University, where he earned his Master of Arts in 1949 with a thesis on "United States naval shipbuilding programs, 1775-1860" and his Ph.D. degree in 1953 with a dissertation on "United States naval operations during the Mexican War."
On August 18, 1951, he married Dorothy Sargent, with whom he had three children: Eric, Neil, and Anne.
Jack Bauer worked at the National Archives as an archivist in 1954–1955, then in 1955–1957 was appointed an historian with the United States Marine Corps Historical Branch, where he worked on a volume of the USMC history of World War II.
In 1977–1978, he was visiting professor at the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas.