SHOT was founded in 1958 in the United States, and it has since become an international society with members "from some thirty-five countries throughout the Americas, Europe, Asia, and Africa.

"[1] SHOT owes its existence largely to the efforts of Professor Melvin Kranzberg (1917–1995) and an active network of engineering educators.

[2] SHOT co-founders include John B. Rae, Carl W. Condit, Thomas P. Hughes, and Eugene S. Ferguson.

SHOT's flagship publication is the journal Technology and Culture, published by the Johns Hopkins University Press.

SHOT also sponsors smaller conferences focused on specialized topics, often jointly with other scholarly societies and organizations.