C. N. McCarly Michigan State hiversify East Lansing, Michigan 48823
Chemical Genealogy
A s an aid in teaching the history of chemistry a t JIichigan State University a chemical genealogy chart was developed several years ago patterned after the one described by Dr. Virginia Bartow a t the University of Illinois (1). The chart has been frequently improved in design and up-dated until the present genealogical tree, which is located in a glass-enclosed display case in the lobby of the new chemistry building, was produced. The names of the senior staff members are on cards bordered in green (heavy boxes in figure below) a t the top of the chart with the universities a t which the PhD degrees were earned listed under their names. Colored magnetic tape is used to trace each staff member to the person under whose guidance the degree was granted and these chemists in turn are then traced to their preceptors. The names of Nobel Laureates are on cards bordered in red within the chart (light boxes in figure below) and an attempt is made to place contemporary chemists at about the same horizontal position. The information required to trace the educational genealogy of each staff member was secured in several differentways. In general the contemporary chemists are usually well known by the staff and their biographies
can be obtained by correspondence or by reference to the current literature. Information about the chemists of a generation or two ago can usually he found in biographies, published theses, obituaries, or by correspondence with the staff of universities represented on the chart. The lives of the chemists of the early 19th century or before can be found in any history of chemistry text or in biographical handbooks. As an example of how just one of the staff members education lineage was traced, Dr. McHarris of the M.S.U. staff took his doctorate at the University of California, Berkeley, under the direction of Dr. Isadore Perlman. When Dr. Perlman received the ACS Award for Nuclear Applications in Chemistry (8) a short biography stated that he had received his PhD degree as a student of Dr. I. L. Chaikoff. It was found (3) that Dr. Chaikoff had been awarded the PhD degree in physiological chemistry in 1924 and the MD degree in 1927, both from the University of Toronto where he and many other scientists were trained in the laboratory of J. J. R. Macleod. Dr. Macleod, a Nobel Laureate, received the RID degree in 1898 and then studied biochemistry under Dr. Max Siegfried (4) from 1898-1900 in Leipzig. Dr. Siegfried was traced (5) to Johannes Wislicenus and a memorial
M.S.U. CHEMISTRY DEPARTMENT EDUCATIONAL GENEALOGY CHART
chart. Names of M5.U. staff members are in the heavy boxer at the top of the chart. The PhD war earned at the univerM.S.V. ,ity listed "rider each neme. The lines trace eoch member to lhe professor under whose guidance his PhD was earned. Names in light boxes ore Nobel Loureater
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lecture (6) presented by W. H. Perkins, Jr., revealed that Wislicenus had received his chemical training under Wilhelm Heintz. Dr. Heintz was traced (7, 8) in turn to Heinrich Rose who had been a student of J. J. Berzelius (9),one of three chemists of the 18th century to whom this entire genealogy chart can he traced. It is impossible to show all the chemists with whom a person may have been associated or studied under without seriously complicating the chart. This is particularly true in the 19th century when it was customary for students to travel from one university to another, studying with several prominent chemists of that period, before finally presenting a thesis and heing granted a degree from one of them. For example, Brodie studied under both Bunsen and Liebig, GayLussac could he associated with either Fourcroy or Berthollet, Dumas with Thenard or Gay-Lussac, and other associations could well be found. Also some of these early chemists had no formal degree or were awarded degrees for individual research. Thismade the tracing of their genealogy difficult and some liberty had to be taken in associations with others in the genalogical tree. As one example, when the educational lineage of Dr. Tulinsky was being traced it developed that one of his preceptors, G. G. Henderson had been awarded the DSc degree in 1890 for independent research. Dr. J. Monteath Robertson, Director of the Chemical Laboratories, University of Glasgow, Scotland had received the PhD degree from Dr. Henderson and correspondence with Dr. Robertson revealed that Henderson had studied under, and later succeeded John Ferguson, AM, LLD, who held the Regius Chair of Chemistry a t the University of Glasgow from 18741919. Dr. Ferguson, in turn, had succeeded Thomas Anderson, MD, F.R.S., in the same position. Since Dr. Anderson had been one of Liebig's students (10) a t Giessen this permitted the educational line to be traced
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to a chemist whose laboratory fostered several of the chemists on this chart. The genealogical tree has been traced back only to the middle of the 18th century since it was during the period from about 1750 on that chemistry began to achieve maturity as a science and it is interesting to note that this staff is traced to just three men of that time. I t is also notable that the M.S.U. department has a second generation staff member, Dr. Duane Burow, who received his degree under the guidance of Dr. J. Lagowski, a former student of Dr. R. N. Hammer. The genealogy of any group of chemists or any department of chemistry can be developed with little effort just as this chart was adopted from that of the University of Illinois. The author would like to express his appreciation to all who supplied biographical information and in particular to Mr. Roger Wheaton of the M.S.U. service staff who did all the lettering and has been instrumental in assembling the display charts. Literature Cited (1) BARTOW, VIRGINIA., J. CHEM.EDUC.,16, 236 (1939). (2) Chem. Eng. News, 42 (4) 158 (1964). (3) CATTELL,JACQUEB.,"American Men of Science. The Physical and Biological Sciences," (10th Ed.), Jacques Cattell Press,Inc., Tempe Arizona., 1960, p. 625. L. G., "Nobel Prire Winners in Medicine and (4) STEVENSON, Physiology," H. Schuman & Co., New York., 1953, p.
..". 1,"
POGGBNDORFF, J. C., Bwgraphkh-litera7iSches Handworlerbueh, 6, (4), 2444 (1940). PERKIN, JR., W. H., J. C h m . Sac., 87, 501 (1905). POGGENDORFP, J. C., Bwgraphischlilera~iSChes Handoworlerbuch, 1, 1052 (1863). POGGENDORFP, J. C., Bio~aphiscMilera~iSCheaHandoworterbueh, 3, 606 (1898). IHDE, A. J., "The Development of Modern ChemisLry," Harper & Row, New York, Evanston, &London, 1964, p. 260. IHDE,lor cit., p. 211.
