Erwin N. Hiebert
University of Wisconsin Madison
The Experimental Basis of Kekule's Valence Theory
Between 1850 and 1892 August Kekul6 (1829-96) published over a hundred papers. The majority of these were experimental communications in organic chemistry and related topics.' Even a superficial examination of the papers shows that KekulB's knowledge of the chemistry of his day was extraordinarily comprehensive. We can readily accept his claim that he had studied the historical development of chemistry from the time of his first acquaintance with chemistry, and that he had spent a good deal of time mastering its classics before he accomplished anything on his own. Indeed, he maintained that prior to the Presented as part of the KekulB-Couper Centennial Symposium on the Development of Theoretical Organic Chemistry before the Division of History of Chemistry a t the 134th Meeting of the American Chemical Society, Chicago, September, 1958.
' A ~ s c a i k z ,R I C ~ E D"August , KeknlB," 2 vols., Verlag Chemie, Berlin, 1929: Vol. I, Leben und Wirken; Vol. 11, Abhandlungen, Berichte, Kritiken, Artikel, Reden. The second volume contains 75 papers authored by Kekul6, 28 papers coauthored by Kekul6 and 28 other items including book reports, technical comments and speeches, in German, French, and English. Annohiitz was a student and colleasue of Kekul6's for 21 venrs and lis s ~ ~ c c r s in ~ oBonn r i n 18118. At tile Verw~mrnlung 1 ) ~ u l w h r r.\~olur/nr.wht~rund Aurrrr ill 1916, tikc year uf I
