Arthur Harden was born in Manchester, England, on October 12, 1865; his father was Albert Tyas Harden and his mother Eliza Macalister. He was educated at a private school in Victoria Park (1873-1877) and at Tettenhall College, Staffordshire (1877-1881). He entered The Owens College in the University of Manchester in 1882, studying under Sir H.E.…

Ronald George Wreyford Norrish was born in Cambridge on November 9th, 1897. His father, a native of Crediton, Devonshire, came to Cambridge as a young Pharmacist to open one of the early shops of Boots, the Chemists, and remained there for the rest of his long life. After spending his early years at the local…

My birth in July 1928 in Methuen, Massachusetts was followed just eighteen months later by the death of my father, Elias, a successful business man in that community 30 miles north of Boston. My mother, Fatina (née Hasham), changed my name from William to Elias shortly after my father’s passing. I do not remember my…

Hans von Euler-Chelpin was born on February 15, 1873, at Augsburg. His father, who was then a captain in the Royal Bavarian Regiment, was transferred to Munich and von Euler-Chelpin spent most of his childhood not far away with his grandmother at Wasserburg. After going to school at Munich, Wurzburg and Ulm, he studied art…

I was born the eldest of three sons of Ryokichi Fukui, a foreign trade merchant and factory manager, and Chie Fukui, in Nara, Japan, on October 4, 1918. In my high school years, chemistry was not my favourite subject, but the most decisive occurrence in my educational career came when my father asked the advice…

Carl Bosch was born at Cologne on August 27, 1874, and grew up there. From 1894 to 1896 he studied metallurgy and mechanical engineering at the Technische Hochschule in Charlottenburg, but started reading chemistry at Leipzig University in 1896. He graduated under Professor Wislicenus with a paper on organic chemistry in 1898. He entered the…

I came to a happy Jewish family in dark days in Europe. On July 18, 1937 I was born to Clara (née Rosen) and Hillel Safran in Zloczow, Poland. This town, typical of the Pale of the Settlement, was part of Austria-Hungary when my parents were born. It was Poland in my time and is…

Alfred Werner, son of factory foreman J.A. Werner and his wife Jeanne, née Tesche, was born on December 12, 1866, at Mülhausen in Alsace, where he went to school. While he was at school he showed an interest in chemistry and did, when he was only 18, his first independent chemical research. From 1885 until…

Friedrich Bergius was born on October 11, 1884, in Goldschmieden near Breslau, Silesia. He belonged to an old respected family of scientists, theologians, civil servants, army officers, and business men. His grandfather was Professor of Economics in Breslau and his father owned a chemical factory in Goldschmieden. Bergius was educated in Breslau and whilst still…

Irving Langmuir was born in Brooklyn, New York, on January 31, 1881, as the third of four sons of Charles Langmuir and Sadie, neé Comings. His early education was obtained in various schools and institutes in the USA, and in Paris (1892-1895). He graduated as a metallurgical engineer from the School of Mines at Columbia…