Notable people · Scientist · Chemist · Woman · Educator
Emma P. Carr
Emma Perry Carr was born in Holmesville, Holmes County. At Mount Holyoke College she led the chemistry department and built a pioneering program in ultraviolet spectroscopy, work that earned her the first Garvan Medal in 1937.
At a glance
- Born
- 1880-07-23
- Died
- 1972-01-07
- Education
- Ohio State University, Columbus, OH, 1898-1899
- Mount Holyoke College, South Hadley, MA, 1900-1902
- University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, to 1910, B.S. 1905; Ph.D. 1910
- Known as
- Scientist, Chemist, Woman, Educator
- Organizations
- Mount Holyoke College
Life story
Emma Perry Carr was born in 1880 in Holmesville, the third child of Edmund and Anna Carr. Her father and grandfather were country doctors who valued education. She went to high school in Coshocton.
She studied at Ohio State University for a year, then at Mount Holyoke College, and took her degrees at the University of Chicago: a B.S. in 1905 and a Ph.D. in 1910 under Julius Stieglitz.
She taught at Mount Holyoke, became chemistry department chair in 1913, and through the 1920s to 1940s led research on the ultraviolet spectra of hydrocarbons.
She received the first Francis P. Garvan Medal in 1937 and the James Flack Norris Award for teaching in 1957. A laboratory named for her was dedicated at Mount Holyoke in 1955. She died in Evanston, Illinois, in 1972.
Timeline
- 1880-07-23: Born (Holmesville, OH) source
- 1900: Begins study at Mount Holyoke College (South Hadley, MA) source
- 1905: B.S., University of Chicago (Chicago, IL) source
- 1910: Ph.D., University of Chicago (Chicago, IL) source
- 1913: Becomes chemistry department chair at Mount Holyoke (South Hadley, MA) source
- 1937: Receives the first Garvan Medal source
- 1946: Retires (South Hadley, MA) source
- 1955: Carr Laboratory dedicated (South Hadley, MA) source
- 1972-01-07: Dies (Evanston, IL) source
What Emma is known for
- Studied ultraviolet absorption spectra of hydrocarbons
- First recipient of the Francis P. Garvan Medal, 1937
- Chair of the chemistry department at Mount Holyoke from 1913
- Research on ultraviolet spectra of hydrocarbons
Honors and things named for them
- Francis P. Garvan Gold Medal (1937, first recipient)
- James Flack Norris Award for teaching (1957)
- Carr Laboratory, Mount Holyoke (1955)
Family
- father: Edmund Carr
- mother: Anna Carr
Ohio places
Where Emma P. Carr was born, lived, worked and is remembered, with the ZIP code, town and county pages for each.
- Born: Holmesville, Holmes County ZIP 44633 · Holmesville · Holmes County
- Worked: South Hadley, MA, Hampshire (Massachusetts) County
Further reading
Sources
Confidence. Medium: the main facts were confirmed, but some details (often an address or ZIP code) were not.
- Wikipedia: Emma P. Carr birth, schooling, career dates, research, honors, death