Photographs from the Papers of Paul D. Bartlett

Collection

Identifier: 2003-015-002

Staff Only

Content Description

The Photographs from the Papers of Paul D. Bartlett contain photos of social, educational, and professional groups that Paul D. Bartlett belonged to and images he used in lectures and research. These photographs include class reunions of the Amherst Class of 1928, wedding photos of Eudoxia “Doxie” Woodward and Dr. Robert Burns Woodward, student gatherings featuring Bartlett Group members, and various diagrams used for academic and professional presentations.

Dates

Creation: 1950-1989
Creation: undated
Creation: Majority of material found within 1978-1983

Creator

Bartlett, Paul D. (Person)

Access Restrictions

There are no access restrictions on the materials for research purposes and the collection is open to the public.

Copyright Information

The Science History Institute holds the copyright to some of the materials in the Photographs of Paul D. Bartlett. The researcher assumes full responsibility for all copyright, property, and libel laws as they apply.

Background Note

Paul D. Bartlett was an American physical-organic chemist. Bartlett was born on August 14, 1907, in Ann Arbor, Michigan. He attended Amherst College and was a devoted member of The Class of 1928. Bartlett began his studies toward a doctoral degree at Harvard University, working under James Bryant Conant, and received his master’s degree in 1929. In 1931 Bartlett received his Ph.D. and became a National Research Fellow. The following year Bartlett began his teaching career at the University of Minnesota. By 1934 Bartlett had returned to Harvard as an instructor in Chemistry, where he eventually became a full professor in 1946. As a physical-organic chemist, Paul D. Bartlett conducted original work in several areas, including bridgehead halogens (1939), the hydrogen-halide exchange reaction (1944), and free radical chemistry. As an educator, his Harvard courses on organic reaction mechanisms were the first to stress studying the reactions themselves rather than mere memorization of facts. This teaching method went on to become the worldwide accepted standard. Bartlett worked with professional organizations like the Gordon Research Conferences, where he helped initiate the long-running series of Conferences on Reaction Mechanisms, and the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC). At Harvard University, he championed academic freedom and was an early opponent of the United States' involvement in the Vietnam War. Bartlett remained at Harvard until his retirement from the university in 1972. He then moved to Fort Worth, Texas to accept a Welch Professorship at Texas Christian University (TCU). In 1982 Bartlett was the recipient of the Robert A. Welch Award in Chemistry. In 1985 he fully retired and stepped down from the TCU's Welch Chair of Chemistry.

Bartlett remained in touch with his former students. The "Red Book," a memory book compiled by his Harvard students, was a prized possession. In 1997, Bartlett students worldwide honored their former professor with well-wishes on his 90th birthday. Paul D. Bartlett died of natural causes in Lexington, Massachusetts, on October 11, 1997.

Sources

Papers of Paul D. Bartlett, Science History Institute Archives, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Extent

56 Photographic Prints (1 box ) : ca. 56 photographic prints; negatives

Language of Materials

English

Additional Description

Abstract

This collection contains the photographs that were originally part of the Papers of Paul D. Bartlett, an American physical organic chemist. This collection contains personal images including college reunions and wedding photographs.

Acquistion Infromation

The Photographs from the Papers of Paul D. Bartlett were donated to the Science History Institute (formerly the Chemical Heritage Foundation) by Sarah W. Bartlett in 2003.

Related Materials

The Papers of Paul D. Bartlett are preserved at the Science History Institute in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

The Paul D. Bartlett Family Correspondence is preserved at the Science History Institute in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

The Papers of Paul Doughty Bartlett are preserved at the Harvard University Archives in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

An oral history interview with Paul Doughty Bartlett is preserved at the American Institute of Physics Niels Bohr Library and Archives in College Park, Maryland.

Processing Information

The Photographs from the Papers of Paul D. Bartlett were originally processed Amanda Antonucci and redescribed into ArchivesSpace by Patrick Burden in May 2022.