Loney Clinton Gordon (1915–1999) was an African-American chemist and laboratory researcher who assisted doctors

Pearl Kendrick Pearl Louella Kendrick (August 24, 1890 – October 8, 1980) was an American bacteriologist known for co-developing the first successful whooping cough vaccine alongside fellow Michigan Department of Public Health scientist Grace Eldering and ch ...

and

Grace Eldering Grace Eldering (September 5, 1900 – August 31, 1988) was an American public health scientist, known for her involvement in the creation of a vaccine for whooping cough along with Loney Gordon and Pearl Kendrick. Early life and education Gra ...

with bacteriological virulence research leading to the creation of the

pertussis vaccine Pertussis vaccine is a vaccine that protects against whooping cough (pertussis). There are two main types: whole-cell vaccines and acellular vaccines. The whole-cell vaccine is about 78% effective while the acellular vaccine is 71–85% effectiv ...

Early life and education

Gordon was born in Arkansas in 1915, and moved to Michigan with her family as a young child. In 1939, Gordon earned a bachelor's degree in home economics and chemistry from what was then called

Michigan State College Michigan State University (Michigan State, MSU) is a public land-grant research university in East Lansing, Michigan. It was founded in 1855 as the Agricultural College of the State of Michigan, the first of its kind in the United States. It i ...

. Following college, she sought a career as a dietitian. She found a job working as a dietitian in a mental institution in Virginia, but, according to a 1999 interview with Gordon by Grand Valley State University history professor Carolyn Shapiro Shapin, Gordon said the doctor treated her poorly and she was given inadequate living quarters. She returned to Grand Rapids to seek work, but she was informed that "white male chefs would not want to take orders from a black female dietitian." She was hired by Dr. Kendrick to support

pertussis Whooping cough, also known as pertussis or the 100-day cough, is a highly contagious bacterial disease. Initial symptoms are usually similar to those of the common cold with a runny nose, fever, and mild cough, but these are followed by two or t ...

research at the Michigan Department of Health's Grand Rapids lab around 1944.

Research

In the early 1940s, Gordon tested thousands of culture plates, trying to find the culture that would have sufficient virulence to make the vaccine. The work was conducted at Western Michigan Laboratories, later known as Kent Community Hospital, located in

Grand Rapids, Michigan Grand Rapids is a city and county seat of Kent County in the U.S. state of Michigan. At the 2020 census, the city had a population of 198,917 which ranks it as the second most-populated city in the state after Detroit. Grand Rapids is the ...

. Gordon's work focused on pertussis cultures and virulence of the bacterium ''

Bordetella pertussis ''Bordetella pertussis'' is a Gram-negative, aerobic, pathogenic, encapsulated coccobacillus of the genus ''Bordetella'', and the causative agent of pertussis or whooping cough. Like '' B. bronchiseptica'', ''B. pertussis'' is motile and expre ...

''. Gordon's analysis of pertussis cultures led to identification of a powerful strain of the organism, which enabled the development of an effective

vaccine A vaccine is a biological preparation that provides active acquired immunity to a particular infectious or malignant disease. The safety and effectiveness of vaccines has been widely studied and verified.

. The Michigan Biological Products Division, which was part of the Michigan Health Department, began producing the vaccine for state use in 1938, and then distributed across the United States by 1940. The identification of sheep blood as essential for incubating the bacterial cultures in petri dishes in the laboratory is attributed to Gordon.

Recognition

In 1997, the Grand Rapids Public Library had a display on women who made a difference, and it featured Gordon. Michigan House of Representatives Resolution No. 115, sponsored by Representative Lynne Martinez recognized the work of Gordon. The resolution stated, "in sincere appreciation and acknowledgment to Loney Gordon for the contribution that she has made to the health of the citizens of our State, our nation, and the world through her work in the development of a vaccine against whooping cough..." Gordon was inducted into the

Michigan Women's Hall of Fame The Michigan Women's Hall of Fame (MWHOF) honors distinguished women, both historical and contemporary, who have been associated with the U.S. state of Michigan. The hall of fame was founded in 1983 by Gladys Beckwith and is sponsored by the Michi ...

in 2000.

Later life and death

Gordon worked for the Michigan Department of Health beginning in around 1956 and retiring in 1978. After World War II, Gordon was selected to travel to Europe and the Middle East with the National Council of Christian and Jews to “take the pulse of the people” in the area. Gordon died in 1999.

Personal life

Loney Clinton married Howard Gordon on June 23, 1956.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gordon, Loney 20th-century American chemists American women chemists 1915 births 1999 deaths 20th-century American women scientists 20th-century African-American women 20th-century African-American scientists Scientists from Arkansas Scientists from Michigan