Emma Perry Carr (July 23, 1880 – January 7, 1972) was an American spectroscopist and chemical educator. Her work on unsaturated hydrocarbons and

absorption spectra Absorption may refer to: Chemistry and biology * Absorption (biology), digestion ** Absorption (small intestine) * Absorption (chemistry), diffusion of particles of gas or liquid into liquid or solid materials * Absorption (skin), a route by whic ...

earned her the inaugural Francis P. Garvan Medal (now the

Garvan–Olin Medal The Francis P. Garvan–John M. Olin Medal, previously called the Francis P. Garvan Medal, is an annual award that recognizes distinguished scientific accomplishment, leadership and service to chemistry by :Women chemists, women chemists. The Awar ...

) from the

American Chemical Society The American Chemical Society (ACS) is a scientific society based in the United States that supports scientific inquiry in the field of chemistry. Founded in 1876 at New York University, the ACS currently has more than 155,000 members at all ...

in 1937.

Early life and education

She was born in Holmesville, Ohio, the third child of Edmund and Anna Carr. Both her father and grandfather were country doctors who advocated education. She went to high school in

Coshocton, Ohio Coshocton () is a city in Coshocton County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. The population was 11,050 at the 2020 census. It is located approximately east-northeast of Columbus. The Walhonding River and the Tuscarawas River meet ...

. She attended

Ohio State University The Ohio State University (Ohio State or OSU) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio, United States. A member of the University System of Ohio, it was founded in 1870. It is one ...

from 1898 until 1899. She attended

Mount Holyoke College Mount Holyoke College is a Private college, private Women's colleges in the United States, women's Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in South Hadley, Massachusetts, United States. It is the oldest member of the h ...

from 1900 until 1902,. then worked at the school as an assistant in the chemistry department until she went to the

University of Chicago The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, or UChi) is a Private university, private research university in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Its main campus is in the Hyde Park, Chicago, Hyde Park neighborhood on Chicago's South Side, Chic ...

for her senior year in

physical chemistry Physical chemistry is the study of macroscopic and microscopic phenomena in chemical systems in terms of the principles, practices, and concepts of physics such as motion, energy, force, time, thermodynamics, quantum chemistry, statistical mech ...

. She received her B.S. from the

in 1905. She taught for two years at Mount Holyoke before returning to the University of Chicago to study for her Ph.D., which she earned in 1910.

Career

After receiving her doctorate, she began teaching

chemistry Chemistry is the scientific study of the properties and behavior of matter. It is a physical science within the natural sciences that studies the chemical elements that make up matter and chemical compound, compounds made of atoms, molecules a ...

and became chair of the chemistry department in 1913. She was able to establish a research program studying the ultraviolet spectra of

hydrocarbon In organic chemistry, a hydrocarbon is an organic compound consisting entirely of hydrogen and carbon. Hydrocarbons are examples of group 14 hydrides. Hydrocarbons are generally colourless and Hydrophobe, hydrophobic; their odor is usually fain ...

s, and established a link between the frequencies of the absorptions and the enthalpy change of combustion of the compound. She also participated in the ''International Critical Tables'' of the International Research Council, where she worked with Professor

Victor Henri Victor Henri (6 June 1872 – 21 June 1940) was a French-Russian Physical chemistry, physical chemist and physiologist. He was born in Marseilles as a son of Russian parents. He is known mainly as an early pioneer in enzyme kinetics. He publishe ...

of the

University of Zurich The University of Zurich (UZH, ) is a public university, public research university in Zurich, Switzerland. It is the largest university in Switzerland, with its 28,000 enrolled students. It was founded in 1833 from the existing colleges of the ...

. Carr was a worldwide leader in the use of the

ultraviolet Ultraviolet radiation, also known as simply UV, is electromagnetic radiation of wavelengths of 10–400 nanometers, shorter than that of visible light, but longer than X-rays. UV radiation is present in sunlight and constitutes about 10% of ...

spectra of

organic molecules Some chemical authorities define an organic compound as a chemical compound that contains a carbon–hydrogen or carbon–carbon bond; others consider an organic compound to be any chemical compound that contains carbon. For example, carbon-cont ...

as a means of investigating their

electronic structure Quantum chemistry, also called molecular quantum mechanics, is a branch of physical chemistry focused on the application of quantum mechanics to chemical systems, particularly towards the quantum-mechanical calculation of electronic contributions ...

s. She led one of the earliest collaborative research groups that involved faculty, graduate students, and undergraduate students. Carr was the inaugural recipient in 1937 of the Francis P. Garvan Gold Medal of the

(ACS), established "to recognize distinguished service to chemistry by women chemists". She also received the James Flack Norris Award for Outstanding Achievement in the Teaching of Chemistry of the Northeastern Section of the ACS in Spring 1957 (with colleague Mary Lura Sherrill).. She retired in 1946. When her health began to fail her, she was placed in a care home in

Evanston, Illinois Evanston is a city in Cook County, Illinois, United States, situated on the North Shore (Chicago), North Shore along Lake Michigan. A suburb of Chicago, Evanston is north of Chicago Loop, downtown Chicago, bordered by Chicago to the south, Skok ...

, closer to her nephew, James Carr, and the rest of her family. She died of heart failure on January 7, 1972.

Legacy

Much of Carr's energy was spent developing "perhaps the best undergraduate chemistry program in the country" at her alma mater. Her collaborative research group, composed of faculty, graduate students, and undergraduate students, was one of the earliest of its kind. Mount Holyoke College's chemistry building was dedicated to her in 1955. Carr Laboratory was reopened in Fall 2002 after being renovated and rebuilt in accordance with

Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) is a Green building certification systems, green building certification program used worldwide. Developed by the non-profit U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), it includes a set of rating ...

(LEED) criteria for

green building Green building (also known as green construction, sustainable building, or eco-friendly building) refers to both a structure and the application of processes that are environmentally responsible and resource-efficient throughout a building's li ...

Selected writings

*. *. *. *.

References

External links

Emma P. Carr Papers
from Mount Holyoke College Archives and Special Collections {{DEFAULTSORT:Carr, Emma Perry 1880 births 1972 deaths People from Holmes County, Ohio American women chemists Recipients of the Garvan–Olin Medal 20th-century American women scientists 20th-century American chemists Mount Holyoke College faculty Fellows of the American Physical Society American women academics Chemists from Ohio Graduate Women in Science members