Frederick Belding Power (4 March 1853 – 26 March 1927) was an American chemist who worked in pharmacology, plant chemicals, and on standards in pharmaceutical production. He served as a professor of pharmacy at the

Philadelphia College Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Since 1 ...

and as director of pharmacy at the

University of Wisconsin–Madison A university () is an educational institution, institution of higher education, higher (or Tertiary education, tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several Discipline (academia), academic disciplines. Universities ty ...

. He also served as a chemist for the Wellcome Chemical Research Laboratories in London where he examined

Chaulmoogra ''Hydnocarpus wightianus'' or chaulmoogra is a tree in the Achariaceae family. ''Hydnocarpus wightiana'' seed oil has been widely used in traditional Indian medicine, especially in Ayurveda, and in Chinese traditional medicine for the treatmen ...

oil and its use in the treatment of

leprosy Leprosy, also known as Hansen's disease (HD), is a long-term infection by the bacteria ''Mycobacterium leprae'' or ''Mycobacterium lepromatosis''. Infection can lead to damage of the nerves, respiratory tract, skin, and eyes. This nerve damag ...

Early life and education

Power was born in

Hudson, New York Hudson is a city and the county seat of Columbia County, New York, United States. As of the 2020 census, it had a population of 5,894. Located on the east side of the Hudson River and 120 miles from the Atlantic Ocean, it was named for the rive ...

to Thomas and Caroline Belding Power. He went to the Hudson Academy and then worked at a local pharmacy. He moved to Chicago, hoping to enrol at the

Chicago College of Pharmacy The University of Illinois Chicago (UIC) is a public research university in Chicago, Illinois. Its campus is in the Near West Side community area, adjacent to the Chicago Loop. The second campus established under the University of Illinois sy ...

but the

Great Fire of 1871 The Great Chicago Fire was a conflagration that burned in the American city of Chicago during October 8–10, 1871. The fire killed approximately 300 people, destroyed roughly of the city including over 17,000 structures, and left more than 10 ...

struck and Power instead moved to

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

where he worked with

Edward Parrish Edward Parrish (May 31, 1822September 9, 1872) was an American pharmacist. He was the first president of Swarthmore College. Biography He was the son of Philadelphia physician Joseph Parrish (1779–1840). He studied at a Friends' school, an ...

before joining college and graduating in chemistry in 1874.

Career

Power worked at the

University of Strasbourg The University of Strasbourg (french: Université de Strasbourg, Unistra) is a public research university located in Strasbourg, Alsace, France, with over 52,000 students and 3,300 researchers. The French university traces its history to the ea ...

under Friedrich A. Flückiger in 1876 and obtained a PhD in 1880. He then became a professor at the

Philadelphia College of Pharmacy Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Since 1 ...

. He coauthored ''A Manual of Chemical Analysis'' along with

Frederick Hoffmann Friedrich Hoffmann or Hofmann (19 February 1660 – 12 November 1742) was a German physician and chemist. He is also sometimes known in English as Frederick Hoffmann. Life His family had been connected with medicine for 200 years before him. Bo ...

. In 1883 he moved to the University of Wisconsin-Madison as director of the department of pharmacy. He resigned in 1892 and worked at Fritzsche Brothers as science director. In 1896, following the death of his wife, Power moved to London, where he was hired by

Henry Wellcome Sir Henry Solomon Wellcome (August 21, 1853 – July 25, 1936) was an American pharmaceutical entrepreneur. He founded the pharmaceutical company Burroughs Wellcome & Company with his colleague Silas Burroughs in 1880, which is one of the fo ...

to serve as chief scientific chemist at the newly founded chemical research laboratories. He began to examine the constituents of plant-based medications including an analysis of Chaulmoogra oil, which was noted for its use in traditional Indian medicine as a treatment for leprosy. With the outbreak of

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, he resigned and returned to the US in 1914. He then joined the

US Department of Agriculture The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is the United States federal executive departments, federal executive department responsible for developing and executing federal laws related to farming, forestry, rural economic development, ...

phytochemical Phytochemicals are chemical compounds produced by plants, generally to help them resist fungi, bacteria and plant virus infections, and also consumption by insects and other animals. The name comes . Some phytochemicals have been used as poisons ...

laboratory. He was elected to the

National Academy of Sciences The National Academy of Sciences (NAS) is a United States nonprofit, non-governmental organization. NAS is part of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, along with the National Academy of Engineering (NAE) and the Nati ...

in 1924.

Personal life

Power married Mary Van Loan Meigs in 1883 and they had two children. Mary died during childbirth along with a third child in 1894.

References

External links

A manual of chemical analysis as applied to the examination of medicinal chemicals
(1883) {{DEFAULTSORT:Power, Frederick Belding 1853 births 1927 deaths American chemists