Moddie Taylor (March 3, 1912 – September 15, 1976) was an African American chemist who specialized in rare earth minerals. He was one of the

African American scientists and technicians on the Manhattan Project African-American scientists and technicians on the Manhattan Project held a small number of positions among the several hundred scientists and technicians involved. Nonetheless, African-American men and women made important contributions to the ...

from 1943 to 1945, working to develop the

atomic bomb A nuclear weapon is an explosive device that derives its destructive force from nuclear reactions, either fission (fission bomb) or a combination of fission and fusion reactions (thermonuclear bomb), producing a nuclear explosion. Both bomb ...

.Atomic Heritage Foundation
/ref> For his work on the Manhattan Project, he was awarded a Certificate of Merit Medal for his contributions by Secretary of War Robert P. Patterson.

Early life and education

Taylor was born in

Nymph, Alabama Nymph is an unincorporated community in Conecuh County, Alabama (We dare defend our rights) , anthem = "Alabama (state song), Alabama" , image_map = Alabama in United States.svg , seat = Montgomery, Alabama, Montgomery , LargestCity = Hu ...

in 1912, growing up in the segregated South. His mother was Celeste (Oliver) Taylor and father was Herbert L. Taylor. His family subsequently moved to St. Louis where his father worked as a postal clerk. Taylor earned a B.S. in chemistry from Lincoln University in

Jefferson City, Missouri Jefferson City, informally Jeff City, is the capital of Missouri, United States. It had a population of 43,228 at the 2020 census, ranking as the 15th most populous city in the state. It is also the county seat of Cole County and the princip ...

in 1935, graduating as valedictorian. He remained at Lincoln University, teaching chemistry before deciding to pursue his graduate studies at the University of Chicago. There, he received an M.S. in 1939 and a

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in 1943 specializing in rare earth minerals. His graduate thesis was entitled ''Acid-Base Studies in Gaseous Systems; The Dissociation of the Addition Compounds of Trimethylboron with Aliphatic Amines''.

Research and career

From 1943 to 1945, Taylor began working on the Manhattan Project as a research associate in the

Metallurgical Laboratory The Metallurgical Laboratory (or Met Lab) was a scientific laboratory at the University of Chicago that was established in February 1942 to study and use the newly discovered chemical element plutonium. It researched plutonium's chemistry and m ...

. The researchers at the Metallurgical Laboratory worked on developing the casing for the

. Following the war, he returned to his alma mater at Lincoln University School of Law continuing to teach chemistry before moving to Howard University in 1948 to become an Associate Professor of

chemistry Chemistry is the science, scientific study of the properties and behavior of matter. It is a natural science that covers the Chemical element, elements that make up matter to the chemical compound, compounds made of atoms, molecules and ions ...

. He was promoted to full Professor in 1959 before leading the university's Chemistry Department from 1969 to 1976. He retired on April 1, 1976 as a Professor Emeritus. At Howard, Taylor's research interests centered on the

vapor phase In physics, a vapor (American English) or vapour (British English and Canadian English; see spelling differences) is a substance in the gas phase at a temperature lower than its critical temperature,R. H. Petrucci, W. S. Harwood, and F. G. He ...

dissociation of some

carboxylic acid In organic chemistry, a carboxylic acid is an organic acid that contains a carboxyl group () attached to an R-group. The general formula of a carboxylic acid is or , with R referring to the alkyl, alkenyl, aryl, or other group. Carboxylic ...

s. In 1952, he was inducted into the Washington Academy of Sciences in recognition for this work and in 1956, he was awarded a research grant from the American Academy of Arts and Sciences to continue this line of work. He was recognized for his excellence in teaching by numerous scientific organizations and societies, including the Manufacturing Chemists' Association and the Washington Institute of Chemists. In 1960, he wrote the chemistry textbook ''First Principles of Chemistry'', which became popularly used in colleges across the United States.First Principles of Chemistry
1960 (Van Nostrand)

Awards and honors

* Certificate of Merit Medal, 1946 * Inducted Member, Washington Academy of Sciences, 1952 * Top College Chemistry Professor, Manufacturing Chemists' Association, 1960 * Honor Scroll, Washington Institute of Chemists, 1972 * Fellow, American Institute of Chemists

Personal life

Taylor married Vivian Ellis in 1937 and they had one son named Herbert Moddie Taylor. Taylor died on may 30, 1976 in Washington, DC.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Taylor, Moddie American chemists African-American chemists Manhattan Project people 1912 births 1976 deaths University of Chicago alumni Lincoln University (Missouri) alumni Howard University faculty 20th-century African-American people