Samuel Philip Sadtler, Ph.D., LL.D. (July 18, 1847 – December 20, 1923) was an American

chemist A chemist (from Greek ''chēm(ía)'' alchemy; replacing ''chymist'' from Medieval Latin ''alchemist'') is a scientist trained in the study of chemistry. Chemists study the composition of matter and its properties. Chemists carefully describe th ...

, and the first President of the

American Institute of Chemical Engineers The American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AIChE) is a professional organization for chemical engineers. AIChE was actually established in 1908 to distinguish chemical engineers as a profession independent of chemists and mechanical engineer ...

in 1908.

Life

Sadtler was born at

Pine Grove, Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania Pine Grove is a borough in Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania, United States. As of the 2020 census, the borough population was 2,054. Pine Grove Area School District, serving students from three municipalities and multiple surrounding townships, ...

, the son of a

Lutheran Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Catholic Church launched th ...

minister, and educated at Pennsylvania College (class of 1867), at Lehigh University (one year), at Lawrence Scientific School (BSc 1870), and in

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

at the

University of Göttingen The University of Göttingen, officially the Georg August University of Göttingen, (german: Georg-August-Universität Göttingen, known informally as Georgia Augusta) is a public research university in the city of Göttingen, Germany. Founded ...

(PhD 1871). As well as his professional activities, he was active in the Lutheran church. His son, Samuel Schmucker Sadtler, also became a chemist. In 1901 they founded Samuel P. Sadtler & Son, a chemical consulting firm in Philadelphia. It was later managed by his grandson, also named Samuel Philip Sadtler. Sadtler died December 20, 1923, in

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 ...

Career

Sadtler was first a professor at Pennsylvania College (1871–74) and then the

University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania (also known as Penn or UPenn) is a private research university in Philadelphia. It is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and is ranked among the highest-regarded universitie ...

(1874–91). He then moved to 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 ...

, where he was professor of chemistry until 1916 when he retired (and Emeritus professor afterwards). He was author of: ''Hand-Book of Chemical Experimentation'' (1877); ''Industrial Organic Chemistry'' (1901; fourth edition, 1912); and ''Pharmaceutical Chemistry'' (1895; fourth edition, 1912), with Virgil Coblentz. In 1874, he was elected as a member of the

American Philosophical Society The American Philosophical Society (APS), founded in 1743 in Philadelphia, is a scholarly organization that promotes knowledge in the sciences and humanities through research, professional meetings, publications, library resources, and communit ...

. In 1907 to 1908 Sadtler was part of a discussion as to the formation of a society separate 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 d ...

for the newly recognized profession of

chemical engineering Chemical engineering is an engineering field which deals with the study of operation and design of chemical plants as well as methods of improving production. Chemical engineers develop economical commercial processes to convert raw materials int ...

. He was initially opposed to the proliferation of societies but said he would join a chemical engineering one if it was formed. On June 22, 1908, he welcomed interested people to a meeting at the Engineers Club, Philadelphia. The forty men present became Charter Members of the American Institute of Chemical Engineers, electing Sadtler as the President, a post he held till the end of 1909. He made his Presidential address at the first Annual Meeting on December 28, 1908, and also established the ''Transactions of the AIChE'' in the same year.

References

People from Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania 1847 births 1923 deaths American chemical engineers American chemists American non-fiction writers Pennsylvania State University alumni Pennsylvania State University faculty University of Pennsylvania faculty University of Göttingen alumni Harvard School of Engineering and Applied Sciences alumni Lehigh University alumni Engineers from Pennsylvania {{US-chemist-stub