Documents reviewing the history of Chemical Engineering at Penn State:
“History of Chemical Engineering at Penn State” compiled by F. L. Carnahan in 1967:
“ChE Department: Penn State” by John M. Tarbell, from CEE News, 1978:
nlewis65,+8_13,47_Department_Tarbell_12_No_1_WINTER_1978_CEE
“Chemical Engineering at the Pennsylvania State University” by Andrew L. Zydney, from CEE News, 2021:
A link to the presentation “Perspectives on the history of Chemical Engineering at Penn State” by Thomas Daubert, Robert Kabel, Ronald Danner, and James Ultman, delivered at PSU on Sept 5, 2024:
A historical timeline of the Chemical Engineering Program at Penn State:
| 1888 | Chemistry department formed, separated from General Science department |
| 1890 | First B.S Degree awarded in Chemistry to William H. Walker (father of CHE) |
| 1902 | Industrial Chemistry curriculum introduced, new curriculum heavy emphasis on industrial unit processes and manufacturing of particular chemical compounds |
| 1906 | First two graduates receive Industrial Chemistry degrees from PSU |
| 1924 | Industrial Chemistry curriculum renamed as “Chemical Engineering” at Penn State |
| 1925 | 11 graduates receive the first CHE degrees from PSU |
| 1929 | First M.S in CHE at PSU awarded |
| 1932 | First PHD at PSU awarded |
| 1935 | Unit lab operations introduced into curriculum with experiments in distillation, drying, and air-water interactions |
| 1936 | First PHD in ChemE at PSU received by a woman, Dorothy Quiggle |
| 1948 | Chemical Engineering and Chemistry departments are separated, Donald S Cryder heads ChemE department |
| 1959 | Petroleum Refining Laboratory and Chemical Engineering merge, headed by Merrel Fenske |
| 1963 | Chemical Engineering merges into the College of Engineering |
Department Head Timeline
| 1888-1900 | Dr. G.G Pond (was head of Chemistry department till 1920, but Churchill was director of Industrial when it formed in 1902 |
| 1902-1916 | Dr. Jesse B. Churchill |
| 1921-1922 | Dr. J.E Schott |
| 1922-1926 | Dr. G.C Chandlee |
| 1926-1930 | Dr. E.D Ries |
| 1930-1957 | Dr.Donald S. Cryder |
| 1957-1958 | Dr. F.L Carnahan |
| 1958-1959 | Dr. W.C. Fernelius |
| 1959-69 | Dr. Merrel Fenske |
| 1970-1983 | Dr. Lee C. Eagelton |
| 1983-2000 | Dr. Larry Duda |
| 2000-2014 | Dr. Andrew Zydney |
| 2014-2024 | Dr. Phillip Savage |
