Herbert Henry Dow
American chemical industrialist (1866–1930)
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Key Takeaways
- Herbert Henry Dow (February 26, 1866 – October 15, 1930) was an American chemical industrialist who founded the American multinational conglomerate Dow Chemical.
- Biography Early years Herbert Henry Dow was born in 1866 in Belleville, Ontario, the eldest child of Americans Joseph Henry Dow, an inventor and mechanical engineer, and his wife, Sarah Bunnell, who were from Derby, Connecticut.
- They moved again in 1878, this time to Cleveland to follow Joseph's job with the Derby Shovel Manufacturing Company.
- While at Case, he became a member of the Phi Kappa Psi fraternity.
- He discovered that brine samples from Canton, Ohio and Midland, Michigan were very rich in bromine, which at the time was a primary ingredient in medicines and was widely used in the fledgeling photographic industry.
Herbert Henry Dow (February 26, 1866 – October 15, 1930) was an American chemical industrialist who founded the American multinational conglomerate Dow Chemical. A graduate of the Case School of Applied Science in Cleveland, Ohio, he was a prolific inventor of chemical processes, compounds, and products, notably bromine extraction from brine water, and was a successful businessman.
Biography
Early years
Herbert Henry Dow was born in 1866 in Belleville, Ontario, the eldest child of Americans Joseph Henry Dow, an inventor and mechanical engineer, and his wife, Sarah Bunnell, who were from Derby, Connecticut. When the infant boy was six weeks old, the family returned to their hometown. They moved again in 1878, this time to Cleveland to follow Joseph's job with the Derby Shovel Manufacturing Company.
After graduating from high school in 1884, Dow enrolled in the Case School of Applied Science (now known as Case Western Reserve University). While at Case, he became a member of the Phi Kappa Psi fraternity. He began specialized research into the chemical composition of brines in Ohio and nearby areas. He discovered that brine samples from Canton, Ohio and Midland, Michigan were very rich in bromine, which at the time was a primary ingredient in medicines and was widely used in the fledgeling photographic industry. Following his graduation from Case in 1888, Dow worked for a year as a chemistry professor at Huron Street Hospital College in Cleveland, while continuing his research into the extraction of chemicals from brine.
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