A Formula for Success: The Early History and Legacy of Women in the Chemistry Department at the University of Nebraska, 1882-1919 Hardcover – January 21, 2026

How could an ambitious chemistry instructor end up as a champion of gender equality in chemistry at a research university on the Plains in the 1880s? The odds were against Hudson Henry Nicholson when he started at the University of Nebraska in 1882. After several years analyzing many farmers’ samples, he realized there was a huge economic potential in sugar beet agriculture. He envisioned the construction of processing factories and the need for analytical chemists that the university could train. A key event occurred in 1887 when he hired Dr. Rachel Lloyd, the first American woman with a PhD in chemistry, as the department’s second faculty member. Her analysis confirmed the industry’s viability, leading to the immediate construction of two factories. Her presence also launched a departmental ethos to include women—as faculty, students, and staff—that was unparalleled in the world for the next three decades. Read more