Donald F. and Mildred Topp Othmer

Donald F. Othmer (1904–1995) and Mildred Topp Othmer (1907–1998), both natives of Nebraska, met in 1949 and married in New York in 1950. A prolific inventor, with more than 150 patents, and a founding editor of the Kirk-Othmer Encyclopedia of Chemical Technology, Donald worked for Eastman Kodak for four years before going to Brooklyn Polytechnic in 1932. Mildred was a high school teacher and buyer for her family’s department store in Omaha.

In 1988 they launched their challenge grant to establish the Donald F. and Mildred Topp Othmer Library of Chemical History at CHF. To preserve their vision, both endowed the Othmer Library in their wills, making possible its continued operation and growth for the future.