Emma Carr (1880-1972) was one of the most renowned chemical educators of the first half of the twentieth century. She was known not only for the chemistry program she established at Mount Holyoke College, which became a model for group research, but also for her groundbreaking work on the structure of unsaturated hydrocarbons. Employing absorption spectroscopy and later, far ultraviolet vacuum spectroscopy, Carr and her faculty and student collaborators made significant contributions to the understanding of the make-up of certain organic compounds.

Carr was the first recipient of the Francis Garvan Medal to honor an outstanding woman in American chemistry. In addition to her research and teaching skills, she also proved to be a formidable administrator, making Mount Holyoke College one of the premier chemistry schools in the nation at the time. At her instigation, Mount Holyoke became one of the first institutions in the United States to...