Object Details
Subject
Seibert, Florence Barbara 1897-1991
Goucher College
Yale University
University of Pennsylvania
American Chemical Society
Henry Phipps Institute
Summary
Biochemist Florence Barbara Seibert (1897-1991) developed the skin test for tuberculosis. After graduating from Goucher College, she worked as a chemist during World War I and then went to Yale University, where she earned a Ph.D. and made important discoveries about the ability of some bacteria to survive distillation techniques and therefore contaminate intravenous injections. During the 1930s, she taught at University of Pennsylvania and developed the tuberculosis skin reaction test, which became the world standard by 1941. In 1942, she received the American Chemical Society's Francis P. Garvan Gold Medal for development of a pure tuberculin, which had made reliable skin tests possible. A Washington Evening Star article in July 30, 1942, described her as a "modest, diminutive" woman who "likes motoring, music, reading biographies." Just then starting a new research project in Phipps Institute, "situated in a congested tenement neighborhood...while ragged children play in the streets outside, she works the hours of an Edison, and then continues her paper work when she reaches her home.
Cite as
Smithsonian Institution Archives, Accession 90-105, Science Service Records, Image No. SIA2009-3170
Repository Loc.
Smithsonian Institution Archives, Capital Gallery, Suite 3000, MRC 507; 600 Maryland Avenue, SW; Washington, DC 20024-2520
Local number
SIA Acc. 90-105 [SIA2009-3170]
Restrictions & Rights
No access restrictions Many of SIA's holdings are located off-site, and advance notice is recommended to consult a collection. Please email the SIA Reference Team at osiaref@si.edu
Copyright Not Evaluated
Type
Black-and-white photographs
Data Source
Smithsonian Institution Archives
Topic
Women scientists
Biochemistry
Tuberculosis
Record ID
siris_arc_306464