History of the School of Chemistry
The first lectures in chemistry at the University of Melbourne were given in 1856, only three years after the University was founded.
Dr John Macadam, a government analyst, was the first lecturer in chemistry. He held a part-time appointment and lectured to medical students. In 1882, John Drummond Kirkland was appointed the first Professor of Chemistry. In 1886, Kirkland was succeeded by David Orme Masson, appointed from the University of Edinburgh, after an extensive international search. Masson (later Sir David Orme Masson) led the School from 1886 to 1923, establishing chemistry as a discipline in its own right and creating a thriving research School.
Among Masson's many accomplishments were the establishment of the Society of Chemical Industry in Victoria (1900) and the Melbourne University Chemical Society (MUCS, 1903), the first of the University Chemical Societies in Australia. Masson Road and the Masson Theatre in Chemistry commemorate the Masson years.
Following Masson's retirement, the School was led first by David Rivett and then by Ernst Hartung from 1928 to 1952, who secured the necessary funding and oversaw the building of the chemistry buildings that house the teaching activities of the School today.
Since Hartung's years, the School has grown rapidly and now has approximately 90 academic and professional staff involved in teaching and research, with 2500 undergraduates enrolled in chemistry subjects and 150 BSc (Hons), MSc and postgraduate research students.
In 2005, the $100 million Bio21 Institute of Molecular Science and Biotechnology was opened. It incorporates state-of-the-art research laboratories for several research groups in the School of Chemistry, fostering research in a dynamic interdisciplinary environment.
From late 2007 the School has undergone a major refurbishment with modern teaching laboratories in the West wing and new research laboratories in the East wing completed in 2014.
The School of Chemistry: a timeline
- 1856
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First lectures in Chemistry at the University of Melbourne.
- 1862
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John Macadam appointed the first lecturer of Chemistry, taught within the Medical School. - 1882
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John Drummond Kirkland appointed Professor of Chemistry. - 1886 (till 1923)
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David Orme Masson (later Sir David Orme Masson) appointed Professor of Chemistry. - 1888
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The first research samples were produced in the School of Chemistry. - 1895
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The noble gas helium was discovered by Sir William Ramsay (University College, London). He later presented a sample to the School of Chemistry. - 1900
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Society of Chemical Industry established in Victoria.
- 1903
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Melbourne University Chemical Society established.
- 1907
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The Sartorius Balance was purchased by Gustav Ampt. He was considered one of Australia's finest analysts. - 1911
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A. C. David Rivett became a lecturer of Chemistry. - 1919
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E. J. Hartung became a lecturer of Chemistry. - 1923 (till 1928)
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David Rivett appointed Head of School.
David Orme Masson is knighted. - 1924
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A. C. David Rivett was appointed Professor of Chemistry.
- 1928 (till 1956)
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Ernst Hartung appointed Head of School; and secured funding and oversaw the building of the chemistry buildings during that tenure.
- 1934
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Brownian Movement in colloidal solutions was recorded, for the first time in history, on 35 mm film by E. J. Hartung.
A. C. David Rivett was knighted.
- 1938-40
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The Chemistry building was constructed.
- 1940
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During WWII the School of Chemistry was involved in the development and manufacturing of optical glass.
- 2005
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Bio21 Institute of Molecular Science and Biotechnology was opened.
- 2007
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The School of Chemistry undergoes a major building refurbishment with completion in 2014.
[For further information about the history of the School of Chemistry see 'Masson of Melbourne' by Len Weickhardt, Royal Australian Chemical Institute (1989); 'The Chemistry Department of the University of Melbourne - Its Contribution to Australian Science 1854-1959' by Joan Radford, Hawthorn Press (1978); 'Chemistry @ Melbourne 1960-2000' by Valda McRae, School of Chemistry, University of Melbourne, (2008)]
Chemistry cultural collection
With such a long history, the School of Chemistry at the University of Melbourne has accumulated an extensive cultural heritage collection of over 300 items associated with teaching and research in the School from the 1850s to 1960s.
Small rotating exhibitions from the collection can be viewed on the Ground Floor of the School of Chemistry building.
John Macadam
John Macadam (b. 1827–d. 1865) was a Scottish-born analytical chemist, medical practitioner and politician. As a student, he soon showed a flair for analytical chemistry, and later studied medicine. He arrived in Melbourne in 1855 to take up an appointment as a lecturer in chemistry and natural science at Scotch College, a position he held until 1865.
In 1857 Ferdinand von Mueller named the Macadamia nut after him. He officiated as one of two umpires at one of the earliest recorded games of Australian rules football, between Scotch College and Melbourne Grammar in 1858.
Macadam was appointed government analytical chemist in 1858 and health officer to the City of Melbourne in 1860. He represented Castlemaine in the Legislative Assembly between 1859 and 1864. Appointed secretary of the Royal Society of Victoria in 1860 and vice-president in 1863, he was also the secretary of the exploration committee of the Burke and Wills expedition.
When the Medical School of the University of Melbourne opened in 1862 Macadam was appointed lecturer in chemistry. He was a skilled, popular and eloquent lecturer, learned and generous with his knowledge.
Sadly, just three years later, and aged only 38, he died at sea on the way to give evidence at a murder trial in New Zealand, leaving his widow Elizabeth (née Clark), and a son. He was accompanied on that voyage by his assistant, the medical student John Drummond Kirkland, who later became the University’s first Professor of Chemistry.
John Drummond Kirkland
Born in Ireland, John Drummond Kirkland (b. 1836–d. 1885) trained as a chemical analyst through an apprenticeship in a medical laboratory in Dublin, before migrating to Australia in 1852 and moving to Melbourne in 1855. While still an undergraduate medical student at the University of Melbourne, he was appointed lecturer in chemistry following the sudden death of John Macadam in 1865. Due to the enthusiastic support of his fellow students, this temporary role became a permanent appointment the following year. Kirkland continued his studies, graduating in medicine in 1873 and surgery in 1880. His son, John Booth Kirkland, was appointed as his assistant in 1878, later leading to accusations of nepotism.
In 1882 John Drummond Kirkland became the University’s first professor of chemistry and metallurgy, continuing until his death in 1885. Today’s researchers use a high-performance computing facility named ‘Kirkland’ after the first Professor of Chemistry at the University of Melbourne.
Chemistry was still controlled by the medical school during Kirkland’s career, but became part of the science degree from 1886, along with the appointment of David Orme Masson as professor. Kirkland struggled for University funding to buy new apparatus. To compensate, he bought much from his own personal funds, including analytical chemistry equipment. Chemistry was first taught at Melbourne in the medical school, located in the area now occupied by Physics and the Ian Potter Museum of Art.
David Orme Masson
(Sir) David Orme Masson was Professor of Chemistry at the University of Melbourne from 1886 to 1923. As well as being a distinguished teacher and researcher, he contributed significantly to Australian scientific and public life, being instrumental in the establishment and governance of many important bodies including the CSIRO. Masson supported Antarctic research for 25 years, beginning with Douglas Mawson’s expedition of 1911.
Born in England and receiving an MA, BSc and DSc from the University of Edinburgh, he was a gifted, elegant and disciplined lecturer and a researcher of substance. His research work included the theory of solutions, from which emerged the term ‘critical solution temperature’; the periodic classification of the elements; and the velocity of migration of ions in solutions. Much of his research was done in collaboration with talented students such as David Rivett and his own son Irvine Masson.
Masson was knighted in 1923. He is commemorated by the Masson Theatre and Masson Road at the University of Melbourne; a mountain range and island in Antarctica; a portrait painting by William McInnes in the foyer of the School of Chemistry; the Masson lectureship from the Australian National Research Council; and the Masson memorial scholarship from the Royal Australian Chemical Institute.
Albert Cherbury David Rivett
A.C.D. Rivett was born in Tasmania and grew up in Victoria. A brilliant student, he won scholarships to Wesley College, then to the University of Melbourne and Queen’s College. David Orme Masson became a firm friend and mentor, persuading him to switch from medicine to science. Rivett received first-class honours in chemistry (BSc, 1906) and the Victorian Rhodes scholarship for 1907. At Oxford, he earned a BA and BSc (a research degree) both with first-class honours. He spent six months at the Nobel Institute, Stockholm, under Svante Arrhenius, one of the great figures in physical chemistry.
In 1911 Rivett returned to the University of Melbourne and took up a lectureship in chemistry. He married Stella Deakin, daughter of the former Prime Minister Alfred Deakin. He was associate professor from 1920 to 1924 and succeeded Masson as professor of chemistry from 1924 to 1927. Although an outstanding teacher, his major achievement was his involvement in building the CSIRO.
Rivett was knighted in 1935. He is commemorated in the name of the ACT suburb of Rivett, the David Rivett Medal, the CSIRO Officers Association and a portrait by Max Meldrum held at CSIRO in Canberra.
BSc (1906), DSc (1913) University of Melbourne, student of Masson. Rhodes Scholar, BA (1909), BSc (1910), MA (1913) University of Oxford. Lecturer, Chemistry, University of Melbourne (1911-1920). Associate Professor, Chemistry, University of Melbourne (1920-1924). Professor of Chemistry, University of Melbourne (1924-1927). Chief Executive Officer of CSIR (1927-1945). Chairman of Council of CSIR(O) (1946-1949).
Ernst Johannes Hartung
Ernst Johannes Hartung was a chemist and astronomer. Educated at the University of Melbourne (BSc 1913, DSc 1919), he became a lecturer in 1919, associate professor in 1924, and succeeded Rivett as chair of chemistry in 1928, remaining in this position until 1953.
Hartung’s lecturing style surged with enthusiasm and he employed the use of screen projections to demonstrate chemical phenomena to large undergraduate classes. In 1935 he recorded Brownian movement in colloidal solutions on 35 mm cinefilm, which was later copied onto 16 mm film for the Eastman Kodak Co. World Science Library. This can be viewed in the Chemistry laboratory. He researched the photodecomposition of silver halides and was awarded the David Syme Prize in 1926. He devoted time to the design and construction of a large, new chemistry building for the School of Chemistry (built 1938–1939).
During World War II, he was approached by Professor Thomas Laby, chairman of the Optical Munitions Panel, to chair the advisory committee on optical materials to produce high-quality optical glass in Australia. This was successful, with large-scale production achieved within ten months at a reasonable cost.
Hartung served three terms as general President of the (Royal) Australian Chemical Institute, was an ex-officio councillor of the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research, and a Trustee of the Museum of Applied Science (now part of Museum Victoria).