Oral history interview with Thomas W. Mastin
- 1994-Nov-14
Oral history interview with Thomas W. Mastin
- 1994-Nov-14
Thomas Mastin begins this interview by discussing his childhood in Indiana and the untimely death of his father. He then explains the origins of his interest in chemistry, his early career at Lubrizol, and his transition from research into management. Mastin shares his opinions on management philosophy and the place of research in the chemical industry. Finally, Mastin reflects on the changes in the industry, his receipt of the Society of Chemistry Award, and his continued interest in photography and nature study.
Property | Value |
---|---|
Interviewee | |
Manufacturer | |
Place of interview | |
Format | |
Genre | |
Extent |
|
Language | |
Subject | |
Rights | Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License |
Rights holder |
|
Credit line |
|
About the Interviewer
James J. Bohning was professor emeritus of chemistry at Wilkes University, where he had been a faculty member from 1959 to 1990. He served there as chemistry department chair from 1970 to 1986 and environmental science department chair from 1987 to 1990. Bohning was chair of the American Chemical Society’s Division of the History of Chemistry in 1986; he received the division’s Outstanding Paper Award in 1989 and presented more than forty papers at national meetings of the society. Bohning was on the advisory committee of the society’s National Historic Chemical Landmarks Program from its inception in 1992 through 2001 and is currently a consultant to the committee. He developed the oral history program of the Chemical Heritage Foundation, and he was CHF’s director of oral history from 1990 to 1995. From 1995 to 1998, Bohning was a science writer for the News Service group of the American Chemical Society. In May 2005, he received the Joseph Priestley Service Award from the Susquehanna Valley Section of the American Chemical Society. Bohning passed away in September 2011.
Institutional location
Department | |
---|---|
Collection | |
Oral history number | 0118 |
Related Items
Interviewee biographical information
Born |
|
---|---|
Died |
|
Education
Year | Institution | Degree | Discipline |
---|---|---|---|
1938 | Wabash College | BS | Chemistry |
1939 | University of Illinois at Chicago | MS | Organic Chemistry |
1942 | University of Illinois at Chicago | PhD | Organic Chemistry |
Professional Experience
Gelatin Products Company
- 1940 to 1941 Chemist
Lubrizol Corporation
- 1942 to 1943 Research Chemist
- 1943 to 1953 Director, Chemical Research Laboratories
- 1953 to 1954 Assistant Director, Research and Development
- 1954 to 1956 Director, Research and Development
- 1956 to 1972 Vice President, Research and Development
- 1957 to 1982 Member, Board of Directors
- 1968 to 1972 Executive Vice President
- 1972 to 1978 Chief Executive Officer
- 1972 to 1976 President
- 1976 to 1982 Chairman of the Board
- 1982 Retired
Honors
Year(s) | Award |
---|---|
1973 | Honorary Doctorate, Wabash College, Indiana |
1977 | Honor Award, Commercial Development Association |
1978 | Honorary Doctorate, Heidelberg College, Ohio |
1981 | Chemical Industry Medal, Society of Chemical Industry |
Cite as
See our FAQ page to learn how to cite an oral history.
mastin_tw_0118_FULL.pdf
The published version of the transcript may diverge from the interview audio due to edits to the transcript made by staff of the Center for Oral History, often at the request of the interviewee, during the transcript review process.