Ellen H. Swallow Richards (1842-1911) was one of America's first female professional chemists and the first woman to be accepted by a scientific school. She is best known for pioneering the field of sanitary engineering, when in 1890, she performed an unprecedented survey that led to the first state water-quality standards in the nation.

This volume includes a biographical account of Richards' life including several photographic reproductions. Digitized below includes the work's front matter, a frontispiece portrait of Richards, a portrait of Richards as a young woman, and a portrait of Richards in academic regalia. Also includes three prints captioned The Water Laboratory, Showing the Famous Chlorine Map, Executive Committee, Naples Table Association, New York, 1909, and At Lake Placid.