William Hanford Edwards

William Edward "Butch" Hanford was an American chemist who is best known for developing the modern process to make multipurpose material polyurethane. Hanford's most notable discovery occurred while working with fellow chemist Donald Fletcher Holmes at DuPont. On June 2, 1942, Hanford was awarded a patent for his process. Currently, this method is responsible for manufacturing many of the plastics that are used in medicine, the automotive industry, and consumer products. Hanford's later accomplishments included the development of the first liquid household detergent and a new kind of ammunition for Winchester-Western Company. For his work, Hanford was inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame in 1991. The New York Times has noted that Hanford's developments were "monumental."

William Edward Hanford was born on December 9, 1908 in Bristol, Pennsylvania. During his childhood, Hanford's mother stressed the importance of religion and taught Hanford the value of hard work. Although his mother was raised with considerable wealth, Hanford himself had little money as a child. Having lived through World War I, he learned to make the most of his opportunities and take his education seriously.

Throughout his early education, Hanford focused primarily on his school work and sought to learn more about the scientific world around him. He graduated from Bristol High School in 1926. While attending high school, Hanford became interested in chemistry from his science teachers.

After working for approximately eight months, Hanford left Rohm and Haas to go to graduate school. He had difficulty deciding between the Pennsylvania State University and the University of Illinois for his graduate studies, but he eventually enrolled at the University of Illinois. While at graduate school, he was mentored by Dr. Roger Adams.

Soon after graduating from the University of Illinois, Hanford sought employment. He decided to turn down an offer to return to Rohm and Haas in favor of working for DuPont. In 1935, Hanford officially started working for DuPont. While working at the company, Hanford was given the freedom to explore the areas of research that interested him. He started to work with thiocyanates. In 1973, Hanford retired from Olin Corporation to become a consultant for his son’s company, World Water Resources Incorporated. Hanford’s retirement from Olin Corporation marked the end of his career as a corporate chemist.

On January 27, 1996, William Edward Hanford died in Bethesda, Maryland. He was eighty-seven years old.