Early Years at MIT, 1870-1884
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Breaking Barriers
Unfortunately, in the 1870s, Ellen's gender ensured that the doors in the male dominated field of chemistry remained closed to her. Yet, just when it appeared that those doors would remain shut indefinitely, Merrick and Gray, a commercial chemistry business that rejected Ellen as an apprentice, suggested that she apply to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology—an all male school. She followed the company’s advice, and in 1870, after a drawn out debate amongst faculty members, the Institute decided to allow her to enroll as a special student on a trial basis (14, 20).
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[She] was shocked by the things she saw…. Filth. Disease. Suffering. She’d read about the excessively high rates of death and illness, the epidemics that ran through the city. Now she saw why. Horse wagons carrying uncovered food over dirty, unpaved streets through pools of stagnant swill made of everything from animal waste, human spit, and garbage. Alleys were worse: open sewers. Indoors, many homes weren’t much better (14).
Arrival in Boston, Massachusetts
In 1871, MIT’s first female student arrived in Boston to begin classes. Upon Ellen’s arrival in the large metropolis, Richard Clarke, one of Swallow’s biographers, wrote:
Her astonishment grew as she began her undergraduate research at MIT. As a laboratory assistant, she helped Professor William Nichol conduct an analysis of Boston’s water and aided Professor Frank Storer in his study of the city’s air. In addition to shocking her, the research Ellen did with these two men proved that she was capable of being a true chemist, not just a laboratory assistant. As a result, by the time she graduated in 1873 Ellen had become an indispensable member of the university (14, 20).
Married Life
After graduating from MIT, Ellen Swallow married her mineralogy professor and became Mrs. Robert Richards in June 1875. Robert allowed his new bride to continue to work, which her biographers claim did not have a negative effect on her ability to maintain a well organized and efficient home. Richards’s ability to balance her professional career with her domestic duties was all the more impressive since she frequently worked an average of fourteen hours a day, six to seven days a week. During her eighty plus hour workweek, she conducted experiments in various scientific fields. For example, she analyzed food from local Boston grocery stores, and water and air from around the globe (14, 20).
Above: Beacon Street in Boston, Massachusetts, ca. 1870s, from http://en. wikipedia.org/wiki/File:1870_BeaconSt_Boston.png
Left: MIT Class of 1873, from http://libraries.mit.edu/archives/exhibits/exam/class-1873.html
Even though Ellen graduated from MIT in 1973, she is not present in this photograph.
Left: Mr. and Mrs. Robert Richards, n.d., from http://www.chemheritage.org/discover/ online-resources/chemistry-in-history/themes/public-and-environmental-health/ public-health-and-safety/richards-e.aspx