author
C. F. H. (Charles Francis Hitchcock) Allen
1895–1979
A meticulous organic chemist whose books helped map the chemistry of nitrogen-containing ring systems, he also played an important behind-the-scenes role in the early years of Organic Syntheses.
1 Audiobook
Meta toluene sulphonic acid and related compounds
by C. F. H. (Charles Francis Hitchcock) Allen
About the author
Born in Milford, New Jersey, on August 13, 1895, Charles Francis Hitchcock Allen studied at Boston University, earning an A.B. in 1919 and an A.M. in 1920, before completing a Ph.D. at Harvard in 1924. According to archival and memorial sources, his work grew out of an interest in unsaturated, conjugated, and heterocyclic systems.
Allen built a long career in organic chemistry and was especially associated with research on heterocyclic compounds. Sources describing his life credit him with 166 research papers, and his books include major reference volumes on six-membered heterocyclic nitrogen compounds. He also served as the first Secretary to the Editors of Organic Syntheses from 1929 to 1937, helping support a publication that became a standard resource for practical organic chemistry.
Beyond the lab, he comes across as a person of wide interests: an avid bird-watcher, a collector of automobile license plates from every state, and a cornet player in military bands. He died on August 31, 1979.