Emerson Tippetts was born on 27 February 1908 in Lake Shore, Utah. He graduated from Morgan High School in 1925 and enrolled in the University of Utah. He attended the University of Utah from 1925 to 1930, graduating with a B.A. in Chemistry. From Utah, he went to Purdue University, where he studied from 1931 to 1934. Tippetts received a M.S. in Chemistry in 1932, and a Ph.D. in Physical Chemistry in 1934 for his work on Barium Chloride solutions.
Tippetts professional career was spent entirely with the E. I. Du Pont de Nemours Company Textile Fibers Department. Among his achievements with Du Pont was his development of Rayon for use as a reinforcing agent in automobile tires. In 1951, Tippetts was named Research Director in Du Pont's Fibers Department where he directed product development for rayon, acetate, spandex, and nylon textiles. He remained at the post of Research Director until his retirement in 1968.
The Emerson Tippetts papers (1925-1989) is divided into three basic categories: Tippetts' education, his research, and speeches he gave late in his career. The first of these categories contains Tippetts' masters and doctoral theses, along with a copy of the journal publication of his doctoral work. The second category consists of three patents credited to Emerson Tippetts. These inventions, created while he worked for Du Pont are the Cornerstones of Tippetts' career in textiles. The final category contains copies of five speeches he gave at symposiums. They vary in subject, from complex technical material to an insightful and witty treatment of a research career. Also included in the collection are a brief biography from the
Twenty-four hour advanced notice encouraged. Materials must be used on-site. Access to parts of this collection may be restricted under provisions of state or federal law.
The library does not claim to control copyright for all materials in the collection. An individual depicted in a reproduction has privacy rights as outlined in Title 45 CFR, part 46 (Protection of Human Subjects). For further information, please review the J. Willard Marriott Library’s
Collection Name, Collection Number, Box Number, Folder Number. Special Collections, J. Willard Marriott Library, The University of Utah.
Gift of Emerson Tippetts in 1988.
Processed by Tony Pori in 1989.