Nellie Esther Goldthwaite

Nellie Esther Goldthwaite (1868–1946) was an American food chemist known for her work on the active principle in the creation of jelly. In 1910 she was elected a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science.

Early life and education Goldthwaite was born in Jamestown, New York. From 1884 until 1886 she attended Wellesley College. She graduated from the University of Michigan with a B.S. in 1894. She earned her Ph.D. from the University of Chicago in 1904. She worked at the University of Illinois from 1908 until 1915. From 1915 until 1916 she was the head of the home economics department at the University of New Hampshire. Starting in 1919 she worked at the Colorado Agricultural Experiment Station,

Goldthwaite was the undergraduate advisor of Frances Perkins, who went on to become the United States Secretary of Labor. Perkins attributed interacting with Goldthwaite as an incentive to get the most out of her college education.

Goldthwaite died in November of 1946. Her Ph.D. research was titled On substituted benzhydrol derivatives and bromcyanacetic ether, and was completed in 1904. In addition to publishing multiple editions of The Principles of Jelly-making, she wrote publications on her research into food science and home economics.

Selected publications

Honors and awards Goldthwaite was elected a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science in 1910.