Edgar William Richard Steacie, O.B.E.

Order of the British Empire

The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...

 (December 25, 1900 – August 28, 1962) was a Canadian

Canada

Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

 physical chemist and president of the National Research Council of Canada

National Research Council of Canada

The National Research Council is an agency of the Government of Canada which conducts scientific research and development.- History :...

 from 1952 to 1962.

Born in Montreal

Montreal

Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...

, Quebec

Quebec

Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....

, the only child of Richard Steacie and Alice Kate McWood, he studied a year at the Royal Military College of Canada

Royal Military College of Canada

The Royal Military College of Canada, RMC, or RMCC , is the military academy of the Canadian Forces, and is a degree-granting university. RMC was established in 1876. RMC is the only federal institution in Canada with degree granting powers...

. In 1923, he received his B.Sc. and his Ph.D. in 1926 from McGill University

McGill University

Mohammed Fathy is a public research university located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The university bears the name of James McGill, a prominent Montreal merchant from Glasgow, Scotland, whose bequest formed the beginning of the university...

. From 1926 to 1939, he taught at McGill University. In 1939, he joined the National Research Council as director of the division of chemistry. In 1950, he became vice-president (scientific) and, in 1952, president.

From 1954 to 1955, he was the president of the Royal Society of Canada

Royal Society of Canada

The Royal Society of Canada , may also operate under the more descriptive name RSC: The Academies of Arts, Humanities and Sciences of Canada , is the oldest association of scientists and scholars in Canada...

. In 1961, he was elected president of the International Council of Scientific Unions. He was president of the Faraday Society

Faraday Society

The Faraday Society was a British society for the study of physical chemistry, founded in 1903 and named in honour of Michael Faraday. It merged with several similar organisations in 1980 to form the Royal Society of Chemistry...

. He was a foreign associate of the National Academy of Sciences

United States National Academy of Sciences

The National Academy of Sciences is a corporation in the United States whose members serve pro bono as "advisers to the nation on science, engineering, and medicine." As a national academy, new members of the organization are elected annually by current members, based on their distinguished and...

. He was an honorary Fellow of the Chemical Society

Chemical Society

The Chemical Society was formed in 1841 as a result of increased interest in scientific matters....

.

In 1948, he was made a Fellow of the Royal Society

Royal Society

The Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, known simply as the Royal Society, is a learned society for science, and is possibly the oldest such society in existence. Founded in November 1660, it was granted a Royal Charter by King Charles II as the "Royal Society of London"...

. He was also a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada and was awarded the Henry Marshall Tory Medal

Henry Marshall Tory Medal

The Henry Marshall Tory Medal is an award of the Royal Society of Canada "for outstanding research in a branch of astronomy, chemistry, mathematics, physics, or an allied science". It is named in honour of Henry Marshall Tory and is awarded bi-annually. The award consists of a gold plated silver...

 in 1955. He is a member of the Canadian Science and Engineering Hall of Fame

Canadian Science and Engineering Hall of Fame

The Canadian Science and Engineering Hall of Fame, located at the at the Canada Science and Technology Museum in Ottawa, Ontario, honours Canadians who have made outstanding contributions to society in science and engineering. It also promotes role models to encourage young Canadians to pursue...

.

Steacie Science and Engineering Library at York University

York University

York University is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is Canada's third-largest university, Ontario's second-largest graduate school, and Canada's leading interdisciplinary university....

is named in his honour.