Thomas Midgley Jr.

Lore & Background

Thomas Midgley Jr. was born in Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania, on May 18, 1889, to Hattie Louise and Thomas Midgley Sr., an inventor in automobile tires. He grew up in Columbus, Ohio, and graduated from Cornell University in 1911 with a degree in mechanical engineering.

In 1916, Midgley began working at General Motors. In December 1921, under Charles Kettering at Dayton Research Laboratories, he discovered that adding tetraethyllead (TEL) to gasoline prevented engine knocking. The company named the substance 'Ethyl,' avoiding mention of lead. In 1923, Midgley took a long vacation to cure himself of lead poisoning. He participated in a 1924 press conference where he poured TEL over his hands and inhaled its vapor for sixty seconds to demonstrate safety, though a local health commissioner ordered the Bayway plant closed after several deaths and cases of lead poisoning; the plant voluntarily closed. He was later diagnosed with lead poisoning and resigned as vice president of GMCC in 1925 to work as an independent consultant.

In the late 1920s, working with Albert Leon Henne, Midgley synthesized dichlorodifluoromethane, the first CFC, named 'Freon.' It replaced toxic or flammable refrigerants. He received the Perkin Medal in 1937, the Priestley Medal in 1941, and the Willard Gibbs Award in 1942. He was elected to the United States National Academy of Sciences and, in 1944, president and chairman of the American Chemical Society. In 1940, he contracted polio and was left disabled. He devised a system of ropes and pulleys to lift himself out of bed. On November 2, 1944, he was found dead at his home in Worthington, Ohio, strangled by his own device. The coroner ruled his death a suicide.

Reader's Guide

Thomas Midgley Jr.'s legacy is defined by the negative environmental and health impacts of his two major inventions. Leaded gasoline released large quantities of lead into the atmosphere worldwide, linked to neurological impairment and other health problems. CFCs, while initially praised as safe refrigerants, were later found to deplete the ozone layer. Both products were eventually banned from common use. Environmental historian J. R. McNeill opined that Midgley 'had more adverse impact on the atmosphere than any other single organism in Earth's history.' Bill Bryson remarked that Midgley possessed 'an instinct for the regrettable that was almost uncanny.' Fred Pearce described him as a 'one-man environmental disaster.' Notably, while the harmful effects of CFCs were not understood until decades after his death, tetraethyl lead was known to be acutely toxic by those involved in its development, including Midgley himself, who publicly insisted there was no health hazard from its use in engines. His death, ruled a suicide, involved a device he created to assist himself after polio.

Did You Know?

• He contracted polio in 1940 and was left disabled.
• His death was ruled a suicide by the coroner, though often reported as accidental.