Mary Chilton Noyes

Biographical information

Dr. Mary Chilton Noyes was one of the first women to receive a Ph.D. in the United States. She received her Ph.D. from Western Reserve University, which is now known as Case Western Reserve University, in 1895. Noyes was born on January 13th, 1855. Prior to her PhD, she received a bachelor's of philosophy in 1881, master's of arts from Iowa in 1884, and a master's of science from Cornell in 1894. Western Reserve has constructed a brand new physics research building without the use of Fe so it would not interfere with delicate B-field measurements. This new building is probably why Noyes pursued a PhD at Western Reserve because her own research required this building and at the time her 1-year PhD aligned with Western Reserve’s requirements. Noyes' PhD work, 'The Influence of Heat and the Electric Current Upon Young’s Modulus for a Piano Wire', was published in the fourth issue of Physical Review. She continued her career as a teacher of mathematics at Lake Erie College, followed by becoming an instructor of mathematics, physics, and astronomy at Indianapolis Academy.