In this brief, renowned inorganic chemist Jay Labinger tracks the
development of his field from a forgotten specialism to the
establishment of an independent, intellectually viable discipline.
Inorganic chemistry, with a negation in its very name, was long regarded
as that which was left behind when organic and physical chemistry
emerged as specialist fields in the 19th century. Only by the middle of
the 20th century had it begun to gain its current stature of equality to
that of the other main branches of chemistry. The author discusses the
evidence for this transition, both quantitative and anecdotal and
includes consideration of the roles of local and personal factors, with
particular focus on Caltech as an illustrative example. This brief is of
interest both to historians of science and inorganic chemists who would
like to find out how their field began.