List of Recipients
| Year | Name | Location | Rationale |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1839 | Hare, RobertRobert Hare | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania | Inventor of the oxy-hydrogen blowpipe |
| 1862 | Ericsson, JohnJohn Ericsson | New York, New York | His work improved the field of heat management, but the award was specifically for his invention of the caloric engine of 1858. |
| 1865 | Treadwell, DanielDaniel Treadwell | Cambridge, Massachusetts | Heat management. He was awarded especially for his contributions towards a "cannon of large caliber, and great strength and endurance". |
| 1866 | Clark, AlvanAlvan Clark | Cambridge, Massachusetts | Improved refracting telescopes |
| 1869 | Corliss, George HenryGeorge Henry Corliss | Providence, Rhode Island | For improving the steam engine |
| 1871 | Harrison, Jr., JosephJoseph Harrison, Jr. | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania | Towards his concern for safer steam boilers |
| 1873 | Rutherfurd, Lewis MorrisLewis Morris Rutherfurd | New York, New York | For improving the "processes and methods" of astronomical photography |
| 1875 | Draper, John WilliamJohn William Draper | New York, New York | For his work towards apprehending radiant energy |
| 1880 | Gibbs, Josiah WillardJosiah Willard Gibbs | New Haven, Connecticut | Founded the field of chemical thermodynamics |
| 1883 | Rowland, Henry AugustusHenry Augustus Rowland | Baltimore, Maryland | For his research in light and heat |
| 1886 | Langley, Samuel PierpontSamuel Pierpont Langley | Allegheny, Philadelphia | For his work towards the understanding of radiant energy |
| 1888 | Michelson, Albert AbrahamAlbert Abraham Michelson | Cleveland, Ohio | Measured the velocity of light, and contribution towards the motion of the luminiferous ether, and absolute determination of the wavelengths of light |
| 1891 | Pickering, Edward CharlesEdward Charles Pickering | Cambridge, Massachusetts | For his work on stellar photometry and stellar spectra |
| 1895 | Edison, Thomas AlvaThomas Alva Edison | Orange, New Jersey | For his investigations in electric lighting |
| 1898 | Keeler, James EdwardJames Edward Keeler | Allegheny, Pennsylvania | For the applications of the spectroscope, and especially his investigations of nebulae and the physical contents of Saturn's rings |
| 1899 | Brush, Charles FrancisCharles Francis Brush | Cleveland, Ohio | For the development of the electric arc lamp |
| 1900 | Barus, CarlCarl Barus | Providence, Rhode Island | For his heat research |
| 1901 | Thomson, ElihuElihu Thomson | Lynn, Massachusetts | For his work in welding and lighting |
| 1902 | Hale, George ElleryGeorge Ellery Hale | Chicago, Illinois | For his investigations in solar and stellar physics and for the invention of the spectro-heliograph |
| 1904 | Fox Nichols, ErnestErnest Fox Nichols | New York, New York | For his research on radiation, radiation pressure, stellar heat, and the infrared spectrum |
| 1907 | Acheson, Edward GoodrichEdward Goodrich Acheson | Niagara Falls, New York | For the application of the electric furnace to the production of carborundum and graphite |
| 1909 | Williams Wood, RobertRobert Williams Wood | Baltimore, Maryland | For light-related discoveries, including the optical properties of sodium and other metallic vapors |
| 1910 | Curtis, Charles GordonCharles Gordon Curtis | New York, New York | For his improvements to the steam turbine |
| 1911 | Crafts, James MasonJames Mason Crafts | Boston, Massachusetts | For his work in thermometry, and the development of new fixed points on the scale. |
| 1912 | Ives, Frederic EugeneFrederic Eugene Ives | Woodcliff-on-Hudson, New York | For his inventions in color photography and photoengraving |
| 1913 | Stebbins, JoelJoel Stebbins | Urbana, Illinois | For the development of the selenium photometer and its application to scientific problems |
| 1914 | Coolidge, William DavidWilliam David Coolidge | Schenectady, New York | For his invention of ductile tungsten |
| 1915 | Abbot, Charles GreeleyCharles Greeley Abbot | Washington D.C. | For his research in solar radiation |
| 1917 | Bridgman, Percy WilliamsPercy Williams Bridgman | Cambridge, Massachusetts | For his high-pressure thermodynamic breakthroughs |
| 1918 | Lyman, TheodoreTheodore Lyman | Cambridge, Massachusetts | Awarded for his research on short-wave and long-wave wavelengths |
| 1920 | Langmuir, IrvingIrving Langmuir | Schenectady, New York | "For his research in thermionic and allied phenomena" |
| 1925 | Russell, Henry NorrisHenry Norris Russell | Princeton, New Jersey | Awarded for his research in solar radiation |
| 1926 | Compton, Arthur HollyArthur Holly Compton | Chicago, Illinois | Awarded for his research in Roentgen rays |
| 1928 | Nichols, Edward LeamingtonEdward Leamington Nichols | Ithaca, New York | "For his research in spectrophotometry" |
| 1930 | Plaskett, John StanleyJohn Stanley Plaskett | Victoria, British Columbia | For his astronomical spectrographic research |
| 1931 | Compton, Karl TaylorKarl Taylor Compton | Cambridge, Massachusetts | He was awarded the medal for thermionics and spectroscopic research. |
| 1933 | Shapley, HarlowHarlow Shapley | Cambridge, Massachusetts | For his work with the luminosity of stars and galaxies |
| 1937 | Coblentz, William WeberWilliam Weber Coblentz | Washington, D.C. | For his improvements in the measurement of heat and light |
| 1939 | Harrison, George RussellGeorge Russell Harrison | Belmont, Massachusetts | "For pioneering improvements in spectroscopics" |
| 1941 | Zworykin, Vladimir KosmaVladimir Kosma Zworykin | Princeton, New Jersey | Awarded for the creation of the iconoscope and other related devices |
| 1943 | Mees, Charles EdwardCharles Edward Mees | Rochester, New York | For his contributions to photography |
| 1945 | Land, Edwin HerbertEdwin Herbert Land | Cambridge, Massachusetts | For his inventions related to the application of polarized light |
| 1947 | Harvey, Edmund NewtonEdmund Newton Harvey | Princeton, New Jersey | For his research in bioluminescence |
| 1949 | Bowen, Ira SpragueIra Sprague Bowen | Pasadena, California | For his work on the identification of nebulium and for other outstanding works |
| 1951 | Ives, Herbert E.Herbert E. Ives | Montclair, New Jersey | For his research in the field of optics |
| 1953 | Fermi, EnricoEnrico Fermi | Chicago, Illinois | For his investigations in electromagnetic radiation and nuclear energy |
| 1953 | Jr., Willis E. LambWillis E. Lamb Jr. | Stanford, California | Awarded for studying the hydrogen spectrum |
| 1953 | Onsager, LarsLars Onsager | New Haven, Connecticut | For his investigations in thermodynamics related to transportation |
| 1955 | Franck, JamesJames Franck | Chicago, Illinois | For his studies in the investigation of photosynthesis |
| 1957 | Chandrasekhar, SubrahmanyanSubrahmanyan Chandrasekhar | Williams Bay, Wisconsin | For his investigations of the radiative energy balance in stars |
| 1959 | Wald, GeorgeGeorge Wald | Cambridge, Massachusetts | For identifying the biochemical basis of vision |
| 1961 | Townes, Charles HardCharles Hard Townes | New York, New York | "For his development of the laser" |
| 1963 | Bethe, Hans AlbrechtHans Albrecht Bethe | Ithaca, New York | For pioneering studies in stellar nucleosynthesis |
| 1965 | Collins, Samuel CornetteSamuel Cornette Collins | Cambridge, Massachusetts | For the invention of the Collins Helium Cryostat and other pioneering work |
| 1965 | McElroy, William DavidWilliam David McElroy | Baltimore, Maryland | For his work on the molecular origin of bioluminescence |
| 1967 | Dicke, Robert HenryRobert Henry Dicke | Princeton, New Jersey | "For his contributions to microwave radiometry and to the understanding of atomic structure" |
| 1967 | Van Niel, Cornelius B.Cornelius B. Van Niel | Stanford, California | For his contributions to the study of photosynthesis |
| 1968 | Schmidt, MaartenMaarten Schmidt | Pasadena, California | For his work deducing the spectra of quasi-stellar objects |
| 1971 | M.I.T. Group Read more about this topic: Rumford Prize Famous quotes containing the words list of, list and/or recipients:“Love’s boat has been shattered against the life of everyday. You and I are quits, and it’s useless to draw up a list of mutual hurts, sorrows, and pains.” “Love’s boat has been shattered against the life of everyday. You and I are quits, and it’s useless to draw up a list of mutual hurts, sorrows, and pains.” “The proclamation and repetition of first principles is a constant feature of life in our democracy. Active adherence to these principles, however, has always been considered un-American. We recipients of the boon of liberty have always been ready, when faced with discomfort, to discard any and all first principles of liberty, and, further, to indict those who do not freely join with us in happily arrogating those principles.” |