Gordon Battelle was born on August 10, 1883 In Covington, Kentucky, and was named for his Grandfather, who helped found West Virginia. The Battelle’s were an industrialist family, living in Cincinnati and Piqua before settling in Columbus, Ohio. Gordon inherited the family’s holdings in the steel industry in March, 1918. As a result of his elite education, Battelle had a research-driven approach to solving industrial issues. His life’s work was to encourage education, specifically in the application of research to metallurgy. Battelle died on September 21, 1923 in Columbus, Ohio following and appendectomy. He left the majority of his estate to the establishment of the Battelle Memorial Institute, which continues his legacy of research, studying climate change, healthcare treatments and techniques, and infrastructural advancements. Gordon Battelle was made a Great Ohioan in 2012.
Photo courtesy of the Battelle Memorial Institute.