The end of World War II witnessed rapid growth in the field of biology, capped off with Watson and Crick’s pathbreaking work decoding DNA’s structure in 1953. This revolutionary achievement dramatically changed how biology was taught around the world, reverberating into Syracuse University’s own Department of Biology.



In 1872, Alexander Winchell, the first chancellor of Syracuse, taught the first course that featured biology in the Department of Geology, Zoology, and Botany. The Department of Biology has undergone multiple changes, from faculty appointments to research concentrations to even where the department was housed. Its history, with mergers and moves, mirrors the field of biology and a century’s worth of progress. Serving as a single, comprehensive source of the department’s growth and history, this volume includes personal accounts and anecdotes from former faculty and alumni from the late nineteenth century to the present and descriptions of the 175 faculty members and of the alumni achievements; it also lists the recipients of undergraduate and graduate biology student awards. This book is a valued resource and a cherished chronicle of events for those associated with the department and Syracuse University at large.