Grand Rapids Woman Remembered For Whooping Cough Vaccine During Black History Month
Loney Clinton Gordon was a chemist from Grand Rapids who helped develop a vaccine that saved countless numbers of lives all over the world.
Gordon was born in Arkansas in 1915 but moved to Grand Rapids early in her life and would call Michigan home until her death in 1999. According to an article by Michigan Radio, She went to South High School, and was just a few years younger than Gerald Ford. They both appear in the school’s yearbook in 1931.
She later attended Michigan State College (which is now known as Michigan State University) and received her bachelors degree in home economics and chemistry in 1939. And after she received her degree, she worked for a brief time in Virginia but returned to Michigan to work for the Michigan Department of Health.