Henry Eyring (February 20, 1901 - December 26, 1981) was a theoretical chemist whose primary contribution was in the study of chemical reaction rates and intermediates.
Eyring was reared on a cattle ranch in Colonia Juarez, Mexico, for the first 11 years of his life. In July 1912, the Eyrings and about 4,200 other immigrants were driven out of Mexico by Pancho Villa during the Mexican Revolution and moved to El Paso, Texas. After living in El Paso for about a year, the Eyrings relocated to Pima, Arizona, where Henry completed high school and showed a special aptitude for mathematics and science. He also studied at Gila College in Safford, Arizona, now College of Eastern Arizona , where one of the pillars at the front of the main building still bears his name, along with that of his brother-in-law, Spencer W. Kimball, later president and prophet of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
By 1919, Eyring had received a state fellowship to the University of Arizona, where he received degrees in mining engineering, metallurgy, and chemistry.
After reviewing some of his work, professors from Princeton recruited Eyring as an instructor in 1931. He would continue his work at Princeton until 1949 when he was offered a position as dean of the graduate school at the University of Utah. The chemistry building on the University campus is now named in his honor.
Professor Eyring was a devout member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints throughout his life. His son, Henry B. Eyring, is currently an LDS Apostle.
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