A black-and-white photo of Dr. Joseph Kennedy seated at a paper and book strewn desk looking up at the photographer while penciling something down. Dr. Joseph Kennedy is wearing a suit jacket over a sweater, button-down collared shirt, and tie and has glasses.
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John M. Olin Library, Level 1, Julian Edison Department of Special Collections Reading Room

Doing the Impossible: the Legacy of Joseph W. Kennedy

Joseph W. Kennedy made a big impact on the world and WashU. He was the co-discoverer of plutonium, head of the Chemistry and Metallurgy Division of the Manhattan Project, and was Professor and Chair of the WashU Chemistry Department, where he helped rebuild the program after World War II. This exhibition provides a snapshot of his life and accomplishments.

The Doing the Impossible exhibition can be viewed during Special Collections’s open hours without an appointment.

The Doing the Impossible: The Legacy of Joseph W. Kennedy exhibition is organized by University Archivist Sonya Rooney, with special thanks to Professor Lee Sobotka and the Kennedy Family.

Header Image Credit: Dr. Joseph Kennedy, March 5, 1946. Photo by Ralph W. Menees, Washington University News Bureau, Office of Public Affairs, Biographical Faculty Files, University Archives.