On May 23, 1994, the American Chemical Society awarded the Priestley Medal to Derek Barton ‘for his numerous contributions to chemistry,” the Society’s most prestigious award.

Barton was a Distinguished Professor of Chemistry at Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas.

The 1969 Nobel Prize in Chemistry was awarded jointly to Derek H. R. Barton and Odd Hassel “for their contributions to the development of the concept of conformation and its application in chemistry.”