On Apr. 6, 1876, thirty-five chemists met at the College of Pharmacy of the City of New York to found the American Chemical Society.

From its inception, the ACS was committed to sharing its professional work with a public audience. ACS began publishing its flagship journal, the Journal of the American Chemical Society (JACS), in April, 1879. Abstracts, which had appeared in JACS since 1897, were given their own publication, Chemical Abstracts in January 1907.

In 1922, the Priestley Medal, named for Joseph Priestley, was awarded for first time by the American Chemical Society to Ira Remsen “to recognize distinguished services to chemistry.” The award became the Society’s most prestigious award.