Louis Pasteur
Born 1822 · Age 203
French chemist, microbiologist and immunologist best known for discoveries of molecular chirality, microbial fermentation, pasteurization and development of vaccines (rabies, anthrax, chicken cholera); founder and first director of the Institut Pasteur.
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Life & Career Timeline
Birth in Dole (Jura), France
Louis Pasteur born to Jean-Joseph Pasteur (a tanner) and Jeanne-Etiennette Roqui in Dole.
Family moves to Marnoz
Pasteur family moved to Marnoz where Jean-Joseph rented a tannery.
Family moves to Arbois
Family moved to a tannery on the Cuisance river at Arbois (Pasteur later grew up here).
First pastel drawing
Produced his first pastel at age 13 and showed early talent in drawing.
Enrolled at Collège Royal, Besançon
Began studies in final class of collège royal at Besançon (moved from boarding attempt in Paris due to homesickness).
Baccalauréat ès lettres (Bachelor of Arts)
Earned his Bachelor of Arts degree at Besançon.
Failed first B.S. exam; continued studies
Failed first examination for the bachelor of science; enrolled a second year of special mathematics.
Baccalauréat ès sciences (Bachelor of Science, Mathematics)
Earned his Bachelor of Science (mathematics) degree at Dijon, with a mediocre grade in chemistry.
Admitted to École Normale Supérieure
Passed entrance exam (ranked fourth) and entered the École Normale Supérieure in Paris.
Licencié ès sciences (M.S.)
Received the degree of licencié ès sciences; attracted attention of Antoine Balard.
Agrégation in physical science & early teaching appointment
Placed third in the agrégation in physical science; appointed professor of physics at the Collège of Tournon but retained as Balard's assistant at École Normale.
Defended two theses (Doctorate ès sciences)
Submitted and defended theses in chemistry and physics; began published work on rotatory polarization and crystallography.
Appointed professor (Dijon) and acting professor (Strasbourg)
Served briefly as professor of physics at the Dijon Lycée and then acting professor of chemistry at the University of Strasbourg.
Discovery: molecular asymmetry (tartaric acid)
Published first major discovery on molecular dissymmetry (chirality) resolving the tartaric acid/racemic acid problem.
Marriage to Marie Laurent
Married Marie Laurent, daughter of the rector of Strasbourg University.
Birth of daughter Jeanne
First child Jeanne born (later died 1859).
Award: Pharmaceutical Society prize (1,500 francs)
Received the Paris Pharmacy Society prize for synthesis of racemic acid (prize value reported as 1,500 francs).
Appointed Dean of the Faculty of Sciences, Lille
Took up the new deanship at Lille and began studies on fermentation at the request of local industry.
Award: Rumford Medal (Royal Society)
Received the Rumford Medal for his work in crystallography (date commonly cited as 1856).
Memoir on lactic fermentation presented
Sent paper on lactic fermentation to Société des Sciences de Lille (publication/rendering 30 November 1857) — foundational microbiology work.
Published full work on alcoholic fermentation
Published extended results (showed yeast are living organisms responsible for alcoholic fermentation).
Major paper on alcoholic fermentation (43-page mémoire)
Published a detailed 43-page paper 'Mémoire sur la fermentation alcoolique' consolidating fermentation research.
Discovery: Pasteur effect (oxygen reduces fermentation rate)
Observed that yeast ferments less sugar when exposed to air — later called the Pasteur effect.
Award: Prix Alhumbert (2,500 francs) for spontaneous generation experiments
Awarded the Alhumbert Prize (2,500 francs) by the French Academy of Sciences for experiments disproving spontaneous generation.
Pasteur and Claude Bernard complete tests on blood and urine
Completed concurrent tests on blood and urine as part of expanding microbiological methods (20 April 1862 cited).
Appointed professor at École des Beaux-Arts (geology, physics, chemistry)
Held professorship at the École nationale supérieure des Beaux-Arts until 1867.
Patent deposited for pasteurization; begins silkworm research
Filed patent (1865) for a heating process to preserve and improve wine (eventually called pasteurization); left for Alès to study silkworm diseases.
Publishes Études sur le Vin (Studies on Wine)
Publication on diseases of wine and techniques to prevent spoilage (linked to pasteurization).
Suffers first stroke (partial paralysis)
Experienced a stroke that partially paralyzed his left side, affecting health and work.
Concludes that silkworm 'corpuscles' cause pébrine
After years of study (1865–1870) concluded that corpuscles were causative agents of pébrine and developed screening methods to save sericulture.
Research on beer fermentation and patent for beer-making process
Began research into beer fermentation (Clermont-Ferrand) and patented a process to prevent beer alteration.
Elected to Académie de Médecine
Recognized by election to the French Academy of Medicine.
Award: Copley Medal (Royal Society)
Awarded the Royal Society's prestigious Copley Medal for his work on fermentation.
Charles Chamberland joins Pasteur's laboratory
Charles Chamberland became a key laboratory assistant (joined 1875), later collaborator in vaccine work.
Publishes Études sur la bière (Studies on Beer)
Published his comprehensive study on beer fermentation and diseases.
Begins vaccine research on chicken cholera
Initiated work on chicken cholera (Pasteurella) in his lab; collaborators included Émile Roux and Chamberland.
Promoted to Grand Officer of the Légion d'honneur
Received promotion in the Legion of Honour for scientific achievements.
Discovery: immunization via attenuated cultures
Observed that aged/weakened cultures of chicken cholera could protect animals — concept of attenuation and vaccine production.
Paper: 'Sur les maladies virulentes' — principle of virus vaccines
Presented key paper (February 1880) enunciating principle that attenuated microbes could be used as vaccines.
Award: Grand-Croix of the Légion d'honneur
Received the Grand Cross of France's highest decoration.
Public trial: anthrax vaccination series begins (Pouilly‑le‑Fort)
Public vaccination trials with anthrax began (vaccinations on 5 and 17 May 1881 as part of demonstration that vaccinated animals survive challenge).
Public demonstration: vaccinated animals survive anthrax challenge
On 2 June 1881 public demonstration showed vaccinated animals survived whereas unvaccinated controls died — major validation of vaccine method.
Paper series: Mémoire sur les corpuscules — final refutation of spontaneous generation (published 1882)
Published and presented a series of papers (presentations given 1881) collecting experiments with swan-neck flasks disproving spontaneous generation.
Discovery: agent of swine erysipelas; vaccine development with Thuillier
Work with Louis Thuillier led to identifying the bacterium and producing an attenuated vaccine (first vaccination against swine erysipelas March 1883).
First human rabies vaccination: Joseph Meister
Administered first human rabies vaccine to 9‑year‑old Joseph Meister (6 July 1885) using attenuated virus preparations; treatment successful.
Treatment of Jean‑Baptiste Jupille for rabies
Treated another human case (Jupille) beginning 20 October 1885; treatment successful.
Fundraising for antirabies institute; first donations
First donations and public subscription campaigns began to found an antirabies (Pasteur) institute; fundraising gala at Trocadéro organized.
Large-scale rabies treatments (1886)
In 1886 Pasteur's lab treated ~350 people for rabies; only one developed rabies (claim in sources).
Second major paralysis attack
Suffered a second attack of paralysis during the period of founding the Institut Pasteur; recovered sufficiently to preside over opening.
Decree establishing Institut Pasteur (official)
Institut Pasteur established by decree (4 June 1887); Pasteur elected to key positions in academy; elected perpetual secretary of the Académie des sciences.
Inauguration of the Institut Pasteur in Paris
Official opening/inauguration of the Institut Pasteur (14 November 1888); Pasteur served as director until his death.
Cameron Prize for Therapeutics (University of Edinburgh)
Received Cameron Prize for Therapeutics of the University of Edinburgh (often dated 1889).
First Institut Pasteur abroad: Saigon (founded 1891 by Albert Calmette)
First foreign Institut Pasteur was set up in Saigon in 1891 under Albert Calmette — an institutional legacy of Pasteur's founding.
Jubilee celebrated at the Sorbonne (70th birthday)
Pasteur's jubilee (70th birthday) celebrated at the Sorbonne (December 27, 1892).
Another serious stroke weakens him
Suffered another stroke (reported 1894) that left him greatly weakened and limited his active work.
Posthumous honor: interred beneath Institut Pasteur
Buried in a vault at the Institut Pasteur — institute continued his legacy in biomedical research.
Death at Villeneuve‑l'Étang (near Paris)
Died 28 September 1895; given a state funeral and later interred in a vault beneath the Institut Pasteur.
Grandson donates Pasteur's notebooks to French national library
Pasteur's notebooks (previously kept secret by family) were donated by his grandson Pasteur Vallery‑Radot to the Bibliothèque nationale in 1964 (restricted access initially).
Restriction on notebooks lifted on death of grandson
Pasteur family restrictions on access to notebooks lasted until the death of Vallery‑Radot in 1971, after which scholars had greater access.
Cataloguing of Pasteur documents (catalog number assigned)
Pasteur's donated documents were assigned a catalogue number in 1985, facilitating scholarly research.
Publication: 'The Private Science of Louis Pasteur' (Gerald L. Geison)
Gerald L. Geison published a controversial reassessment of Pasteur's private notebooks arguing instances of deception in his accounts; sparked debate and further defense studies.
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