Arnold F. Schmeckenbecher was born in Allendorf/Lumda, Germany in February 1920. He graduated from the ‘Kreuzschule’ (School of the Cross), a humanistic ‘Gymnasium,’ in Dresden in 1940 where he studied English, Latin and ancient Greek. His father was a Lutheran pastor.
After two weeks of study at the Technical University in Dresden, he was drafted into the German Army in October 1940 , served from June 1941 in Russia and from April 1944 in Italy. He was taken prisoner by the U.S. Army near Siena (Tuscany) in June 1944, and shipped to a POW camp in Louisiana. He returned to Germany (American Occupation Zone) in November 1946 and was reunited with his parents and sister who had lost their home in the Dresden air raids.
Arnold Schmeckenbecher resumed his academic studies (chemistry) at the University of Heidelberg (Germany) in April 1947. Arnold’s father had given him a chemistry set when he was 12, perhaps in memory of his uncle, a chemistry student, who had volunteered in the German Army in World War I and was killed on the Russian front in 1915.
He graduated from Heidelberg with a degree ‘Dipl. Chem.’ in 1950, and pursued graduate study at the University of Kiel (Germany). He was awarded the degree ‘Dr. rer. nat.’ (magna cum laude) in July 1953. A summary of Schmeckenbecher’s research under Prof. Dr. Robert Juza was published in Naturwissenschaften (1955), ‘Magnetochemischer Nachweis von Chlorgraphit.’ He then served as a ‘Postdoc’ at Kiel with a stipend from the ‘Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft’ from August 1953 – October 1954.
Dr. Schmeckenbecher’s entire industrial career was with American firms. From January 1955 to October 1958, he performed research at General Aniline & Film (GAF) in Linden, NJ on the decomposition of metal carbonyls, e.g. ‘Carbonyl Iron’ particles used in ‘low loss cores’ of early television induction coils. He then worked with Remington Rand Univac in Philadelphia from October 1958 to July 1960 doing research on magnetic NiFe computer memories.
The bulk of Arnold Schemeckenbecher’s career was with IBM from July 1960 until his retirement in April 1989 at Poughkeepsie, NY focusing on packaging and cooling of silicon chips for mainframe computers, elecroless nickel-iron alloy plating and many other projects. He was promoted to ‘Senior Chemist’ in April 1969, was awarded 23 U.S. patents and published several peer reviewed papers. He was the recipient of the IBM Award for ‘Outstanding Technical Achievement’ and of twelve IBM awards for creative contributions to IBM progress.
Dr. Schmeckenbecher has been married (happily !) to Rose, nee Zettler, since August 1953. Rose obtained a BS degree in Behavioral Science from Marist College in Poughkeepsie, NY at the age of 65 ! In 1996, the Schmeckenbechers moved to a retirement community in Metropolitan Rochester to be closer to their daughter and four grandchildren. Their daughter, Eva, obtained a BS degree in Biochemistry from Union College (1977) in Schenectady, NY. Arnold and Rose are proud of the accomplishments of their grandchildren: the two oldest recently graduated from Medical School and are now in internship and residency; the third obtained a BS degree in accounting from Roberts Wesleyan College and is working with a Rochester accounting firm; and, the youngest, just started (2008) at SUNY/Brockport.
Arnold Schmeckenbecher’s hobbies include: gardening, hiking (as long as the legs cooperate) and learning how to play the piano.
Max M. Boudakian
