Wallace S Brey Jr.

Wallace was born in Schwenksville, Pennsylvania and moved to Florida in 1952 to accept a teaching position in the Department of Chemistry at the University of Florida in Gainesville, where he served for 52 years.

In 1958, he was given the assignment of supervising UF’s first nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectrometer, an important new tool for the chemistry department. His subsequent research centered on the application of magnetic resonance to various chemical problems.

In 1969, Wallace became founding editor of the Journal of Magnetic Resonance. He was a leader in the Florida Section of the American Chemical Society and represented the Florida Section on the National ACS Council for more than 25 years. In 1981, he was honored for his contributions to the field of chemistry with the ACS Florida Award.

Finding great satisfaction in helping others succeed, Wallace directed the research of some fifty graduate students and ten post-docs and served as the Graduate Coordinator for the Chemistry Department. He published sixty papers and two physical chemistry textbooks and edited two books on magnetic resonance. Teaching Physical Chemistry to generations of aspiring doctors and dentists, Wallace strongly believed that the course should serve them in their careers, rather than be a roadblock. He retired as Professor Emeritus in 2004 but continued to conduct and publish research on the structure of fluorine compounds as long as he was able to do so.

Wallace is survived by his wife Mary Louise Brey, his sons Bill (Paige) and Paul (Sandra), and grandchildren Amelia, Max, Katie, and Jewell Brey. The family would like to thank the staff of Big Bend Hospice and the many wonderful caregivers who enabled Wallace to celebrate his 101st birthday and to remain at home. A memorial service will be held on Friday, July 21 at 2:30 p.m. at the United Church in Tallahassee, 1834 Mahan Drive.