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James B. McCormick, MD was just 20 years old when he launched his first laboratory products and formed the Histoslide Company to sell prepared microscope slides for teaching subjects of natural science. His histoslide plastic slide box was the first of its kind and it was marketed by the Central Scientific Co. of Chicago. This was the auspicious start for the young scientist/inventor who would later develop many of the tools used in modern histotechnology.
The McCormick tissue embedding and processing techniques, as well as his patented cryostats, microtomes, cassettes and tissue embedding centers, have changed the way tissue is processed throughout the world. Dr. McCormick has been granted more than forty patents for health science related products. His line of products -- Lab-Tek -- was purchased by Miles Laboratory and subsequently by Sakura Finetek.
Always an innovator, Dr. McCormick contributed to the growth of Chicago's privately held Swedish Covenant Hospital during his tenure as Chief Executive during the 1980s. He remains a member of the hospital's pathology department and maintains an active schedule of lab and hospital board committee work. Since 1978, Dr. McCormick has provided the J.B. McCormick Award to be presented by the National Society of Hisotechnology to a member who displays outstanding leadership and exceptional service to the NSH organozation and the field of histotechnology.
As avid collectors of antique laboratory instruments, Dr. and Mrs. McCormick have formed the Science Heritage Collection of rare microscopes and prepared natural science microscope slides. Along with books on the history of histotechnology, some of the microscopes have been reproduced for use in a teaching curriculum for the History of Science. Portions of the collection and books have been contributed to the National Museum of Health and Medicine in Washington D.C.
Dr. McCormick is an active partner and Chief Scientific Officer of the McCormick Scientific Company, an entity dedicated to the continued development of tissue processing tools and methods for the new "molecular age" of hisotechnology. | 