A history of the International Association for Dental Research Wilmer Souder Award in Dental Materials, with a short biography of Wilmer Souder.

Abstract In the 39 years that Dr. Wilmer Souder was associated with the National Bureau of Standards, he accumulated many awards in several disciplines. The principal areas of his recognition, criminology and dental materials research, were founded in his interest in and capability of making precise length measurements. In 1919, the army dental corps asked the Bureau to assist in formulating a specification for the purchase of alloys for dental amalgam. Dr. Souder agreed to take on the assignment. From that beginning the Dental Materials Section grew to encompass all dental materials and some equipment. His dedication to precision in all of this endeavors led to Dr. Souder's being recognized as the “Father of Dental Materials Research”. He became president of the International Association for Dental Research and an honorary member of the American College of Dentists and the American Dental Association. A short biography covers his early years and his education in physics at the University of Chicago. It also includes his many contributions to dental materials research and some of his many successes in criminology.