| Born: | 06-13-1916 |
| Faculty: | Medical School | Medical University Vienna |
| Category: | Expelled student |
Otto PORDES, born on June 13th, 1916 in Vienna/Austria (entitled residency ('heimatberechtigt') for Vienna/Austria, Citizenship: Austria), son of Heinrich Pordes (bank official), lived in Vienna's 20th district, Rauscherstraße 2/10, was enrolled last in the spring term 1938 at the Medical School in the 3rd year of his studies.
In 1938, after the takeover of power of National-Socialism he was forced to quit his studies for racist reason and to leave the University of Vienna.
He hat to flee Vienna and was able to emigrate along with his later fiancee Margaret Geiger (another student) to Italy then UK. He later was conscripted by the allies and used his scientific background in making boobie traps and help refine oil in the war effort. He later became an industrial chemist after the war. He became one of the worlds foremost experts on using refined petroleum products especially waxes. He would invent many of the formulations used in most of the road surfaces used to build the post war transport infrastructure.
He had two children and died on September 10th, 1991 in Windsor Berks/England of cancer, his widow passed away on February 17th, 2014 in the US.
Lit.: Archive of the University of Vienna/enrollment forms ("Nationale") MED 1937–1938; POSCH/INGRISCH/DRESSEL 2008, 451; information by courtesy of his grandson Adam Hawthorne, 2013/14.
Herbert Posch
