Dexter B. Sharp

Dexter B. Sharp, 94, a retired Monsanto research director, died on March 31 at Saint Luke’s Hospice House in Kansas City, Mo.

Born in Chicago, Sharp earned a B.A. in chemistry from Carleton College in Northfield, Minn., in 1941 and a Ph.D. in chemistry from the University of Nebraska, Lincoln, in 1945.

Sharp worked for DuPont in Wilmington, Del., for a year before accepting a postdoctoral appointment at the University of Minnesota, Minneapolis.

He then joined the faculty at Kansas State University, remaining there until 1951, when he began what would become a 35-year career with Monsanto. He worked for the company first in Dayton, Ohio, and later in St. Louis, rising to the position of research director in the agricultural chemicals division. In that role, he managed studies necessary for the registration of the herbicidal products Lasso and Roundup. Sharp was an emeritus member of ACS, joining in 1944.

He was an avid rock hound, loved ice cream, and was known for his limericks. In retirement, he volunteered as a citizen scientist for two monarch butterfly monitoring programs.

Sharp’s wife of 53 years, Peggy, died in 1999. Survivors include his daughters, Lynn, Judy, and Jan, and three grandchildren.