Roger W. Truesdail

Roger W. Truesdail (6 February 1899 — 10 November 1979) was an American chemist. He was the founder of Truesdail Laboratories, Inc. located in Irvine, California. 

Life and career

Truesdail was born on 6 February 1899 in Kansas. He attended University of Redlands, Redlands, California; University of Oregon, Eugene, Oregon; and University of Washington, Seattle, Washington.

In the 1930s, he was a chemistry professor at Pomona College in Claremont, California. There, he developed a unique procedure for food processing using yeast. A college friend persuaded him to start a business to create and market a yeast by-product. In 1931, Truesdail and his partner established Truesdail Laboratories, Inc. as an independent testing and research organization. The firm was initially named The California Yeast Products Company. The partners set up operations in Pasadena, California, close to Truesdail's residence. 

Shortly afterward, the partner quit, leaving Truesdail without a yeast business and unemployed as a professor. Truesdail diversified to enable his nascent business to survive. He converted his small, one-man operation into a testing lab and moved the operation to downtown Los Angeles. 

In the early years, he frequently had to borrow from his life insurance to meet his three employee payroll. With time and perseverance, the company flourished and gradually added under its umbrella an Analytical Services Department, a Drug Testing Department, a Product Certification Department, and a group of labs that test the environment and performs other specialized chemical tests.

In 1983, the company relocated to the city of Tustin in Orange County, California, and in 2015, to Irvine, California.

Death

Truesdail died on 10 November 1979, in Los Angeles, California. He was 80.