Edith Ellen Humphrey (11 September 1875[1] – 25 February 1978[2]) was a British inorganic chemist who carried out pioneering work in co-ordination chemistry at the University of Zurich under Alfred Werner.

She is thought to be the first British woman to obtain a doctorate in chemistry[3] and the first chemist to synthesize a chiral inorganic complex.

[4] John Humphrey had started life in poor circumstances, his father having been a bootmaker, and he was a great supporter of education for his daughters as well as his sons.

[5] She joined a growing band of Alfred Werner's students, working in the inadequate cellars known as the "Katakomben" (catacombs).

[8] Humphrey was "the first of his students to succeed in preparing Werner's first new series of geometrically isomeric cobalt complexes, a class of compounds that were crucial in his development and proof of his coordination theory.

[10] "What a pity for Miss Humphrey that it was not recognized at the time, because she would then have been responsible for an unequivocal proof of the soundness of Werner's coordination theory and the subsequent award of the Nobel prize to him.

"[11] While one later study has cast doubt on the quality of the sample,[12] Humphrey's status as a pioneer woman scientist remains significant.

[6] After her return to England, Humphrey joined the staff of Arthur Sanderson & Sons, a British manufacturer of fabrics and wallpaper, where she worked until she retired.