The Jackson Laboratory

1940s

First successful transplantations of ovaries between female mice by Dr. William Russell at Jackson

1941

The first edition of Biology of the Laboratory Mouse—the first book devoted to mouse biology and genetics—is published.

Late
1940s

George Snell develops congenic strains of mice—identical but for a small chromosomal segment—by breeding for differences only at the H2 locus. This opens new areas of immunological research and earns Snell a Nobel prize in 1980.

1947

A fire destroys most of the Jackson Memorial Laboratory and its mice. Researchers rally to rebuild stocks; donations and mice come in from around the world.

1948

Jackson Laboratory newly rebuilt from donations and mice from around the world.

1949

Formation of The Jackson Laboratory Corporation, Board of Trustees (Roscoe B. Jackson's son Richard, president), and Board of Scientific Directors (Dr. Leslie Dunn, president).

1949

The informal Mouse News Letter begins its 40 years of publication under that name. At its peak, some 60 labs contribute to it.