Willard Zemlin

Over the years, Willard Zemlin’s teaching and research touched the lives of many individuals, and he was respected for his many contributions to speech and hearing science. It was under the influence of his wife Eileen, a speech-language pathologist, that Dr. Zemlin became interested in speech, language and hearing and their disorders. His interest became so strong that he left his job to earn the Ph.D. degree from the University of Minnesota in 1962. He devoted himself to systematically researching the anatomy and physiology of the speech, language and hearing systems while at the University of Illinois.

Dr. Zemlin was an avid photographer and brought his camera into the laboratory to take photos at key points in the dissecting process to show exactly how the structures look and how they interacted.

He would take the resulting slides to the classroom where they gradually supplemented his lectures. This made the subject matter more clear, more interesting, and easier to understand rather than describing structures in words. In 1968, he authored Speech and Hearing Science Anatomy and Physiology. This book not only illustrated his photographs, but also displayed Dr. Zemlin’s skill in drawing diagrams. This classic was perhaps the most widely known, as well as the longest used, textbook in the entire field.

His other accomplishments included the development of innovative laboratory space in the Speech and Hearing Science building in the 1970’s, which was one of his greatest professional undertakings. His ability to make imaginative use of limited research equipment and to simplify learning made him a wonderful teacher. His unique personality, sense of humor, and generosity helped him develop lasting relationships with many of his students.

Dr. Zemlin was a unique individual with an array of experiences, interests and skills. Prior to entering academia, he worked as a locomotive engineer for the Duluth, Missabe & Iron Range Railroad. He also served as sergeant in the infantry during the Korean War. His personal interests included a fascination with the outdoors that lead him to purchase his own sawmill.