JAMES ADAMS LARRABEE

MIDDLEBURY — James Adams Larrabee died March 17, 2026, after a hemorrhagic stroke. He was a loving husband, father, and grandfather. He retired from Middlebury College after 37 years of teaching and researching in the Chemistry Department. He was born July 20, 1953, to James and Barbara Larrabee in Dover, N.H.

Jim began his academic journey at Trinity College in Connecticut, where he developed a love of chemistry. He went on to earn his Ph.D. in Chemistry at Princeton University. After Princeton, Jim spent eight years as a research scientist at Exxon Research and Engineering in New Jersey before joining the Chemistry faculty at Middlebury College in 1986. Over the course of his 37-year career he became a central figure in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry. He held the William R. Kenan Jr. Chair and Professor of Chemistry from 2005 to 2014 and later the Viola Ward Brinning and Elbert Calhoun Brinning Chair of the Sciences.

Known for his wide range of knowledge, attention to details, and witty humor, Jim had a deep passion for raising future scientists through teaching, researching, and mentoring. Over his career he taught more than nineteen courses spanning, every division of chemistry. As an Inorganic Chemist, he taught Environmental, Organic, Biochemistry, Physical, Analytical, as well as Advanced Inorganic chemistry. His non-majors’ courses include History of Chemistry, Alchemy, the Elements of Murder, and the Periodic Table.

Jim’s research accomplishments were equally significant. He studied how cobalt ions in enzymes contribute to the enzyme functions using a Magnetic Circular Dichroism (MCD). His MCD instrument was so unique that researchers from all over the world sought to collaborate with him.

He secured 17 individual external research grants and contributed to major institutional grants supporting scientific research and instrumentation at Middlebury, totaling close to $4.5 million. For 37 years of his career, he never had a year without an external research grant from the National Science Foundation or the National Institute of Health. He published more than 40 peer-reviewed papers, including the leading journals JACS and Nature. Forty Middlebury undergraduates were co-authors on these publications, and he advised more than 40 senior theses.

Jim also served as associate dean of the faculty from 1998 to 2003 and played a key role in the planning and construction of McCardell Bicentennial Hall, Middlebury’s science building, helping design a space that supports teaching and research across the sciences.

Colleagues “love and respect Jim very much not because of his impressive grants or publications. It’s because of his personal attention to everyone else; his work to make others stronger around him; his passion to make Middlebury (college and town) and world a better place.”

Jim met Sunhee Choi at Princeton University in their Ph.D. Chemistry lab. They were married on July 13, 1981, in Princeton, N.J., and shared a loving marriage of 44 years. Sunhee also served on the Middlebury Chemistry faculty for 33 years.

Jim loved the outdoors and spending time hiking, fishing, hunting, and canoeing, and working with his hands in the kitchen, garden, and woodshop. He built two cedar-strip canoes, which the family used on canoe camping trips to Saco River in Maine and the Allagash Wilderness Waterway. He cherished fishing trips to Lake Ogascanan in Canada with his son, Yuri. They are most proud of the 26-lb lake trout they caught together. Jim also loved to cook and share meals with family, friends, and students; favorites include his chicken wings, venison ragu, and rabbit curry. His Thanksgiving double stuffed turkey is legendry.

Jim is survived by his wife, Sunhee Choi; his daughter, Yuna Larrabee and her spouse Travis Smith; his son, Yuri Larrabee and his spouse Blakely Larrabee; and his five grandchildren, Jackson, Fletcher, Patrick, Delaney, and Sophie.

He will be deeply missed by his family, friends, colleagues, and the many students whose lives he influenced through his teaching, researching, mentorship and friendship. A celebration of Jim’s life will be held at McCardell Bicentennial Hall, Middlebury College, at 11 a.m. Aug. 29. ◊