Born in Danbury, Connecticut, Burton Nichols was only a few months old when his father died. His mother then found employment in the local industry so as to support Nichols and his sister. Encouraged by the high school superintendent, Nichols won scholarships to help him through his undergraduate studies of chemistry at Cornell, where he completed a senior research project with Wilder D. Bancroft. At Bancroft's urging, Burton Nichols met Svedberg, who was then on his way to Wisconsin on sabbatical leave, and followed him to Madison. His introduction to sedimentation techniques was by construction of a pioneer optical centrifuge and its use in pigment characterization. Fellowships enabled the newly-married Nichols and his bride to go to Uppsala where he contributed to the early development of the ultra-centrifuge. Recollections of this period are followed by an account of his arrival at the DuPont Experimental Station to work in Kraemer's group, starting with the application of ultracentrifugal techniques to industrial problems. During his long career at DuPont, Nichols was involved in the evolution of new instruments and polymer characterization. The interview concludes with Nichols recalling colleagues, DuPont management and organization, as well as his professional society activities.