Wendell Latimer (1893-1955) was an American chemist.
A Kansas native, Latimer arrived at the University of California, Berkeley to pursue a Ph.D. in chemistry. Eventually he became both a professor and dean at the school.
Throughout his life, Latimer was heavily involved in national defense. During World War II he was a member of the National Defense Research Council. Soon after, he became the Director of a Berkeley-based Manhattan Project initiative to study the chemistry of plutonium. After the war he received the Presidential Certificate of Merit for his contributions. He later served on the special weapons panel of the Atomic Energy Commission.