This award honors individuals who have made an outstanding, innovative research contribution that has changed, or has the potential to change, the direction of research in any field of plant pathology. Nominees for this award need not be members of the society. Recipients of the Ruth Allen Award receive a plaque and a cash prize derived from a fund established by the heirs of Dr. Allen.
1966 H. H. Flor1967 F. O. Holmes1968 M. K. Brakke1969 W. C. Snyder1970 J. B. Bancroft1971 H. Asuyama1971 Y. Doi1971 T. Ishiie1971 M. Teranaka1971 K. Yora1972 R. L. Steere1973 F. M. Latterell1973 H. H. Luke1974 A. C. Goheen1974 W. B. Hewitt1974 D. J. Raski1975 I. A. M. Cruickshank1976 T. O. Diener1977 J. W. Gerdemann1977 D. H. Marx 1978 L. M. Black1979 J. E. Vanderplank1980 H. H. Murakishi1981 R. J. Shepherd1982 A. Kerr1983 S. Bartnicki-Garcia1983 C. E. Bracker1983 J. Ruiz-Herrera1984 Wen-Hsiung Ko1985 W. F. Rochow1986 R. M. Lister1987 D. C. Arny1987 S. E. Lindow1987 C. D. Upper1988 P. G. Ahlquist1989 T. P. Pirone
1990 R. N. Beachy1991 G. E. Templeton1992 J. R. Edwardson1992 E. Hiebert 1992 D. E. Purcifull1992 R. G. Christie1993 H. H. Triantaphyllou1993 A. C. Triantaphyllou1994 H. C. Hoch1994 R. C. Staples1995 N. T. Keen1995 B. J. Staskawicz1996 B. Kirkpatrick1997 R. J. Cook1997 L. S. Thomashow1997 D. M. Weller1998 H. A. J. Hoitink1999 Bruce McDonald2000 J. Carrington2000 W. G. Dougherty2001 R. E. Davis2002 D.C. Baulcombe2003 L. Madden2004 H. Judelson2005 A. Jackson2005 T. J. Morris2006 T. Baum2006 E. Davis2006 R. Hussey2007 H. Scholthof 2008 P. Nagy 2009 D. Nuss2010 R. Loria2011 V. V. Dolja2012 J. L. Dangl2013 Y-H Lee and S. Kang