George Hill Mathewson Lawrence

George Hill Mathewson Lawrence
Born	(1910-06-19)June 19, 1910 East Greenwich, Rhode Island
Died	June 10, 1978(1978-06-10) (aged 67) East Greenwich
Nationality	American
Bildung	Lockwood High School
Alma mater	University of Rhode Island, Cornell University
Known for	Taxonomy Botany
Spouse	Miriam Boothby
Awards	honorary Doctor of Science degree (1952), Foreign Honorary Fellow of the Botanical Society of Edinburgh
Scientific career
Fields	Botany
Academic advisors	Liberty Hyde Bailey
Author abbrev. (botany)	G.H.M.Lawr.

George Hill Mathewson Lawrence, (19 June 1910 - 10 June 1978) was a United States botanist and Professor of Botany

Lawrence, George Hill Mathewson (1910-1978)

Biography

George Hill Mathewson Lawrence, a native of Rhode Island, was for many years one of the preeminent botanists in the world. Born in East Greenwich, Rhode Island on June 19, 1910, he was the son of Dana and Anna (Mathewson) Lawrence. He attended local schools, graduating from Lockwood High School in Warwick in 1928. Remaining in his native state, Lawrence received both Bachelor and Master of Science degrees from the then Rhode Island State College in 1932 and 1933 respectively. He also received an honorary Doctor of Science degree from his Alma Mater in 1952.

In 1934, he married Miriam Boothby of Westbrook, Maine. After serving as Superintendent of Greenhouses and Grounds at Rhode Island State Hospital from 1934 to 1936, Lawrence left Rhode Island to study for his doctorate at Cornell University. There, as a student of the renowned botanist/ horticulturalist Liberty Hyde Bailey, he received his Doctor of Philosophy degree in botany in 1939. After receiving the doctorate, Lawrence remained as Bailey's assistant in the Bailey Hortorium until World War II military service interrupted his career in 1943. After the war, in 1946, Lawrence returned to Cornell and the Bailey Hortorium as a Professor of Botany. In 1951, he was named Director of the Liberty Hyde Bailey Hortorium and in that same year, he published his seminal botany textbook, 'Taxonomy of Vascular Plants'. In 1954, he assumed the editorship of the Bailey Hortorium journal, Baileya.

After nearly twenty-one years as a student and staff member at the Bailey Hortorium, Lawrence left in 1960 to assume the position of director of the newly established Rachel McMasters Miller Hunt Botanical Library at the then Carnegie Institute of Technology (now Carnegie-Mellon University). With the collection of Rachel McMasters Miller Hunt (of the American Aluminum Company (Alcoa) Hunts) as a cornerstone, Lawrence developed the Hunt Botanical Library into one of the finest of its kind in the world. One of his major accomplishments was the acquisition for the Library of a 4000 item collection of Linnaeus materials from the private library of Dr. Birger Strandell of Sweden, a direct descendant of Linnaeus. In the ten years after its acquisition, the Linnaeana collection doubled in size.

Due in part to ill health, Lawrence stepped down as Director of the Hunt Botanical Library at the end of 1970 and returned to his native Rhode Island. He remained on the staff of the Hunt Botanical as a Research Associate and Consultant, however, in order to complete an annotated catalogue of its Linnaeus collection. Working with the donor of the collection, Dr. Birger Strandell, Lawrence devoted the remaining seven and one half years of his life to the completion of the Linnaeus Catalogue. Due to many problems, including several with its computer generated format, the Catalogue was never completed.

In addition to his lifelong interest in botany, Lawrence was also a student of local history and an avid bibliophile and collector of rare books. He combined his vocation and his avocations in accumulating a fine library of botanical works, general rare books, and books of Rhode Island history in his East Greenwich home. Many of these books, in particular those on Rhode Island history, were donated to the University of Rhode Island Library by his widow, Miriam Lawrence. This donation broadened both the Library's Rhode Island Collection and its rare book collection. George Lawrence died in East Greenwich on June 10, 1978.

In 1935, Liberty Bailey gave his herbarium (consisting of 125,000 sheets), a building and his library of books (consisting over 3,000 books) to Cornell University. This became the basis for the 'Liberty Hyde Bailey Hortorium'. He was it's unsalaried director, his daughter Ethel Bailey was the curator. George became its director when Bailey retired in 1951.

In 1954, he was given a Guggenheim Fellowship Award, in the field of Plant Sciences.

Dr. George H. M. Lawrence, an internationally known botanist, died June 11 in Kent County Memorial Hospital in Warwick, R.I., at the age of 67. He lived in East Greenwich, R.I.

Dr. Lawrence was the founding director in 1960 of the Hunt Botanical Library, now the Hunt Institute for Botanical Documentation, at Carnegie‐Mellon University in Pittsburgh, and become director emeritus when he retired in 1970. He recently completed, a bibliographical catalogue of the institute's Linnaean collection, which will ht. published this year. He was named a fellow of the Linnean Society of London in May.

Before founding the Hunt library, he had been for many years a professor of botany at Cornell University and director of the Bailey Hortorium there. He received degrees from Cornell and from Rhode Island State College, and was the author of two standard textbooks on botany: “Taxonomy of Vascular Plants” and “Introduction to Plant Taxonomy.” He is survived by his wife, Miriam, a son, a daughter, a brother, sister and seven grandchildren.

Professor George M. Lawrence died just before the Society's AGM. He had died on 11 June at his home on Rhode Island not long after returning from a trip to London and Uppsala in connection with the Linnean bicentennial commemorations. He was born on 19 June 1910 at East Greenwich, Rhode Island and was educated at Rhode Island and New York State (Cornell University). After a service in the Navy, he became assistant at the Bailey Hortorium Herbarium at Cornell in 1950 and then finally its director. In 1960, Lawrence was appointed director of the Hunt Botanical Library at the Carnegie Institute of Technology, Pennsylvania, now called the Carnegie Mellon University, where he remained until his retiral. He was the author of 'Taxonomy of vascular plants', but he also founded in 1954, the periodical 'Baileya' and also helped to prepare the revised edition of 'Manual of Cultivated Plants' (1 Dec. 1949) with Liberty Hyde Bailey. He was a Foreign Honorary Fellow of the Botanical Society of Edinburgh.

George H. M. Lawrence became the second Director of the Bailey Hortorium following the resignation of L. H. Bailey in 1951. In addition to his administrative duties, Lawrence was also a dedicated plant taxonomist. George H. M. Lawrence attended the University of Rhode Island where he received both a bachelor's degree and master's degree. He received his doctorate degree from Cornell University and then joined the Bailey Hortorium staff. Lawrence was Professor of Botany from 1946-1951 at which time he became Director of the Hortorium. He served in that role until 1960, when he left to become the Director of the Hunt Botanical Library at Carnegie-Mellon University in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. As a plant taxonomist, Lawrence studied Armeria (commonly known as Sea pinks, in addition to other plants, and contributed many articles to the Hortorium's journals, Baileya and 'Gentes Herbarum'. It was under Lawrence's supervision that the journal, 'Baileya', was first conceived. His most notable reference works were Introduction to Plant Taxonomy and Taxonomy of Vascular Plants. The latter is still a standard text for students of systematic botany today.

George Lawrence oversaw the transition of the Bailey Hortorium from its long-time home at Sage Place to its new facilities in Mann Library. The move occurred in 1954 and provided the Hortorium with a centrally located space on campus.

He was a member of the American Horticultural Society, Garden History Society, the Massachusetts Horticultural Society, the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society, and the Planting Fields Foundation, New York.

he was a student in a Cornell taxonomy course in 1936 and his dissertation was completed in 1939.

Tropical Botany which Lawrence taught in 1971 at the University of Miami, Florida. He was in correspondence with botanist and plant explorer David Fairchild (1869 – 1954) and American philanthropist, Barbour Lathrop (1847 - 1927). Anna M. Mathewson, Lawrence's mother.

On 7 December 1963, he presented a paper at a symposium held at the William Andrews Clark Memorial Library, in L.A., titled 'Herbals, their history and significance'.

He was editor of 'Adanson; the bicentennial of Michael Adanson's Families de plantes', published by Hunt Botanical Library, between 1963-64, produced in 2 volumes. In 'Huntia' Vol.1, pages 162-165 in 1964., he wrote an article, The botanical significance of letters and manuscripts'.

"Botanico-Periodicum-Huntianum. George H. M. Lawrence and others, Editors. Pittsburgh, Pa., Hunt Botanical Library, 1968.

Area of Interest: Spermatophytes

Example of Name Published: Lapeirousia denticulata (Lam.) G.H.M.Lawr. in Baileya 3: 134 in 1955. Which is now a synonym of Lapeirousia fabricii subsp. fabricii.

Bibliography

'An Introduction to Plant Taxonomy' George Hill Mathewson Lawrence Macmillan, 1955 - Botany - 179 pages

A Reclassification of the Genus Iris George Hill Mathewson Lawrence 1953 - Irises (Plants) - 26 pages

Major Groups Within the Genus Iris George Hill Mathewson Lawrence éditeur non identifié, 1953

"The Night Before Christmas" An Exhibition Catalogue Compiled by George H. M. Lawrence. Foreword by Anne Lyon Haight Lawrence, George H. M., compiler; Anne Lyon Haight, collector Pittsburgh PA: The Pittsburgh Bibliophiles, 1964.

Legacy

George H.M. Lawrence Memorial Award Commemorating Dr. George H.M. Lawrence, founding Director of the Hunt Institute for Botanical Documentation at Carnegie Mellon University, the annual Award of $2000 is made to an outstanding doctoral candidate for travel in support of dissertation research in systematic botany or horticulture, or the history of the plant sciences, including literature and exploration. This award, presented by the Hunt Institute for Botanical Documentation, Carnegie Mellon University, is used to support travel for dissertation research of a doctoral candidate in systematic botany or horticulture, or the history of the plant sciences.

The Lawrence Memorial Award commemorated the life and achievements of Dr. George H. M. Lawrence (1910–1978), founding director of Hunt Institute (1960–1970). From its inception in 1979 to its ending in 2020, the annual (semiannual from 1988 to 2000) award in the amount of $2,000 aided 27 outstanding doctoral candidates with travel costs in support of dissertation research in systematic botany or horticulture or the history of the plant sciences, including literature and exploration. The Lawrence Memorial Fund Award Committee, which included representatives from Hunt Institute, The Hunt Foundation, the Lawrence family and the botanical community, selected recipients from candidates nominated by their major professors. The award was presented at the annual banquet of the Botanical Society of America.

Award Recipients:

• 2014-2020 - No George H.M. Lawrence Awards were awarded between 2014-2020.
• 2013 - Aleksandar Radosavljevic, student of Dr. Patrick Herendeen of the Chicago Botanical Garden and Northwestern University. The proceeds of the award will help support his travel for field and collections-based work in integrative research study of the genus Cynometra.
• 2011 - Mr. Brian Sidoti, student of Dr. Kenneth Cameron of the University of Wisconsin.
• 2010 - Ms. Christine D. Bacon, a student of Professor Mark P. Simmons at Colorado State University. The proceeds of the award will help support her travel for field and collections-based work in an integrative research study of the genus Pritchardia.
• 2008 - Mr. Dylan O. Burge, a student of Professor Paul Manos at Duke University. The proceeds of the award will help support his travel for field and collections-based work in an integrative research study of the genus Ceanothus.
• 2007 - Mr. Jimmy K. Triplett, a student of Dr. Lynn G. Clark at Iowa State University. For his dissertation research, Mr. Triplett has undertaken study of woody bamboo genus Pleioblastus. The proceeds of the Award will help support his travel to Japan for field work and herbarium research.
• 2006 - Eric Schuettplez, a student of Dr. Kathleen M. Pryer at Duke University. For his dissertation research, Mr. Schuettpelzhas undertaken a study of understanding the origin of diversification of fern epiphytes.. The proceeds of the Award will help support her travel to Southeast Asia, for field research.
• 2002 - Andrew L. Hipp, University of Wisconsin Madison, a student of Paul E. Berry, Mr. Hipp has undertaken a phylogenetic and taxonomic study of Carex section Ovales. He will use the proceeds of the Award to support his field studies of the Carex microptera complex.
• 2000 - Anne Katherine Hansen, University of Texas at Austin, a student of Professor Robert K. Jansen, for her dissertation research, Ms. Hansen has undertaken a study of the genus Passiflora with a special emphasis on the large group of species with a basic chromosome number of 9. The proceeds of the Award will help support her travel in Brazil for field research.
• 1990 - Chester E. Wilson, State University of New York at Stony Brook, a student of James Thomson, Mr. Wilson has undertaken a study of secondary sex characteristics in dioecious species of Polytrichaceae. The proceeds of the award will help support his travel in the U.S. and Europe for herbarium research.

Michael J. Balick (1979)
 Ph.D., Harvard University, 1980
 Director and Philecology Curator, Institute of Economic Botany, New York Botanical Garden

James M. Affolter (1980)
 Ph.D., University of Michigan, 1983
 Director of Research, The State Botanical Garden of Georgia; Professor, Department of Horticulture, University of Georgia


Janet R. Sullivan (1982)
 Ph.D., University of Oklahoma, 1984
 Adjunct Associate Professor, Department of Biological Sciences and Collection Manager, Hodgdon Herbarium, University of New Hampshire




Raymond B. Cranfill (1983)
 Ph.D., University of California, Berkeley, 2001


Mark W. Chase (1984) 
 Ph.D., University of Michigan, 1985
 Director, Jodrell Laboratory, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew


George E. Schatz (1985) Ph.D., University of Wisconsin-Madison, 1987
 Curator, Africa and Madagascar Department, Missouri Botanical Garden; Adjunct Professor, University of Missouri, St. Louis


Andrew J. Henderson (1986)
 Ph.D., City University of New York, 1987
 Curator, Institute of Systematic Botany, New York Botanical Garden


John V. Freudenstein (1987)
 Ph.D., Cornell University, 1992
 Director, Herbarium
, Museum of Biological Diversity, Ohio State University

Clayton J. Antieau (1988)
 Ph.D., University of Washington, 1987
 Senior Wetland Ecologist and Botanist, Washington State Department of Transportation


Chester E. Wilson (1990)
 Ph.D., State University of New York at Stony Brook, 1992 
 Professor, Biochemistry Department, University of St. Thomas, Minnesota 


J. Travis Columbus (1992)
 Ph.D., University of California, Berkeley, 1996 
 Research Scientist, Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden, Claremont, California and Professor of Botany, Claremont Graduate University


Kathleen M. Pryer (1994)
 Ph.D., Duke University, 1995
 Professor, Biology Department, Duke University 



Amy J. Litt (1996) 
 Ph.D., City University of New York, 1999


J. Chris Pires (1998)
 Ph.D., University of Wisconsin, Madison, 2000
 Associate Professor of Biological Sciences, University of Missouri, Columbia


Anne Katherine Hansen (2000)
 Ph.D., University of Texas at Austin, 2004
 


Andrew L. Hipp (2002)
 Ph.D., University of Wisconsin—Madison, 2004
 Plant Systematist & Herbarium Curator, Morton Arboretum 


Sarah E. Edwards (2003)
 Ph.D., University of London, 2006
 Data Services Officer: Medicinal Plant Names Services, Biodiversity Informatics and Spatial Analysis, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew


Danica T. Harbaugh (2004) 
 Ph.D., University of California, Berkeley, 2007
 Research Scientist, University and Jepson Herbarium, University of California, Berkeley

Ricarda Riina (2005)
 Ph.D., University of Wisconsin—Madison, 2006
 Researcher, Real Jardín Botánico de Madrid
 



Eric Schuettpelz (2006)
 Ph.D., Duke University, 2007
 Research Botanist & Assistant Curator, Department of Botany, National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution

Jimmy Triplett (2007)
 Ph.D., Iowa State University, 2008
 Assistant Professor and Herbarium Curator, Department of Biology, Jacksonville State University


Dylan O. Burge (2008)
 Ph.D., Duke University, 2011
 


The Lawrence Award was not presented in 2009.



Christine D. Bacon (2010)
 Ph.D., Colorado State University
, 2011 Postdoctoral researcher, University of Gothenburg, Sweden

Brian Sidoti (2011) Ph.D., University of Wisconsin, 2015 Adjunct Professor, Natural Sciences, State College of Florida, Manatee-Sarasota

The Lawrence Award was not presented in 2012.

Aleksandar Radosavljevic (2013) Ph.D., Northwestern University

The Lawrence Award was not presented in 2014.

Keir Wefferling (2015) Ph.D., University of Wisconsin—Milwaukee, 2018 Postdoctoral researcher, University of California, Berkeley

Andre Hahn (2016) Ph.D., Oregon State University, 2018

The Lawrence Award was not presented in 2017, 2018 and 2019

Other sources

• Biogr. details incl. portr. in Rheedea, 20(1): 28 (2010)

;Category:1910 births ;Category:University of Rhode Island alumni ;Category:British academics ;Category:British botanists ;Category:People from Rhode Island