The Botanizers: Amateur Scientists in Nineteenth-Century America - Softcover

Keeney, Elizabeth B.

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0807872059 ISBN 13: 9780807872055

Publisher: The University of North Carolina Press, 2011

Synopsis

Keeney examines the role of botany in the lives of nineteenth-century 'botanizers,' amateur scientists who collected, identified, and preserved plant specimens as a pastime. Using popular magazines, fiction, and autobiographies of the day, she explores the popular culture of this avocation, which attracted both men and women by the thousands.

About this title

Book Description:

"Substantial. . . . A good reminder of how much natural history has both reflected and contributed to the American psyche."-- Natural History

From Library Journal:

During the 19th century, tens of thousands of "botanizers" collected, identified, preserved, and exchanged specimens with one another. At the time, science was pursued primarily for personal enrichment, and a productive informational network existed between the amateur and the expert. Keeney, dean of academic advising at Kenyon College and formerly an instructor of science history at Harvard, investigates the rise in popularity of botanizing and its eventual divergence from the activities of professional scientists. During this critical historical period, a shift in focus from natural history to biology dramatically changed the character of botanical study in America. This extensively researched, well-organized, and concisely written study is appropriate for special and academic library collections.
- Laurie Bartolini, Lincoln Lib., Springfield, Ill.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About this edition

• Publisher: The University of North Carolina Press
• Publication date: 2011
• ISBN 10: 0807872059
• ISBN 13: 9780807872055
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 220