Wikipedia

Clair Alan Brown

Clair Alan Brown (August 16, 1903 - March 24, 1982) was an American botanist who specialized in Louisiana flora.[1] He was a Louisiana State University faculty member from 1926 until his retirement in 1970.[2]

Clair Alan Brown
Born(1903-08-16)August 16, 1903
Port Allegany, Pennsylvania
DiedMarch 24, 1982(1982-03-24) (aged 78)
Baton Rouge, Louisiana
EducationNew York State College of Forestry, University of Michigan
Children2
AwardsGuggenheim Fellowship (1952)
NSF Fellowship (1961)
Scientific career
FieldsBotany
InstitutionsLouisiana State University

Biography edit

Brown was born in Port Allegany, Pennsylvania, to Charles Melvin and Jennie Burroughs Brown, one of four sons.[3][4][5] He earned his bachelor's degree cum laude from New York State College of Forestry in 1925 and his Master's in botany from the University of Michigan in 1926.[6][2] He began working at Louisiana State University (LSU) the following year before returning to the University of Michigan for his doctorate, which he completed in 1934.[4][2][6] His dissertation was titled Morphology and biology of some species of Odontia.[7] He took up his position at LSU again and taught botany, systematic botany, wood identification, dendrology, forest pathology, ecology, and palynology until his retirement in 1970.[2][4]

He held a number of leadership roles in international organizations throughout his career, including as president of the Southern Weed Control Conference in 1948;[8] as a delegate to the International Botanical Congress in 1950;[6] and as president of the American Fern Society in 1960.[9] He was also appointed to the International Committee on Palynology[6] and was president of honor at the 78th Société botanique de France.[citation needed] Among his awards were a Guggenheim Fellowship in 1952,[6] a National Science Foundation fellowship in 1961,[10] and an Edmund Niles Huyck Fellowship.[6] In 1973, he received a Louisiana Literary Award for his illustrated anthology Wildflowers of Louisiana and Adjoining States.[4]

Personal life edit

Brown married Maude Nichols on September 4, 1926[citation needed] and they had two daughters, Sarah and Dorcas.[11][12] Maude and nineteen-year-old Sarah died in a car accident in April 1962.[13][12]

Brown died on March 24, 1982, in Baton Rouge.[5]

Selected publications edit

The standard author abbreviation C.A.Br. is used to indicate this person as the author when citing a botanical name.[14]

  • With Donovan Stewart Correll (1908–1983) Ferns and Fern Allies Trees & Shrubs. 1942
  • Louisiana Trees & Shrubs. 1945
  • Vegetation of the Outer Banks of North Carolina. 1959
  • Palynological Techniques. 1960
  • Wildflowers of Louisiana & Adjoining States. Ed. Louisiana State University Press. 259 pp. ISBN 0-8071-0780-8, 1980

Sources edit

  • Allen G. Debus (dir.) (1968). World Who's Who in Science. To Biographical Dictionary of Remarkable Scientists from Antiquity to the Present. Marquis-Who's Who (Chicago) : xvi + 1855 pp.

References edit

  1. ^ "Anthology of state's wildflowers". The Town Talk. Alexandria, Louisiana, USA. January 21, 1973. p. 36. Retrieved November 9, 2022 – via newspapers.com.
  2. ^ a b c d "Retiring LSU professor gets honor from national group". The Daily Advertiser. Lafayette, Louisiana, USA. August 21, 1970. p. 8. Retrieved November 9, 2022 – via newspapers.com.
  3. ^ "Charles M. Brown, Pt. Allegany, dies after long illness". The Bradford Era. Bradford, Pennsylvania, USA. April 30, 1952. p. 5 – via newspapers.com.
  4. ^ a b c d "Brown cited for book on wildflowers". The Times. Shreveport, Louisiana, USA. March 31, 1973. p. 2. Retrieved November 9, 2022 – via newspapers.com.
  5. ^ a b Burgess, Robert L. (1996). "American ecologists: A biographical bibliography" (PDF). Huntia. 10 (1): 19. PMID 11619260. Retrieved November 9, 2022.
  6. ^ a b c d e f "Greatest array of horticultural talent here for convention talks". Clarion-Ledger. Jackson, Mississippi, USA. May 3, 1959. p. 20. Retrieved November 9, 2022 – via newspapers.com.
  7. ^ "Morphology and biology of some species of Odontia". WorldCat. 1935. Retrieved November 9, 2022.
  8. ^ "News and Notes". Science. 108 (2813): 610–614. 1948. doi:10.1126/science.108.2813.610. JSTOR 1676700.
  9. ^ "American Fern Society". American Fern Journal. 50 (2): 209, 212. April 1960.
  10. ^ "Wins fellowship". The Times. Shreveport, Louisiana, USA. April 29, 1961. p. 19. Retrieved November 9, 2022 – via newspapers.com.
  11. ^ Wiggins, Ira L.; Wagner, Warren H.; McGregor, Ronald L.; Horr, W. H.; Duncan, Ellen S.; Faust, Mildred E.; Lommasson, R. C.; Luhr, Dorothea (January 1958). "American Fern Society". American Fern Journal. 48 (1): 62. JSTOR 1544901.
  12. ^ a b "Rites conducted for victims of accident". The Post-Standard. Syracuse, New York, USA. April 27, 1962. p. 33. Retrieved November 9, 2022 – via newspapers.com.
  13. ^ "Easter vacation ends in tragedy for two women". Daily World. Opelousas, Louisiana, USA. April 24, 1962. p. 1. Retrieved November 9, 2022 – via newspapers.com.
  14. ^ International Plant Names Index.  C.A.Br.
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