Doris Holmes Blake, ''née'' Doris Mildred Holmes (January 11, 1892 – December 3, 1978), was an American

entomologist Entomology () is the scientific study of insects, a branch of zoology. In the past the term "insect" was less specific, and historically the definition of entomology would also include the study of animals in other arthropod groups, such as arach ...

and

scientific illustrator Technical Illustration is illustration meant to visually communicate information of a technical nature. Technical illustrations can be components of technical drawings or diagrams. Technical illustrations in general aim "to generate expressive ...

. She was an expert on

chrysomelidae The insects of the beetle family Chrysomelidae are commonly known as leaf beetles, and include over 37,000 (and probably at least 50,000) species in more than 2,500 genera, making up one of the largest and most commonly encountered of all beetle ...

(leaf beetles).

Life

Doris Holmes was raised in a middle-class family in

Stoughton, Massachusetts Stoughton (official name: Town of Stoughton) is a town in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 29,281 at the 2020 census. The town is located approximately from Boston, from Providence, Rhode Island, and from Cape ...

. She earned a B.A. from

Boston University Boston University (BU) is a private research university in Boston, Massachusetts. The university is nonsectarian, but has a historical affiliation with the United Methodist Church. It was founded in 1839 by Methodists with its original campu ...

in 1913 and an M.A. in Zoology and Psychology from

Radcliffe College Radcliffe College was a women's liberal arts college in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and functioned as the female coordinate institution for the all-male Harvard College. Considered founded in 1879, it was one of the Seven Sisters colleges and he ...

in 1917. While at Boston University she became a member of

Alpha Delta Pi Alpha Delta Pi (), commonly known as ADPi (pronounced "ay-dee-pye"), is an International Panhellenic sorority founded on May 15, 1851, at Wesleyan College in Macon, Georgia. It is the oldest secret society for women. Alpha Delta Pi is a mem ...

.''The Adelphean of Alpha Delta Pi'', Vol. 9, p 137. 1916 article about her working on a degree at Radcliffe after graduating from BU. Also ''Adelphean,'' Vol. 11, p. 263 has the announcement of her marriage to Sidney Fay Blake, Ph.D. Marrying the botanist and plant taxonomist

Sidney Fay Blake Sidney Fay Blake (1892–1959) was an American botanist and plant taxonomist, "recognized as one of the world's experts on botanical nomenclature." Biography Blake was born in 1892 in Stoughton, Massachusetts. In 1912, he received a bachelor's d ...

in 1918, she worked for the

Bureau of Entomology The Bureau of Entomology was a unit within the Federal government of the United States from 1894 to 1934. It developed from a section of the Department of Agriculture which had been working on entomological researches and allied issues relating to ...

of the United States Department of Agriculture from 1919 to 1928. From 1928 she worked at the Department of

Entomology Entomology () is the science, scientific study of insects, a branch of zoology. In the past the term "insect" was less specific, and historically the definition of entomology would also include the study of animals in other arthropod groups, such ...

of the

United States National Museum The Smithsonian Institution ( ), or simply the Smithsonian, is a group of museums and education and research centers, the largest such complex in the world, created by the U.S. government "for the increase and diffusion of knowledge". Founded ...

. Forced to resign in 1933 by her husband's employment at the Department (the law prohibited more than one member of a family holding a government position), she continued studying

beetles Beetles are insects that form the order Coleoptera (), in the superorder Endopterygota. Their front pair of wings are hardened into wing-cases, elytra, distinguishing them from most other insects. The Coleoptera, with about 400,000 describ ...

as an unpaid Associate of the

Smithsonian Institution The Smithsonian Institution ( ), or simply the Smithsonian, is a group of museums and education and research centers, the largest such complex in the world, created by the U.S. government "for the increase and diffusion of knowledge". Founded ...

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

until her death. Some of Blake's entomological and botanical sketches, as well as her non-academic writing, are also included. The papers also include a number of photographs of Blake and her family and of entomologists, both at the Smithsonian and at USDA. Her papers are held by the Smithsonian Institution.

Works

*
A review of the beetles of the genus Disonycha occurring in America north of Mexico
', 1934. Smithsonian Institution. * ''A study of LeConte's species of the chrysomelid genus Graphops with descriptions of some new species'', 1955 * ''A review of the beetles of the genus Neobrotica and some closely related genera'', 1966. Proceedings of the United States National Museum, v. 118, no. 3529. * ''A review of the beetles of the genus Metachroma Chevrolat (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae)'', 1970. Smithsonian contributions to zoology, no. 57. * ''The costate species of Colaspis in the United States (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae)'', 1974. Smithsonian contributions to zoology, no. 181. *
The brown semicostate and costate species of Colaspis in Mexico and Central America (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae)
', 1976. Technical bulletin (United States. Dept. of Agriculture), no. 1534.

References

External links

Doris Holmes Blake Papers, 1899-1985
from the

Smithsonian Institution Archives Smithsonian Libraries and Archives is an institutional archives and library system comprising 21 branch libraries serving the various Smithsonian Institution museums and research centers. The Libraries and Archives serve Smithsonian Institution ...

*
Doris Blake: The Courtly Coleopterist
' {{DEFAULTSORT:Blake, Doris Holmes American entomologists Women entomologists Coleopterists Smithsonian Institution people 1892 births 1978 deaths Scientific illustrators 20th-century American women scientists Radcliffe College alumni Boston University alumni 20th-century American zoologists American women illustrators