Isabella Gifford (1825–1891) was a Welsh-born botanist. In 1848, she published ''The Marine Botanist,'' a book which focuses on algology. Some of her specimens are in the

Ulster Museum The Ulster Museum, located in the Botanic Gardens in Belfast, has around 8,000 square metres (90,000 sq. ft.) of public display space, featuring material from the collections of fine art and applied art, archaeology, ethnography, treasure ...

Biography

Isabella Gifford was born at

Defynnog Defynnog, also known as Devynock in some historical documents, is a small village in the community of Maescar in the historic county of Brecknockshire, Wales, now lying within the unitary authority area of Powys. It lies immediately south of Se ...

Brecknockshire , image_flag= , HQ= Brecon , Government= Brecknockshire County Council (1889-1974) , Origin= Brycheiniog , Status= , Start= 1535 , End= ...

, Wales, in 1825. She was the first child of Isabella Christie and Captain George St John Gifford, who were married the year before. She lived in France, Jersey, and for a time at Falmouth before settling with her parents in

Minehead Minehead is a coastal town and civil parish in Somerset, England. It lies on the south bank of the Bristol Channel, north-west of the county town of Taunton, from the boundary with the county of Devon and in proximity of the Exmoor National P ...

, Somerset, around 1850. Gifford seems to have been mostly self-taught as a scientist with a variety of family links to science. Her uncles included Dr

Thomas Southwood Smith Thomas Southwood Smith (17881861) was an English physician and sanitary reformer. Early life Smith was born at Martock, Martock, Somerset, into a strict Baptist family, his parents being William Smith and Caroline Southwood. In 1802 he won a sc ...

and

Richard Cowling Taylor Richard Cowling Taylor (18 January 1789 – 26 October 1851) was an English surveyor and geologist. Life Taylor, third son of Samuel Taylor, farmer, was born at Hinton, Suffolk, on 18 January 1789. He was educated at Halesworth, and articled to M ...

Studies in botany

Isabella Gifford was primarily an algologist, studying algae. In 1848 she published ''The Marine Botanist; an introduction to the study of algology, containing descriptions of the commonest British sea-weeds''. According to the Journal of Botany, this 1848 study of British seaweeds was "well received". She contributed to the proceedings of the

Somerset Archaeological and Natural History Society The Somerset Archaeological and Natural History Society was founded in 1849. The Society bought Taunton Castle in 1874, and leases it to Somerset County Council to house the Museum of Somerset. A substantial proportion of the items held by the Mus ...

in 1851. Though she primarily studied algae, Gifford was survived by her collections of vascular plants and mosses, many of which are now contained within museums including Bolton Museum and Art Gallery and

St Andrews University (Aien aristeuein) , motto_lang = grc , mottoeng = Ever to ExcelorEver to be the Best , established = , type = Public research university Ancient university , endowment ...

Botany Department.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gifford, Isabella 1825 births 1891 deaths 19th-century British botanists 19th-century British women scientists 19th-century Welsh scientists 19th-century Welsh writers 19th-century Welsh women writers British women botanists British phycologists Women phycologists People from Brecknockshire Welsh botanists