Harold Norman Moldenke, also known as simply Moldenke (1909–1996) was an American

botanist Botany, also called , plant biology or phytology, is the science of plant life and a branch of biology. A botanist, plant scientist or phytologist is a scientist who specialises in this field. The term "botany" comes from the Ancient Greek wo ...

taxonomist In biology, taxonomy () is the scientific study of naming, defining ( circumscribing) and classifying groups of biological organisms based on shared characteristics. Organisms are grouped into taxa (singular: taxon) and these groups are given ...

. His expertise is largely in the study of

Verbenaceae The Verbenaceae ( ), the verbena family or vervain family, is a family of mainly tropical flowering plants. It contains trees, shrubs, and herbs notable for heads, spikes, or clusters of small flowers, many of which have an aromatic smell. The ...

Avicenniaceae ''Avicennia'' is a genus of flowering plants currently placed in the bear's breeches family, Acanthaceae. It contains mangrove trees, which occur in the intertidal zones of estuarine areas and are characterized by its "pencil roots", which are ...

Stilbaceae ''Stilbaceae'' is a family of flowering plants in the order Lamiales. Genera include: *'' Anastrabe'' E. Mey. ex Benth. *'' Bowkeria'' Harv. *'' Campylostachys'' Kunth *'' Charadrophila'' Marloth *'' Euthystachys'' A. DC. *'' Halleria'' ...

, Dicrastylidaceae, Symphoremaceae, Nyctanthaceae and

Eriocaulaceae The Eriocaulaceae are a family of monocotyledonous flowering plants in the order Poales, commonly known as the pipewort family. The family is large, with about 1207 known species described in seven genera. They are widely distributed, with the ce ...

Early life

Moldenke was the son of Charles E. and Sophia (Heins) Moldenke. His father was a noted Egyptologist whose translation of the hieroglyphics on

Cleopatra's Needle Cleopatra's Needles are a separated pair of ancient Egyptian obelisks now in London and New York City. The obelisks were originally made in Heliopolis (modern Cairo) during the New Kingdom period, inscribed by the 18th dynasty pharaoh Thutmose I ...

he reprinted. Harold was born in

Watchung, New Jersey Watchung () is a borough in Somerset County, New Jersey, United States, located approximately west of New York City. As of the 2010 United States Census, the borough's population was 5,801,bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Middle Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate academic degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six ...

from

Susquehanna University Susquehanna University is a Private college, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Selinsgrove, Pennsylvania. Its name is derived from the original Susquehannock settlers of the region. Founded in 1858 as a m ...

in 1929. Moldenke's career started at the

New York Botanical Garden The New York Botanical Garden (NYBG) is a botanical garden at Bronx Park in the Bronx, New York City. Established in 1891, it is located on a site that contains a landscape with over one million living plants; the Enid A. Haupt Conservatory, ...

, a place he maintained a close relationship with (donating many educational materials to its library). There, he worked as a Research Fellow and part-time assistant in 1929. He taught a course in Systematic

Botany Botany, also called , plant biology or phytology, is the science of plant life and a branch of biology. A botanist, plant scientist or phytologist is a scientist who specialises in this field. The term "botany" comes from the Ancient Greek w ...

for gardeners there as well. For 16 years, he worked as the assistant and associate curator under Henry A. Gleason. When Moldenke served in the

Civilian Public Service The Civilian Public Service (CPS) was a program of the United States government that provided conscientious objectors with an alternative to military service during World War II. From 1941 to 1947, nearly 12,000 draftees, willing to serve their ...

Soil Conservation Service Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), formerly known as the Soil Conservation Service (SCS), is an agency of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) that provides technical assistance to farmers and other private landowners and ...

and as a hospital attendant in

Warren, Pennsylvania Warren is a city in Warren County, Pennsylvania, United States, located along the Allegheny River. The population was 9,404 at the 2020 census. It is the county seat of Warren County. It is home to the headquarters of the Allegheny National Forest ...

, he wrote a number of papers on Amazonian curare-producing plants with B.A. Krukoff. These were entitled ''Plants Strategic to the War Effort''. His herbarium is accommodated in the Moldenke Room at the Plant Resources Center.

Later career

In 1941, Moldenke, along with the collaboration of his wife, Alma Moldenke, created the book ''Plants of the Bible'' after 12 years of research. Later, Moldenke took a job in botanical and ecological education as director of the now-named Trailside Nature and Science Center in

Mountainside, New Jersey Mountainside is a borough in Union County, New Jersey, United States. The borough is located on a ridge in northern- central New Jersey, within the Raritan Valley and Rahway Valley regions in the New York metropolitan area. As of the 2010 Un ...

. He was also a professor of botany at the now-named

Kean University Kean University () is a public university in Union Township, Union County, New Jersey, Union and Hillside, New Jersey. It is part of New Jersey's public system of higher education. Kean University was founded in 1855 in Newark, New Jersey, as th ...

in Union, New Jersey, and taught enrichment courses at Westfield and

Livingston Livingston may refer to: Businesses * Livingston Energy Flight, an Italian airline (2003–2010) * Livingston Compagnia Aerea, an Italian airline (2011–2014), also known as Livingston Airline * Livingston International, a North American custom ...

Adult Schools in New Jersey. In 1967, Moldenke left Trailside and accepted a professorship at the now-named

William Paterson College William Paterson University, officially William Paterson University of New Jersey (WPUNJ), is a public university in Wayne, New Jersey. It is part of New Jersey's public system of higher education. Founded in 1855 and was named after American ju ...

. In 1984, he sold the most of his

herbarium A herbarium (plural: herbaria) is a collection of preserved plant specimens and associated data used for scientific study. The specimens may be whole plants or plant parts; these will usually be in dried form mounted on a sheet of paper (called ...

, papers and books to the

University of Texas The University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin, UT, or Texas) is a public research university in Austin, Texas. It was founded in 1883 and is the oldest institution in the University of Texas System. With 40,916 undergraduate students, 11,075 ...

. Moldenke died at

Corvallis, Oregon Corvallis ( ) is a city and the county seat of Benton County in central western Oregon, United States. It is the principal city of the Corvallis, Oregon Metropolitan Statistical Area, which encompasses all of Benton County. As of the 2020 United ...

on January 7, 1996.

Honors

In 1969, Moldenke was named an Honorary Life Member of the

Torrey Botanical Club Torrey Botanical Society (formerly Torrey Botanical Club) was started in the 1860s by colleagues of John Torrey. It is the oldest botanical society in the Americas. The Society promotes the exploration and study of plant life, with particular ...

. In 1970, he was made Honorary Curator of

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Moldenke, Harold Norman 1909 births 1996 deaths 20th-century American botanists People from Watchung, New Jersey Susquehanna University alumni Torrey Botanical Society members Members of the Civilian Public Service William Paterson University faculty