Harry Scott Smith
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Harry Scott Smith (November 29, 1883 – November 28, 1957), an entomologist and professor at
University of California, Riverside The University of California, Riverside (UCR or UC Riverside) is a public land-grant research university in Riverside, California. It is one of the ten campuses of the University of California system. The main campus sits on in a suburban distr ...
(UCR), was a pioneer in the field of biological pest control.


United States Department of Agriculture

Smith grew up on a farm in
Aurora, Nebraska Aurora is a city in Hamilton County, Nebraska, United States. The population was 4,479 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Hamilton County. History In 1861, David Millspaw became the first permanent settler in the area of what was to ...
with all the attendant tasks of farm life. Smith left home for what was then known as the State University at Lincoln. The State Entomologist,
Lawrence Bruner Lawrence Bruner (March 2, 1856 in Catasauqua, Pennsylvania – January 30, 1937 in Berkeley, California) was a United States entomologist. Biography Bruner's parents emigrated to West Point, Nebraska when Bruner was a child. While growing up ...
, offered Smith a position as assistant. It was there that Smith met and later married Bruner's daughter, Psyche. Following Smith's graduation from the University of Nebraska in 1908, he was hired by
Leland Ossian Howard Leland Ossian Howard (June 11, 1857 – May 1, 1950) was a pioneer American entomologist who worked in the US Department of Agriculture. Serving as the chief of the bureau of entomology, a successor to C.V. Riley, he helped establish economic ent ...
to work at the
USDA The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is the federal executive department responsible for developing and executing federal laws related to farming, forestry, rural economic development, and food. It aims to meet the needs of com ...
's Bureau of Entomology. During this time Smith held several assignments including the
Boll Weevil Eradication Program The Boll Weevil Eradication Program is a program sponsored by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) which has sought to eradicate the boll weevil in the cotton-growing areas of the United States. It's one of the world's most successful ...
, the Gypsy Moth Parasite Laboratory in
Melrose Highlands, Massachusetts Melrose Highlands is one of the oldest neighborhoods in the city of Melrose, Massachusetts. Formerly part of neighboring Stoneham, it became part of Melrose in the latter part of the nineteenth century. There were some addresses that had the zip ...
, and a 1912 collaboration in Italy with
Filippo Silvestri Filippo Silvestri (22 June 1873 – 10 June 1949) was an Italian entomologist. He specialised in world Protura, Thysanura, Diplura and Isoptera, but also worked on Hymenoptera, Myriapoda and Italian Diptera. He is also noted for describing an ...
to identify a natural predator to the alfalfa weevil. On the recommendation of his boss, Howard, Smith was selected by the California State Commissioner of Horticulture, A. J. Cook, to serve as Superintendent of the newly created State Insectary beginning January 1, 1913. In 1919 the State of California created the State Department of Agriculture with Smith the Chief of the Bureau of Pest Control. Eventually entomological research was stripped from the regulatory functions of the department and migrated to the University of California's College of Agriculture. Smith coined the term "biological control" in his 1919 article "On some phases of insect control by the biological method" for the ''
Journal of Economic Entomology A journal, from the Old French ''journal'' (meaning "daily"), may refer to: *Bullet journal, a method of personal organization *Diary, a record of what happened over the course of a day or other period *Daybook, also known as a general journal, a ...
'', referring to the reliance on the natural enemies of pests to effect control, as opposed to the use of pesticide.


University of California

With the transition of entomology research to the
University of California Citrus Experiment Station The University of California Citrus Experiment Station is the founding unit of the University of California, Riverside campus in Riverside, California, United States. The station contributed greatly to the cultivation of the orange and the overall ...
in 1923, Smith's research division was refashioned as the Division of Beneficial Insect Investigations and Smith was appointed an associate professor at UCR where he remained until his retirement in 1951. The division would remain wholly apart from University of California's Entomology department until the department and its pair at
University of California, Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California) is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California. Established in 1868 as the University of California, it is the state's first land-grant u ...
were closed in 1989. Thanks to his correspondence with Dr. A. J. Nicholson, the Chief Entomologist at the Australian
Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation The Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) is an Australian Government agency responsible for scientific research. CSIRO works with leading organisations around the world. From its headquarters in Canberra, CSIRO ...
, Smith initiated the first Federally-approved weed control program, the control of
Klamath weed ''Hypericum perforatum'', known as St. John's wort, is a flowering plant in the family Hypericaceae and the type species of the genus '' Hypericum''. Possibly a hybrid between '' H. maculatum'' and '' H. attenuatum'', the species can be found ...
by importing insects from Australia. Smith also established the Laboratory of Insect Pathology, appointing Edward Arthur Steinhaus as its first head. In 1953, Smith's alma mater awarded him an honorary
Doctor of Science Doctor of Science ( la, links=no, Scientiae Doctor), usually abbreviated Sc.D., D.Sc., S.D., or D.S., is an academic research degree awarded in a number of countries throughout the world. In some countries, "Doctor of Science" is the degree used f ...
degree. He died on 28 November 1957. Smith has been considered "a renowned researcher in the biological control of citrus pests for the University of California."


Partial bibliography

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Memorials

In 1967, UCR's Department of Biological Control established the Harry Scott Smith Award to recognize achievements in the biological control of insects. The first award went to Canadian scientist
William Robin Thompson William Robin Thompson (June 29, 1887January 30, 1972) was a Canadian entomologist and also wrote on the philosophy of science in his book ''Science and Common Sense: An Aristotelian Excursion'' (1937). He specialized in the biological control of ...
with a $1000
honorarium An honorarium is an ''ex gratia'' payment, i.e., a payment made, without the giver recognizing themselves as having any liability or legal obligation, to a person for his or her services in a volunteer capacity or for services for which fees are no ...
. A separate award for graduate students in biological control was established in 1966. The Harry S. Smith scholarship fund was established for students studying biological control, started with a $15,000
bequest A bequest is property given by will. Historically, the term ''bequest'' was used for personal property given by will and ''deviser'' for real property. Today, the two words are used interchangeably. The word ''bequeath'' is a verb form for the act ...
from Smith for that purpose. The archives of Smith's papers are now stored with the Entomology Department of UCR.


Citations

{{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, Harry Scott 1883 births 1957 deaths People from Aurora, Nebraska American entomologists University of Nebraska alumni University of California, Riverside faculty 20th-century American zoologists