Richard Thomas Baker (1 December 1854 – 14 July 1941) was an Australian economic
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 ...
, museum curator and educator.
Early life
Baker was born in
Woolwich
Woolwich () is a district in southeast London, England, within the Royal Borough of Greenwich.
The district's location on the River Thames led to its status as an important naval, military and industrial area; a role that was maintained throu ...
,
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
, son of Richard Thomas Baker, a blacksmith, and his wife Sarah, née Colkett. The boy was educated at Woolwich National School and Peterborough Training Institution, later gaining science and art certificates from
South Kensington Museum
South is one of the cardinal directions or compass points. The direction is the opposite of north and is perpendicular to both east and west.
Etymology
The word ''south'' comes from Old English ''sūþ'', from earlier Proto-Germanic ''*sunþaz' ...
.
He was engaged as a senior assistant-master by the School Board for London in 1875 but resigned in July 1879 to emigrate to Australia.
Career in Australia
Baker arrived in Australia in September 1879 and joined the staff of
Newington College
, motto_translation = To Faith Add Knowledge
, location = Inner West and Lower North Shore of Sydney, New South Wales
, country = Australia
, coordinates =
, pushpin_map = A ...
,
Sydney
Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...
, as science and art master in June 1880.
On 15 January 1888 Baker was appointed assistant curator to
Joseph Henry Maiden
Joseph Henry Maiden (25 April 1859 – 16 November 1925) was a botanist who made a major contribution to knowledge of the Australian flora, especially the genus ''Eucalyptus''. This botanist is denoted by the author abbreviation when citing ...
at the
Technological Museum
The Powerhouse Museum is the major branch of the Museum of Applied Arts & Sciences (MAAS) in Sydney, the others being the historic Sydney Observatory at Observatory Hill, and the newer Museums Discovery Centre at Castle Hill. Although often de ...
, and in 1901 succeeded Maiden as curator and economic botanist. In 1902 Baker published an important work, ''A Research on the Eucalypts especially in regard to their
essential oil
An essential oil is a concentrated hydrophobic liquid containing volatile (easily evaporated at normal temperatures) chemical compounds from plants. Essential oils are also known as volatile oils, ethereal oils, aetheroleum, or simply as the o ...
s'', prepared in collaboration with
Henry George Smith
Henry George Smith (26 July 1852 – 19 September 1924) was an Australian chemist whose pioneering work on the chemistry of the essential oils of the Australian flora achieved worldwide recognition.
Smith was born at Littlebourne, Kent, Englan ...
, second and enlarged edition, 1920.
Baker published a small book, ''Building and Ornamental Stones of New South Wales'' (1908), and, again in collaboration with Henry Smith, another valuable piece of research, ''A Research on the Pines of Australia'' (1910). In 1913 ''Cabinet Timbers of Australia'' appeared, and in 1915 two more books ''Building and Ornamental Stones of Australia'', and ''Australian Flora in Applied Art''. An important work, ''The Hardwoods of Australia and their Economics'', was published with many illustrations in 1919. Baker retired from the Technological Museum on 30 June 1921. With H. G. Smith he published ''Woodfibres of Some Australian Timbers'' (1924).
Baker was lecturer on forestry at the
University of Sydney
The University of Sydney (USYD), also known as Sydney University, or informally Sydney Uni, is a public research university located in Sydney, Australia. Founded in 1850, it is the oldest university in Australia and is one of the country's si ...
1913–1925, was a member of the Royal and Linnean Societies of New South Wales, and published over 100 papers in their journals. He was a member of the council of the
Linnean Society
The Linnean Society of London is a learned society dedicated to the study and dissemination of information concerning natural history, evolution, and taxonomy. It possesses several important biological specimen, manuscript and literature colle ...
1897–1922.
Later life and legacy
Baker was awarded the von Mueller medal by the
in 1921, and the
Clarke Medal
The Clarke Medal is awarded by the Royal Society of New South Wales, the oldest learned society in Australia and the Southern Hemisphere, for distinguished work in the Natural sciences.
The medal is named in honour of the Reverend William Bran ...
of the
Royal Society of New South Wales
The Royal Society of New South Wales is a learned society based in Sydney, Australia. The Governor of New South Wales is the vice-regal patron of the Society.
The Society was established as the Philosophical Society of Australasia on 27 June ...
in 1922. He collected both old and modern china and in 1938 joined the
Royal Australian Historical Society
The Royal Australian Historical Society, formerly Australian Historical Society, is a voluntary organisation founded in Sydney, Australia in 1901Helen Doyle, "Royal Australian Historical Society" in Graeme Davison, John Hirst and Stuart Maci ...
. Baker died at
Cheltenham, New South Wales
Cheltenham is a suburb in the Northern Sydney region of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Cheltenham is 18 kilometres north-west of the Sydney central business district in the local government area of Hornsby Shire.
...
on 14 July 1941 and was buried in
Rookwood Cemetery
Rookwood Cemetery (officially named Rookwood Necropolis) is a heritage-listed cemetery in Rookwood, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It is the largest List of necropolises, necropolis in the Southern Hemisphere and is the world's largest ...
.
Selected publications
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See also
Taxa named by Richard Thomas Baker
In biology, a taxon (back-formation from ''Taxonomy (biology), taxonomy''; plural taxa) is a group of one or more populations of an organism or organisms seen by taxonomists to form a unit. Although neither is required, a taxon is usually known ...
References
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Baker, Richard Thomas
1854 births
1941 deaths
20th-century Australian botanists
Staff of Newington College
19th-century Australian botanists