William Trelease (February 22, 1857 – January 1, 1945) 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 ...

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 ara ...

explorer Exploration refers to the historical practice of discovering remote lands. It is studied by geographers and historians. Two major eras of exploration occurred in human history: one of convergence, and one of divergence. The first, covering most ...

, writer and educator. This botanist is denoted by the author abbreviation Trel. when citing a

botanical name A botanical name is a formal scientific name conforming to the ''International Code of Nomenclature for algae, fungi, and plants'' (ICN) and, if it concerns a plant cultigen, the additional cultivar or Group epithets must conform to the ''Interna ...

. Trelease was born in

Mount Vernon, New York Mount Vernon is a city in Westchester County, New York, United States. It is an inner suburb of New York City, immediately to the north of the borough of the Bronx. As of the 2020 census, Mount Vernon had a population of 73,893, making it th ...

. He graduated B.S. from

Cornell University Cornell University is a private statutory land-grant research university based in Ithaca, New York. It is a member of the Ivy League. Founded in 1865 by Ezra Cornell and Andrew Dickson White, Cornell was founded with the intention to tea ...

in 1880 and a D.Sc from Harvard in 1884. He was instructor in botany at

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of highe ...

1880–81, instructor in botany at the

University of Wisconsin A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United Stat ...

1881–83, and professor of botany there from 1883 to 1885. He was also special lecturer in botany at

Johns Hopkins University Johns Hopkins University (Johns Hopkins, Hopkins, or JHU) is a private research university in Baltimore, Maryland. Founded in 1876, Johns Hopkins is the oldest research university in the United States and in the western hemisphere. It consi ...

, and in charge of the summer school of botany at Harvard, during 1883–84. He was Engelmann professor of botany at Washington University in St. Louis from 1885 to 1913, and appointed director of the

Missouri Botanical Garden The Missouri Botanical Garden is a botanical garden located at 4344 Shaw Boulevard in St. Louis, Missouri. It is also known informally as Shaw's Garden for founder and philanthropist Henry Shaw. Its herbarium, with more than 6.6 million ...

from 1889 to 1912. He was active in various municipal and professional academic associations: he was the first President of the

Botanical Society of America The Botanical Society of America (BSA) represents professional and amateur botanists, researchers, educators and students in over 80 countries of the world. It functions as a United States nonprofit 501(c)(3) membership society. History The soc ...

in 1894, and served as president for a second time in 1918. In 1903, he was elected to the

American Philosophical Society The American Philosophical Society (APS), founded in 1743 in Philadelphia, is a scholarly organization that promotes knowledge in the sciences and humanities through research, professional meetings, publications, library resources, and communit ...

. From 1913 to 1926 he was professor of botany and head of department at the

University of Illinois The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (U of I, Illinois, University of Illinois, or UIUC) is a public land-grant research university in Illinois in the twin cities of Champaign and Urbana. It is the flagship institution of the Uni ...

. Trelease Hall at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign is named after William Trelease. Trelease was amongst the scientists on the two-month expedition to Alaska led by

Edward Henry Harriman Edward Henry Harriman (February 20, 1848 – September 9, 1909) was an American financier and railroad executive. Early life Harriman was born on February 20, 1848, in Hempstead, New York, the son of Orlando Harriman Sr., an Episcopal clergyman ...

in 1899. In 1932 he led a botanical expedition to the

Canary Isles The Canary Islands (; es, Canarias, ), also known informally as the Canaries, are a Spanish autonomous community and archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean, in Macaronesia. At their closest point to the African mainland, they are west of Moroc ...

and Spain, and in 1933 an expedition to New Zealand. Trelease wrote many scientific articles and monographs. His work on the

Piperaceae The Piperaceae (), also known as the pepper family, are a large family of flowering plants. The group contains roughly 3,600 currently accepted species in 5 genera. The vast majority of species can be found within the two main genera: '' Piper' ...

of Northern South America, left unfinished at his death, was completed by his student

Truman G. Yuncker Truman George Yuncker (March 20, 1891 – January 8, 1964) was a taxonomic botanist best known for his work in the family Piperaceae. Yuncker first taught at Manual High School in Indianapolis, Indiana. After service in World War I, he received ...

.Guide to the Truman G. Yuncker Papers
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, ...

He also wrote several more popular botanical and gardening books, such a
''Plant materials of decorative gardening''
(1917) an
''Winter Botany''
(1918).

References

Rowse, A. L. Alfred Leslie Rowse (4 December 1903 – 3 October 1997) was a British historian and writer, best known for his work on Elizabethan England and books relating to Cornwall. Born in Cornwall and raised in modest circumstances, he was encour ...

The Cousin Jacks, The Cornish in America

External links

*Louis Otto Kunkel
''William Trelease, 1857-1945: A Biographical Memoir''
— held at Cornell University
Guide to the William Trelease Papers, 1868-1945
— held at the

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (U of I, Illinois, University of Illinois, or UIUC) is a public land-grant research university in Illinois in the twin cities of Champaign and Urbana. It is the flagship institution of the Un ...

Photographs of Trelease
— at the Missouri Botanical Garden * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Trelease, William 1857 births 1945 deaths American entomologists American explorers Botanists with author abbreviations American nonprofit executives Missouri Botanical Garden directors Botanical Society of America Cornell University alumni Harvard University staff Johns Hopkins University faculty Washington University in St. Louis faculty Writers from Mount Vernon, New York Scientists from New York (state) 19th-century American botanists 20th-century American botanists Members of the United States National Academy of Sciences Members of the American Philosophical Society Harvard University alumni University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign faculty University of Wisconsin–Madison faculty