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Personal Papers
FRANCES W. HORNE PAPERS (1924-1966))
7.5 linear inches (2 boxes)

BIOGRAPHICAL NOTE

Frances Worth Horne (1873-1967) was a botanical illustrator who composed watercolors of Puerto Rican flora for Nathaniel Lord Britton's unfinished work, Flora Borinquena. She was born in Watkins Glen, New York and obtained a bachelor's degree from Ohio State University and a master's degree in languages from Cornell University. She began her career as professor of classical languages at Westminster College in Colorado. She and her husband, Charles E. Horne, relocated to Puerto Rico in 1918 where they lived until Mr. Horne died in 1963. During her years on the island she created hundreds of watercolor illustrations of its flora and birdlife, and her botanical artwork gained an international reputation.

In 1922 Mrs. Horne wrote to Britton expressing her interest in contributing watercolors of Puerto Rican flowering plants to The Botany of Porto Rico and the Virgin Islands. He was unable to include her illustrations in this publication, but she eventually contributed her artwork to the New York Botanical Garden journal, Addisonia. At Britton's death in 1934, Flora Borinquena was left unfinished, though Mrs. Horne had completed over 700 watercolors of native and naturalized Puerto Rican plant species for the work. In 1963, Mrs. Horne presented her collection as a gift to The New York Botanical Garden. She also painted the Caribbean bird life in and contributed illustrations to Common Trees of Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands (1967) by Elbert Little, Frank Wadsworth, and Jose Marrero. Frances Horne died at the age of 94 in Albany, New York.

SCOPE AND CONTENT

The Frances W. Horne Papers consist of photocopied typescripts, correspondence, research notes, and related artwork. One typescript is collected in a bound volume. The artwork has been separated from the collection and transferred to the Garden's Art & Illustration Collection #35.

SERIES DESCRIPTIONS

Series 1: Correspondence
Series 2: Research Papers
Series 3: Manuscripts and Typescripts
Series 4: Artwork

Series 1    Correspondence, 1924-1966
                  1.0 lin. in. Arranged alphabetically.

This series contains 5 files of correspondence with Garden scientific and administrative staff.

Series 2    Research Papers, c 1935
                  1.0 lin. in. Arranged by subject.

Series 2 consists of an index, table of contents, and lists of plants for Flora Borinquena.

Series 3    Manuscripts and Typescripts, c 1933
                  5.0 lin. in. Arranged by subject.

Two photocopied typescripts, a bound volume, and 7 files of plant descriptions can be found in this series.

Series 4    Botanical Illustrations
                  Arranged by subject.

All artwork has been transferred to the New York Botanical Garden Art & Illustration Collection #35.

RELATED COLLECTIONS

The New York Botanical Garden

PP Percy Wilson Papers

RG4 Nathaniel Lord Britton Records

Processed April 1999 by David Rose under a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) PA-23141-98 and a grant from the Harriet Ford Dickenson Foundation.


For more information and a complete description contact:
Susan Fraser, NYBG Archivist
The LuEsther T. Mertz Library
The New York Botanical Garden
Bronx, NY 10458-5126
(718) 817-8879
 
 

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