Archives and Manuscript Collections
Personal Papers
WILLIAM MITTEN PAPERS (1846-1910)
4 linear inches (1 box)
BIOGRAPHICAL NOTE
William
Mitten (1819-1906) was the premier bryologist of the second half of the
nineteenth century. A pharmaceutical chemist by trade, and never a professional
botanist, he classified and named thousands of bryophyte specimens which
came into Kew Gardens from around the vast British empire.
Successor to Thomas Taylor, the premier bryologist of the first half
of the nineteenth century, William Mitten left his native England only
once in his lifetime. He was one of the first people to realize that the
same taxa occur throughout broad geographical ranges. This was contrary
to the prevailing opinion of his day, which held that different geographic
areas had entirely different flora. As he was able to see examples of all
the major families of bryophytes, he developed a phylogeny reflecting these
relationships. His concepts deeply influenced generations of British bryologists.
Mitten was a member of the Botanical Society of London and maintained
an active correspondence with Sir William Hooker. He published his first
paper in 1846 at the age of 26. By the time of his death, he had amassed
the largest and most important collection of bryophytes in private hands.
This collection of some fifty thousand specimens was purchased by The New
York Botanical Garden.
SCOPE AND CONTENT NOTE
The contents of this collection came to The New York Botanical Garden
along with the herbarium of Mr. Mitten. Included are correspondence, photographs,
research notes, illustrations, and a priced sale catalogue of Mr. Mitten's
library, which was offered for sale. The Field Collectors' Notebook series
contain three volumes of Mr. Mitten's field notebooks. Volume numbers 231,
232, and 233 contain his notes on collections processed from 1874 to 1894.
The locations covered are Singapore, Sibu, the Aejung River, and the Solomon
Islands. These notebooks came to the Garden in conjunction with the aforementioned
purchase of bryophyte specimens.
SERIES DESCRIPTIONS
Series 1: Correspondence, 1846-1901
Series 2: Notebooks and Research Notes
Series 3: Priced Catalogue of the Library of William Mitten, 1910
Series 4: Photographs of the William Mitten Gardens
Series 5: Xeroxed Sketchbook Entitled "Macromitrium unpublished drawings"
Series 1 Correspondence, 1846-1901
8 folders. Arranged by date.
This is a series of dated letters found among the herbarium collections
of Mr. Mitten.
Series 2 Notebooks and Research Notes
6 folders. Arranged alphabetically.
This material was also included with Mr. Mitten's herbarium. It consists
of two notebooks--one entitled "Spruce," and four folders of notes--one
of which is devoted to notes on "hepatics." One notebook has been xeroxed
and it contains notes on Spruce's mosses and refers to several collecting
trips in Brazil, New Zealand, India, Ceylon, and Java. It also contains
Burchell's itinerary in Brazil.
Series 3 Priced Catalogue of the Library
of William Mitten, 1911
1 folder
This catalogue of 365 items was put together by Mitten's daughter Flora,
and an attached note dated 1910 to Mrs. Britton states that the prices
are approximated. Mrs. Britton (?) notes that the remainder of the library
was purchased as a lot by Quaritch. Also included is a selected list of
titles from the catalogue, presumably drawn up for purchase by The New
York Botanical Garden.
Series 4 Photographs of the William Mitten
Gardens
1 folder of 12 photographs
Included is an envelope dated 1910 and addressed to Mrs. Britten with
the handwritten note: "From Flora Mitten pictures of W. Mitten's garden
at Hurstpierpoint."
Series 5 Xeroxed Sketchbook
One volume bound in teal buckram, n.d.
Dated July 1990, this bound sketchbook entitled Macromitrium Unpublished
Drawings is xeroxed from the William Campbell Steere Collection at
the Missouri Botanical Garden Library. In the front of the volume is a
xerox of a letter dated 1937 from Flora Mitten to William Steere, Department
of Botany, Michigan University. It states in this letter that this sketchbook
was originally offered to The New York Botanical Garden but no reply was
received. She states that the War was probably the reason for this.
RELATED COLLECTIONS
The New York Botanical Garden
CFN Numbers 231-33
Processed April 1999 by Stephen Sinon 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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