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Merrill, Elmer Drew, 1876-1956. Papers of Elmer Drew Merrill (1922-1956): A Finding Aid

  • ️Mon Mar 07 2067
IB EDM Arnold Arboretum Archives, Jamaica Plain
Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138
June 2003

© 2003 Presidents and Fellows of Harvard College

Descriptive Summary

Repository: Arnold Arboretum Archives of Harvard University, Jamaica Plain
Call No.: IB EDM
Creator: Elmer Drew Merrill, 1876-1956
Title: Papers,1922-1956
Quantity: 1.3 linear feet, 2 boxes

Processing Information:

Processed: February 2003

By: Sheila Connor

Acquisition Information:

After his first year at Harvard, Merrill transferred his headquarters from the Gray Herbarium to Jamaica Plain, Massachusetts. He lived on the Arboretum property at 690 Centre Street until his death in 1956. The Elmer Drew Merrill papers were acquired during his tenure from 1935-1946, and thereafter until 1957. The HOLLIS # for this collection is 008047512 and the file name is ajp00017.

Access Restrictions:

Researchers seeking to examine archival materials are strongly encouraged to make an appointment. The Director, or an office of origin, may place restrictions on the use of some or all of its records. The extent and length of the restriction will be determined by the Director, office of origin, and the Archivist and will be enforced equally for all researchers.

Use Restrictions:

The copyright is held by The President and Fellows of Harvard College for the Arnold Arboretum Archives of Harvard University. The copyright on some materials in the collection may be held by the original author or the author's heirs or assigns. Researchers are responsible for obtaining written permission from the holder(s) of copyright and the Arnold Arboretum Archives prior to publishing any quotations or images from materials in this collection.

Photocopies may be made at the discretion of the Arnold Arboretum Archives staff. Permission to make photocopies does not constitute permission to reproduce or publish materials outside the bounds of the fair use guidelines.

Historical Note

Elmer Drew Merrill (1876-1956) was both a productive scientist and an able administrator. Director of the Arnold Arboretum from 1935 to 1946, Merrill initiated steps toward more efficient use of resources and a greater focus on horticulture. Merrill specialized in the flora of Asia and published nearly 500 papers and books.

Elmer Merrill was born and raised in East Auburn, Maine. He graduated from the University of Maine in 1898, and stayed on as a graduate assistant in natural science, earning a master's in botany even though no formal training was offered in the field. Recognized as a major contributor to the field of botany by the 1930's, Merrill received honorary Doctor of Science degrees from University of Maine, Harvard University, and later from University of California and Yale. In 1899 he took a job in Washington as an assistant agrostologist (a specialist in grasses) at the Department of Agriculture.

In 1902, Merrill went to the Philippines, where he was a botanist for the USDA and the Bureau of Forestry. He spent the next 22 years there, working toward compiling a comprehensive flora of the Philippines, visiting every large island and many of the smaller ones. He taught botany at the University of the Philippines and became director of its Bureau of Science in 1919.

Merrill returned to the United States in 1924 to become dean of the College of Agriculture at the University of California and director of the Agricultural Experiment Station. He led a reorganization of a faculty of 350 that emphasized upgrading of academic training of staff, added buildings and equipment, augmented the budget significantly, and stressed fundamental research, with a goal of "a university education on the basis of agriculture, [as] opposed to vocational instruction in agriculture."

(Merrill, 1953, p.363) 1

Despite Merrill's heavy administrative responsibilities, he found time for work in systematic botany, adding hundreds of thousands of mounted specimens to University herbaria and publishing papers and books. At 5'4," Merrill was called a "tiny dynamo."

In 1929, Merrill accepted an appointment as director of the New York Botanic Garden. Despite severe budgetary constraints arising from the Great Depression, Merrill was able to use workers from work relief programs to upgrade the grounds and for extensive herbarium work.

In 1935, at the age of 59, Elmer Merrill came to Harvard University as Arnold Professor and administrator of botanical collections. His appointment of Donald Wyman to the new position of horticulturist signaled an emphasis on the living collection and on publications and activities educating the gardening public. Merrill campaigned from the outset for consolidation of the separate units within the Harvard botany department, decrying the duplication of effort and expense, and laid the groundwork for the Bailey Plan of reorganization that was proposed in 1946. His administration had to deal with the destruction caused by the devastating hurricane of 1938 and the labor shortages during World War II.

Merrill's knowledge of the Pacific Islands and their flora proved extremely useful during the war. Merrill compiled a handbook of "Emergency food plants and Poisonous plants of the islands of the Pacific,"which was published by the War Department and used as the basis for survival manuals issued to the troops.

Merrill continued his research after his retirement in 1946. His funded programs of field work, contacts with botanists in Asia, and Arboretum grants led to locating fruiting trees of Metasequoia in China, which Merrill described as a "living fossil" and delighted in widely distributing its seeds. Elmer Merrill, through a productive lifetime of work, was responsible for building the body of scientific knowledge through the compilation of over one million sheets of herbarium specimens and hundreds of publications.

Scope and Content

The bulk of Merrill papers are from E. D. Merrill's tenure as Arnold Arboretum Director (1935-1946), although there is some material related to his career as a botanist before and after the years during which he held the director's position. There is also biographical material, a letter book from 1903, and some photographs that were assembled and added to the collection by Arboretum staff.

In addition to the nearly 500 publications, Merrill was also an active correspondent. The letters primarily reflect Merrill's years from 1935-46 as Administrator of the Botanical Collections, but also include earlier letters from 1924 and extends beyond his retirement into 1954.

Known for his keen abilities as an administrator, the letters give details of Merrill's policies of promoting plant collecting by native botanists, which produced herbarium specimens collected from China, India, Java, the Philippines, Japan and elsewhere. Letters promoting botanical exchanges and collaboration with other institutions such as the Fairchild Tropical Garden, the Smithsonian, University of California, USDA, Duke University, New York Botanical Garden, Missouri Botanical Garden, Instituto Miguel Lillo-Argentina, Instituto Biologic-Colombia, Royal Botanic Gardens-Kew, Imperial Forestry Institute-England, Botanic Gardens Brisbane, Australian National University, etc. are included.

Numerous letters to Harvard administrators include financial statements and discussions of the Case Estates, Atkins Institute, Bussey Institution, Gray herbarium, Harvard Forest, Innisfree Estate, the Rose Garden Fund, the Rock Garden Fund, staff appointments, and fundraising.

1. Merrill, E. D. 1953. Autobiographical: Early years, the Philippines, California. Asa Gray Bulletin, n.s. 2:355-70.

The collection consists of 2 boxes and is arranged into the following four series: I. Biographical Material; II. Merrill Memoranda; III. Photographs; and IV. Merrill Correspondence A-Z

Topics include Administrative Policies and Decisions, Fund raising, Grants for Botanical Field Work, Herbarium Expansion & Specimen Loans, Plant Collecting Expeditions & Subscription, Plant Identification & Nomenclature, Plant & Seed Exchanges, Literature Exchanges, and Staff Appointments. Correspondents from around the world include Herbarium Curators, Directors of Botanical Arboreta, Gardens, and Museums, Botanists, Horticulturists, and other prominent scholars in the botanical field.

Container List

  • BOX 1
  • Series: I: Biographical Material
    • Folder 1 Biographical Material
      • 1935. "Merrill Picked for Harvard Botanical Post." New York Herald Tribune, July 5, 1935.
      • 1938. Alton Hall Blackington "Yankee Yarns" Typescript of interview with E. D. Merrill.
      • 1956. Howard, Richard A. "Elmer Drew Merrill 1876-1956."Journal of the Arnold Arboretum 37(3):197-216. July 1956.
      • 1956. Rollins, Reed. "Elmer Drew Merrill, Administrator and Botanist." Science. v. 123, no. 3202. 5/11/56.
      • 1957. Schultes, Richard Evans. "Elmer Drew Merrill-An Appreciation." Taxon 6(4):89-101. May 1957.
      • 1998. Hay, Ida. "E. D. Merrill, From Maine to Manila." Arnoldia 54(1):11-19. 1998.
      • 1939. One 6" x 8" Envelope. Merrill, Elmer Drew. Transmission of Linnean Gold Medal with presentation address by J. Ramsbottom.
      • 1935. One 4" x 5" file card. Personnel Employment Data Card, Official Title Documents Supervisor of Arnold Arboretum and Director of Arnold Arboretum
      • 1993. 1 New York Botanic Garden letter & accompanying documents. The New York Botanical Garden. From John F. Reed to Dr. Richard A. Howard. & Harding, Charles B.
      • 1954. Dr. Elmer D. Merrill. The Elmer Drew Merrill Fund. The New York Botanical Garden. & New York Botanic Garden Building Manager Executive Committee Meeting Minutes, 1955-2 pages.
      • 1998. E-mail Notice. Ida Hay Talk, "Elmer Drew Merrill's Years as Director of the Arnold Arboretum."
    • Folder 2 Biographical Material Assembled by Dr. Richard A. Howard
      • 1952. Rogers, David C. D. Professors Squabble Over Seeds from China's Living Fossil Trees. The Harvard Crimson. Dec. 9.
      • 1956. Burkill, I. H. Professor E. D. Merrill. Nature 177: 687-688. April 14, 1956. 5 Reprints.
      • 1956. Chevalier, M. Auguste. Elmer Drew Merrill. Academie des Sciences. [French] Reprint. April 25, 1956.
      • 1956. Kobuski, Clarence E., et. al. Elmer Drew Merrill. Harvard University Gazette. Oct. 17, 1956.
      • 1946-1958, 1993. Thirty + Assorted Letters, Memoranda, Chronological Notes on Merrill's Life Work, Excerpts from Official Register of Harvard University Report of the President of Harvard College and reports of departments 1930's.
  • Series: II: Memoranda
    • Folder 3 Memoranda 1930-1957.

      These memoranda are either addressed to either the staff of the arboretum not, not addressed to a specific recipient, or the recipient is unknown. Some material dating from 1954 includes correspondence from R. A. Howard.

  • Series: III: Photographs
    • Folder 4 Photographs/Portraits
      • 1922. Photo taken in Melbourne, Australia, Aug. 1922
      • 1933-1934. Photo taken in New York, 1933 or 1934
      • 1935. Caricature from Proceedings 6th Botanical Congress1 mounted print, 2 copies, 1 enlargement, 1 negative
      • 1936. Gift of E. D. Merrill Dec., 1936. 1 mounted print, 1 copy
      • 1936. (very similar to 1936 image) nd.
      • 1947. Arnold Arboretum Library, June 1947, 1950, (1967)

        Original photo by L.O. Williams, Honduras, 1950 copied by H[eman] H[oward] 3/7/67. 1 mounted print, 2 8x10, 3 4x5

      • 1953. E. D. Merrill [and] Paul Standley.

        March 1953, n.d In herbarium holding folder ca 1930's

  • BOX 2
  • Series: IV: Correspondence, A-Z

    (Some correspondents are listed - usually those that have numerous letters, but this list does not include the entire collection.)

    • A
      • Ames, Oakes, Arnold Arboretum discussions with Mrs. Larz Anderson on donating the Bonsai Collection. 49 letters
    • B
      • Bartlett, H. H. of the University of Michigan, 20 Letters
      • Bailey, I. W. (and Manglesdorf) 2 memoranda.7 letters.
      • Beck, Walter concerning the Innisfree Estate of New York.
      • Biswas, K. of Calcutta RBG. 23 Letters
      • Brass, L. J. American Museum of Natural History.19 Letters
      • Buck, Paul H of Harvard. 42 letters
    • C
      • Cabot, Dr. Funding of the Metasequoia expedition (See Cabot letters dated 5/3/48, 3/26/48, 7/28/48). 3 Letters
      • Case, Marion Roby. Hillcrest Gardens.
      • Cline, Dr. to Harvard Forest address finances and administrative topics. 50+ letters
      • Conant, James B. Harvard University (Bussey Institute, Gray Herbarium, Harvard Forest, Staff appointments. 32 letters
    • D-E
      • Degener, Otto. regarding Hawaiian and Philippine species. 23 Letters
      • Descole, Horatio. Instituto Miguel Lillo, Argentina. 33 Letters
      • Dickason, F. G. Judson College, Rangoon, Burma; etc. 12 Letters
      • Drury, Aubrey. (Metasequoia/Chany) 1 letter.
      • East, E. Sax, Karl, Biological Laboratories, 1 letter.
    • F-G
      • Gleason, H. A. New York Botanical Garden. 21 letters
    • H-I-J
      • Hagerup, O. Universitetets Botaniske Museum, Copenhagen, Denmark.15 letters
      • Hill, Sir Arthur, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, Surrey, England. 17 letters
      • Hisaw, Dr. 1 memorandum, 1 letter
      • Humbert, H. Paris Museum. 17 letters
      • Jack, J. G. Arboretum staff. 1 memorandum
      • Jewett, Frank. National Academy of Science President. 14 letters.
      • Johnson, Ivan M. Arboretum staff 5 memoranda
      • Judd, G. Arboretum Propagator. I memorandum.
    • K-L
      • Lam, Dr. Director Rijksherbarium, Leiden, The Netherlands. 19 letters
      • Long, William. Chairman, Park Department, Boston, MA . 20 letters.
    • M
      • McKelvey, Susan Delano. Arnold Arboretum, 7 letters
      • Moe, Henry Allen. Guggenheim Foundation, New York, N.Y, 20 letters.
    • N-P
      • 0 letters
    • Q-R
      • Merrill to Alfred Rehder while at New York Botanical Garden & Univ. of Calif. 1924-1933
      • Quisumbing, E. Bureau of Science, Manila, Philippine Islands, 29 letters
      • Robbins, William J. Director, New York Botanic Gardens, Bronx, N.Y. 25 letters
    • S-T
      • Sargent, Charles S., 3 letters
      • Sax, Karl. Arboreum staff. 1 memorandum. 2 memoranda from (includes letter from I. W. Bailey)
      • Schmitt, L. Arboretum staff. 1 memorandum.
      • Shepard, Ward. Harvard Forest, Petersham, MA. 49 letters.
      • Smith Dr. A. C. New York Botanical Garden, Bronx Park, New York. 15 letters
      • Smith, Sir William. Royal Botanic Garden, Edinburgh, Scotland. 26 letters
      • Spurr, Steven. Harvard Forest, Petersham, MA. 35 letters.
      • Stillman, E. G. 45 East 75th St. New York, N.Y. 21 letters
    • T-V
      • 0 letters
    • W-Z
      • Wilson, E.H. Arnold Arboretum one letter from
      • Walker, E. H. Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C. 17 letters
      • Wister, John C. Pennyslvania Horticultural Society. 2 letters
      • Wittrock, G. L. New York Botanical Garden, Bronx, N.Y. 21 letters.
      • Wyman, D. Arboretum Horticulturist. 4 memoranda ( 1 to Wyman & J.G. Judd), 1 letter, and 1 memorandum from
      • Merrill Letterbook 1903

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