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Agnes Arber Facts & Worksheets

Agnes Arber was a botanist and plant morphologist who was born in London, England on February 23, 1879.

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Agnes Arber was a botanist and plant morphologist who was born in London, England on February 23, 1879. She was the first woman to be elected as a Fellow of the Royal Society and to receive the Gold Medal of the Linnean Society of London.

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Key Facts & Information

EARLY LIFE OF AGNES ARBER

  • Arber grew up with three younger siblings, a father who frequently provided art and drawing lessons, and a mother who instilled in her an early interest in plants.
  • During her time at the North London Collegiate School, Arber developed a fascination with botany.
  • She frequently contributed pieces to her school’s magazine and was active within the school’s science club.
  • At the North London Collegiate School, Arber met botanist and plant morphologist Ethel Sargant, who would later become her mentor and lifelong friend.
  • In 1897, Arber continued her studies at the University College in London where she received a bachelor of science degree with first-class honors and a scholarship to continue studying at Newham College in Cambridge in 1899.
  • While at school, Arber studied the anatomy and morphology of plants and worked as Sargent’s research assistant from 1902-1903.
  • Arber then returned to London’s University College, where she obtained her D.Sc. in 1905 and taught biology and botany until 1909.
  • Arber married a paleobotanist named Edward Alexander Newell and moved back to Cambridge; they had one child named Muriel Agnes Arber who was born in 1913 and became a geologist.
  • Arber was awarded a research fellowship from Newnham College in 1912, which was also the year she published her first book titled Herbals, Their Origin and
  • Evolution, pictured to the right.
  • Arber continued her research after her husband’s death in 1918.

CONTRIBUTIONS TO SCIENCE

  • Arber continued to work at the Balfour Laboratory of Newnham College, and in the 1920s she authored two other books as well as 94 publications that focused on the morphology and anatomy of the monocot type and group of plants, largely inspired by her mentor Ethel Sargant.
  • Her third book was titled The Monocotyledons, which consisted of a study on the morphological methods of the analysis she presented in her previous book, Water Plants: A Study of Aquatic Angiosperms.
  • Once she had published her third book, she shifted her research focus onto the Gramineae group of plants – in particular, bamboo, grasses, and cereals.
  • Thanks to her father’s drawing lessons as a child, Arber was able to accompany her works with brilliant and detailed illustrations that outlined the concepts in her book.
  • The Balfour Lab closed in 1927, so she set up a laboratory in her own home (after being refused to use labs at various universities) which is exactly what her mentor had done.
  • Throughout the 1930s and early 1940s, Arber conducted research about the structure of flowers, and in 1942 she published her last major paper about organic botanical research; from that point on, all of her publications concerned historical and philosophical topics.

PHILOSOPHY STUDIES

  • The second world war made the maintenance of her in-home laboratory difficult, as she couldn’t access supplies easily.
  • She decided instead to concentrate on philosophical and historical issues.
  • Arber drew on her fascination with the work of Goethe to delve into the world of philosophy.
  • The late 1940s and early 1950s saw the publication of several philosophical books from Arber that had a biological and botanical interpretation to them.
  • An interesting aspect of Arber’s work is that it often tracked her change of focus from morphology to the history and philosophy of scientific thought.
  • Her final book, The Manifold and the One (1957) examined wider philosophical questions that drew on themes contained in literature, philosophy, and religion.

THE LEGACY OF AGNES ARBER

  • Agnes Arber died on March 22, 1960, at the age of 81.
  • Although she was considered one of the most important botanists of her time, she lived quite modestly with a preference for quiet, solitude, and devotion to her work and daughter, who lived with her until Arber’s death.
  • Through her mentoring of various botany students, she came to be known as a kind and gracious person.
  • She became the first female botanist to be elected as a Fellow of the Royal Society of London, as well as the first recipient of the Gold Medal of the Linnean Society.
  • Arber’s daughter Muriel followed in her footsteps and pursued a career in geology and science.
  • A blue plaque was installed at her childhood home in London in 2018.

Agnes Arber Worksheets

This is a fantastic bundle that includes everything you need to know about the Agnes Arber across 20 in-depth pages. These are ready-to-use Agnes Arber worksheets that are perfect for teaching students about Agnes Arber who was a botanist and plant morphologist who was born in London, England on February 23, 1879. She was the first woman to be elected as a Fellow of the Royal Society and to receive the Gold Medal of the Linnean Society of London.

Complete List Of Included Worksheets

  • Agnes Arber Facts
  • Quote Analysis
  • The Plant-Philosophy Connection
  • Botanical Vocabulary
  • Design a Commemorative Bill
  • Agnes Arber Crossword
  • Popular Book Summaries
  • A Sketching Lesson
  • Goethe and Arber
  • Agnes Arber Wordsearch
  • Role Models

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