Person

Simmonds, John Howard (1862 - 1955)

Born: 15 July 1862
Carlton, Victoria, Australia
Died: 11 June 1955
Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
Occupation: Naturalist and Stonemason

Summary

John Simmonds, a stonemason by trade, made considerable contributions to the natural history of Queensland as a collector of fossils and particularly botanical specimens. Many of his collections were made in association with his wife Rose (née Culpin 1877 - 1960) and sometimes their elder son, also John Howard. Simmonds snr was a foundation member of the Royal Society of Queensland (RSQ) and, although his membership lapsed between 1903 and 1923, he was elected an Honorary Life member in 1931. He was also an original member of the Field Naturalists Section of the RSQ. These activities brought him into close association with some of Queensland's leading scientists and naturalists, including Frederick M. Bailey and Henry Tryon. On his death, Simmonds was remembered as a generous donor of specimens to the Society. Many of his botanical specimens are now in the Queensland Herbarium. His personal fossil collection was donated to the University of Queensland Department of Geology and subsequently transferred to the Queensland Museum.

Details

Chronology

1880: Career event - Apprenticed to J. Simmonds, Stonemason
1884 - 1903: Career position - Member, Royal Society of Queensland
1886 - 1894: Career position - Member, Field Naturalists' Section, Royal Society of Queensland
1889 - 1920: Career position - Owner, J. Simmonds, Stonemason
1920: Life event - Retired
1923 - 1931: Career position - Member, Royal Society of Queensland
1931 - 1955: Award - Honorary Life Member, Royal Society of Queensland

Related Corporate Bodies

Queensland Herbarium (1855 - )
The Herbarium holds many of Simmonds's plant specimens
Queensland Museum
Simmonds's fossil specimens are held by the Museum
Royal Society of Queensland (1884 - )
Foundation Member 1884; Honorary Life Member 1931 - 1955

Related People

Simmonds, John Howard (1901 - 1992)
The two Johns were father and son

Published resources

Book Sections

Purss, G. S., 'Simmonds, John Howard (Jack) (1901-1992), plant pathologist' in Australian dictionary of biography, volume 19: 1991 - 1995 A-Z, Melanie Nolan, ed. (Canberra: Australian National University Press, 2021), pp. 765-766, https://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/simmonds-john-howard-jack-16125. Details

Journal Articles

Dowe, John Leslie, 'A family's contribution to Queensland botany: John Howard Simmonds [Snr] (1862 - 1955), Rose Simmonds (née Culpin) (1877 - 1960) and John Howard Simmonds [Jnr] (1901 - 1992)', Austrobaileya, 10 (1) (2017), 168-83. Details

Helen Cohn

Created: 25 January 2022

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