Anderson, Robert Henry (1899 - 1969)

Summary

Robert Anderson was a botanist who joined the National Herbarium of New South Wales in 1921. Much of his early work involved providing routine plant identifications and advice to farmers. In 1945 he was appointed both Chief Botanist and Curator of the Herbarium and Director of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Sydney. This situation was made difficult by the rigid administrative and financial separation of the two institutions, even though they situated together. Anderson built up the staff of the Herbarium, including the appointment of a field collector, and started the Herbarium's first scientific journal, Contributions from the New South Wales National Herbarium. He also stemmed the decline of the Gardens. Anderson's taxonomic research was mostly on the family Chenopodiaceae. His collections are in the Herbarium.

Details

Chronology

1921 - 1936

Career position - Botanical assistant, National Herbarium of New South Wales

1925 - 1966

Career position - Lecturer in forestry, University of Sydney

1936 - 1945

Career position - Botanist and Curator, National Herbarium of New South Wales

1940 - 1941

Career position - President, Linnean Society of New South Wales

1945 - 1960

Career position - Director, Royal Botanic Gardens of New South Wales

1945 - 1960

Career position - Chief Botanist and Curator, National Herbarium of New South Wales

1960 - 1964

Career position - Director and Chief Botanist, Royal Botanic Gardens, Sydney

1966 - 1969

Award - Honorary Fellow, Australian and New Zealand Association for the Advancement of Science

1966 - 1969

Career position - Honorary Secretary, Linnean Society of New South Wales

Related entries

Published resources

Books

• Anderson, R. H., Tree planting on the farm (Sydney: Government Printer, 1931), 73 pp. Details
• Anderson, R. H., The trees of New South Wales (Sydney: Government Printer, 1932), 244 pp. Details
• Anderson, R. H., An ABC of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Sydney (Sydney: Government Printer, 1965), 86 pp. Details
• Gilbert, Lionel, The Royal Botanic Gardens, Sydney: a History 1816-1985 (Melbourne: Oxford University Press, 1986), 224 pp. Details

Book Sections

• Johnson, L. A. S., 'Anderson, Robert Henry (1899 - 1969), botanist' in Australian dictionary of biography, volume 13: 1940 - 1980 A-De, John Ritchie, ed. (Melbourne: Melbourne University Press, 1993), pp. 51-2, https://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/anderson-robert-henry-9359. Details

Journal Articles

• Froggatt, Walter W., 'The Curators and Botanists of the Botanic Gardens, Sydney.', Royal Australian Historical Society, xviii (III) (1932), 101-133. Details

See also

• Fagg, Murray, 'Anderson, Robert Henry (1899 - 1969)', Australian Plant Collectors and Illustrators, Council of Heads of Australian Herbaria (CHAH), 2010, https://www.anbg.gov.au/biography/anderson-robert-h.html. Details
• Maiden, J. H., Sydney Botanic Gardens: biographical notes concerning the officers in charge, 4 vols (Sydney: The Gardens, 1902-1903). Details
• Maiden, J. H., 'Records of Australian botanists:- (a) general; (b) New South Wales', Journal and Proceedings of The Royal Society of New South Wales, 42 (1908), 60-132. Details