Fayette F. Forbes

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Fayette Frederick Forbes
Born(1851-05-09)May 9, 1851[1]
Buckland, Massachusetts, United States of America
DiedNovember 20, 1935(1935-11-20) (aged 84)[1]
Brookline, Massachusetts, United States of America
Scientific career
FieldsBotany.
Signature

Fayette Frederick Forbes (1851-1935), was a water engineer, plant collector, and botanist with a particular interest in algae and diatoms. At the time of his death he also held the record for the longest-serving public servant in "nearly 100 cities and towns" of the United States of America.[2]

Life[edit]

Forbes was born on 9 May 1851 in Buckland, Massachusetts and after completing public schooling, he undertook further studies at Ashfield before entering the scientific department of Williston Seminary at the age of 19.[3] He went on to work at the Holyoke Water Works as a civil engineer,[4] Forbes' obituary in the Mueller Record states that he worked as an instructor at Williston Seminary before working as an engineer for the railroad companies.[4] before working for the Troy & Greenfield Rail Road and the Boston & Albany Rail Road companies.[3][5] On December 9, 1873, he was employed at the Brookline Water Works, the employer that he would remain with until the end of his life.[3] By 1876 he was promoted to superintendent of the Water Works.[3] During this period, presumably as a part of his duties as superintendent, he studied fresh water algae and diatoms. By the 1890s, he advertised his pre-prepared slides of diatoms, both strew mounts and in carefully arranged mounts.[6][7] In 1885 Forbes was elected to the membership of the New England Water Works Association, and served on the executive committee, and as the Association's president in 1898.[8][9] In 1927 he was elected to an honorary membership, and a commemorative award as commissioned in his honour, in 1949.[9]

He developed the water supply infrastructure of Brookline, including a new reservoir, wells, and according to the Mueller Record, in his lifetime he had "originated a method for separating different vegetable organisms which is now popularly known as the Forbes Method."[4] He was particularly interested in water quality, and in 1890 published his research into the growth of algae in water reservoirs, where he concluded that potable water reservoirs should be covered to ensure water quality.[10] He subsequently has been described, in the context of the problem of algal growth in drinking water supplies, as "probably the first to not only study the problem but also correct his system with a cover."[11]

Legacy[edit]

His personal herbarium of 16,000 specimen sheets was donated to the Gray Herbarium of Harvard University, and his Nachet-type drum compound microscope is held by the Ernst-Lewis Collection of Microscopes at Harvard University.[12][5] Other botanical specimens are held by the New England Botanical Club,[13] and the National Herbarium of Victoria, Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria,[14] the Royal Horticultural Society in the United Kingdom,[15] and the Natural History Museum, Oslo.[16]


He named the following species and hybrids:

  • Salix subsericea, F. F. Forbes[17]
  • Viola Brittoniana X lanceolata F.F.Forbes[18]

The following species and varieties was named in his honour:

Standard author abbreviation[edit]

The standard author abbreviation F.F.Forbes is used to indicate this person as the author when citing a botanical name.[23]

Further reading[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b "In Memoriam Fayette F. Forbes". Annual report of the town officers of Brookline for the year ending December 31 1935. Newton: Garden City Press. 1936. p. 209.
  2. ^ "Fayette F. Forbes Dead In Brookline: For 61 Years Supt of Water Department". Daily Boston Globe. Boston, Massachusetts. 21 November 1935. Retrieved 6 December 2021.
  3. ^ a b c d Denehy, John William (1906). A history of Brookline, Massachusetts, from the first settlement of Muddy River until the present time. Brookline: The Brookline press company. pp. 210–211.
  4. ^ a b c "Oldest Member of the N.E.W.W.A. Dies". Water & Sewage Works. 82 (12): 417. December 1935. Retrieved 5 January 2022.
  5. ^ a b "Fayette Frederick Forbes, 1851 - 1935". Collection of Historical Scientific Instruments, Harvard University. Retrieved 13 December 2021.
  6. ^ Stevenson, Brian (November 2020). "Fayette Frederick Forbes, 1851 - 1935". Historical Makers of Microscopes and Microscope Slides. Retrieved 13 December 2021. F.F. Forbes was an amateur microscope slide preparer who advertised during the 1890s to exchange his preparations of diatomaceae. He prepared both strews and arrangements of diatoms from specific localities.
  7. ^ Anderson, Tracy (20 August 2007). "Microscope slide from 1897". Flickr. Retrieved 13 December 2021.
  8. ^ "Over 60 Years Service: Death of Fayette F. Forbes, Brookline, Mass. at Age of 83" (PDF). Mueller Record. 25 (256): 5. January 1936. Retrieved 17 December 2021.
  9. ^ a b "Commemorative Award". New England Water Works Association. 63 (4): 365. 1949. Retrieved 8 September 2022.
  10. ^ F.F. Forbes (19 July 1890). "A Study of Algae Growth in Reservoirs and Ponds". Fire Engineering Journal. 8 (3). Retrieved 6 January 2022.
  11. ^ Kempe, Marcis (2006). A History of New England Water Supplies (PDF). New England Water Works Association. p. 95.
  12. ^ "Forbes, Fayette Frederick (1851-1935)". JSTOR Global Plants. Retrieved 13 December 2021.
  13. ^ "Forbes, Fayette Frederick". Harvard University Herbaria & Libraries: Index of Botanists. Retrieved 13 December 2021.
  14. ^ "Occurrence Records". Australasian Virtual Herbarium. Retrieved 3 February 2022.
  15. ^ "RHS Digital Collections". Royal Horticultural Society. Retrieved 13 November 2023.
  16. ^ "Fayette Frederick Forbes: Collected". Bionomia. Retrieved 13 November 2023.
  17. ^ F.F. Forbes (1909). "Salix subsericea a distinct species". Rhodera. 11: 9–12. Retrieved 7 September 2022.
  18. ^ F.F. Forbes (1909). "A new hybrid violet". Rhodera. 11: 14–15. Retrieved 7 September 2022.
  19. ^ Ad. Toepffer (1916). "Zur Nomenklatur einiger Salix-arten". Österreichische botanische Zeitschrift. 66: 399–403. Retrieved 7 September 2022.
  20. ^ "Salix × subsericea Döll". Plants of the World Online. Retrieved 7 September 2022.
  21. ^ Brainerd, Ezra (1921). Violets of North America. Free Press Printing Company. p. 79.
  22. ^ "Viola incognita var. forbesii". Plants of the World Online. Retrieved 7 September 2022.
  23. ^ International Plant Names Index.  F.F.Forbes.
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