April 1898: 120 years ago

​We don’t always think of trees when we think spring wildflowers. But trees can have flowers too.  Many trees flower in early spring, before leafing out. Many of these flowers are small and inconspicuous, and wind pollinated. This specimen of sugar maple (Acer saccharum) was collected in April 1898 in Olena, Ohio. This specimen was collected by Otto Jennings, one of the first botany curators at the Carnegie Museum.  But this specimen is especially cool because it was one of his first collections, collected in his hometown, years before he became curator.
 
Jennings (1877-1964) was born on a farm in Olena, Ohio.  He collected this species in Olena when he was 21 years old, the year he started as a student at the Ohio State University.  Jennings started his 60-year tenure at the Carnegie Museum six years later, in 1904. He made many contributions throughout his career, serving as the Curator of Botany, Director of Education, and eventually Director of the Carnegie Museum of Natural History.  He also was Professor of Head of the Department of Biological Sciences at the University of Pittsburgh, having advised many students.  His legacy remains to this day for his influence on the museum, botany, conservation, and environmental education.