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Fall 2023: History and Anthropology of European Colonial Shipboard Plant Transportation, 18th-19th Centuries

Affiliations: Aggie Research Mentoring Program
Project Leader: Catherine Brooks
catherine.g.brooks@tamu.edu
Anthropology
Faculty Mentor: Kevin Crisman, Ph.D.
Meeting Times:
TBA
Team Size:
3
Open Spots: 0
Special Opportunities:
Developing database and archival research skills, possibility of co-presenting findings at the TAMU Anthropology Conference or Student Research Week in the Spring, exploring the fields of Anthropology and Archaeology, mentoring for writing, editing, and research skills, as well as graduate school applications.
Team Needs:
Mandatory: Ability to read cursive handwriting in archival documents
Bonus: Basic Excel and Word skills, basic photo editing skills, experience with archival databases
For a special side project: Ability to read cursive handwriting in Dutch from archival documents
Description:
The aim of this project is to compile a database of information about the transportation of living plant specimens enacted by colonial empires in the 18th and 19th centuries, with a primary focus on the British Empire. From this information, we hope to inquire about the understanding of the mechanics and logistics of transporting living plants in the age of sail; which specimens were transported as living plants (as opposed to seeds or pressed in herbariums) and why; who were key players in these undertakings; how the institutionalization of science in the 18th century impacted the field of botany; differential access to take part in the creation of botanical knowledge (along gendered and racial lines), and the impacts this has had on the field to this day; and the ecological and cultural impacts of plant transfers around the world, from invasive species to changing diets.

The main goal of this project is the editing, analysis, and compilation of relevant information from archival documents collected in-person in the UK from the British Library, Kew Gardens Archives, Greenwich Maritime Museum, and British National Archives during the summer of 2023. Documents include handwritten notes, shipboard journals, personal and Admiralty letters, official documents, scientific society papers, and colonial reports. Most are dated from 1750-1900, some by famous historical figures like Captain James Cook, Captain William Bligh, and naturalist Sir Joseph Banks.
Secondarily, a search for references to the transportation of living plants and into the lives of botanists and plant illustrators will be conducted by mining the digital databases of the British Library Manuscripts Collection, Kew Gardens, Greenwich Maritime Museum and the British National Archives for any relevant digitized documents (including maps, illustrations, and artefacts).

 

Written by:
América Soto-Arzat
Published on:
September 14, 2023

Categories: FullTags: Fall 2023

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