Natural History

John Work Garrett Collection

Natural history was one of John Garrett's special interests, and this interest is reflected in the collection at Evergreen. John Garrett was a bird watcher throughout his life and, as would be expected, owned many of the most important and beautiful ornithological works ever produced. The most famous is John James Audubon's Birds of America, (1827-1838). This four volume "elephant folio" of four hundred thirty-five engravings is an exceptionally good copy. Other rarities include Audubon's Quadrupeds of North America, (1845-1848); a complete set of the works of British ornithologist John Gould; Edward Lear's Parrots (1832); Alexander Wilson's American Ornithology, (1808-1814), the first American bird book with colored plates to be published in America; the 1771 Natural History of Carolina, Florida and the Bahama Islands, by Mark Catesby, who was the first ornithologist to depict American birds in their botanical setting.

One of the better known of the great flower books in the collection is Pierre Joseph Redoute's Les Roses (1817-1824), perhaps the most technically accomplished plant portraits ever made.

Other books in the collection are fine copies of works by William Bartram, Joseph Hooker, Robert Thornton, J.J. Jung, Frederick Sander, Elizabeth Blackwell, James Edward Smith, and William Barton.

Peabody Natural History Collection

There is a superb group of natural history books at the Peabody, including the Histoire Generales des Insectes du Surinam et de toute l'Europe (1771) by Maria Sibylla Merian; the Illustrations of the Family of Psittacidae, or Parrots (1832) by Edward Lear, and Monograph of the...Family of Trogans by John Gould. Besides such spectacular publications, the Peabody holds more modest but often beautifully illustrated books on every aspect of natural history. The library has a fine set of the famous Flora Londinensis by William Curtis, and a 200-year run of the journal he founded, Curtis' Botanical Magazine. Also at the Peabody are other journals devoted to natural history, including the Auk and Ibis for ornithology.