Josephine Adelaide Clark (9 March 1856 – 24 March 1929) was an American teacher,

librarian A librarian is a person who professionally works managing information. Librarians' common activities include providing access to information, conducting research, creating and managing information systems, creating, leading, and evaluating educat ...

, and botanist. She was the head librarian of the

United States Department of Agriculture The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is an executive department of the United States federal government that aims to meet the needs of commercial farming and livestock food production, promotes agricultural trade and producti ...

from 1901 to 1907. Clark was a part of the second class to graduate from

Smith College Smith College is a Private university, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts Women's colleges in the United States, women's college in Northampton, Massachusetts, United States. It was chartered in 1871 by Sophia Smit ...

in 1880 and she conceived the idea of publishing a card index of new genera and species of American plants, which was continued at the Gray Herbarium.

Biography

Josephine Adelaide Clark was born on 9 March 1856 to John and Caroline (Derby) Clark in

Weston Weston may refer to: Places Australia * Weston, Australian Capital Territory, a suburb of Canberra * Weston, New South Wales * Weston Creek, a residential district of Canberra * Weston Park, Canberra, a park Canada * Weston, Nova Scotia * W ...

Massachusetts Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode ...

. She graduated from Waltham High School in 1873, and continued to teach there after graduation. In the fall of 1876 she began attending

and earned her

Bachelor of Arts A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...

in 1880. After graduation, she taught until 1888 when she began attending the Columbia College School of Library Economy in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

for library science. After graduation, Clark became the assistant librarian at the Gray Herbarium at

Harvard University Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...

. She became the Botanical Bibliographer for the Division of Botany at the U.S. Department of Agriculture in 1891 and quickly became the Assistant Librarian for the whole department. While working at the U.S. Department of Agriculture, she first compiled the index currently known as the Gray Herbarium Card Index which was the first available to botanists in a card format and published at regular intervals. The index was first published in catalog format in 1891 and compiled in a card format in 1894. The card format enabled the botanist to order alphabetically, systematic groups or geographical groups. Clark was the main organizer of the index until 1903 when she turned it over to Mary Anna Day at the Gray Herbarium with 27,999 cards. From 1901 to 1907 she was head librarian for the U.S. Department of Agriculture before returning to Smith College as librarian, a position she held until 1919. She died of pneumonia on March 24, 1929, in Claremont,

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

. Her papers are held by Smith College.

Publications

* "North American Phanerogams and Pteridophytes" (1891) * "Systematic And Alphabetic Index Of New Species Of North American Phanerogams And Pteridophytes," ''Contributions from the United States National Herbarium''. Department of Botany, Smithsonian Institution (1892) * "Reference list of publications relating to edible and poisonous mushrooms" (1898) * ''A Bird Tablet for Field Use'' (1898)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Clark, Josephine Adelaide 1856 births 1929 deaths American librarians American botanists American women librarians Smith College alumni United States Department of Agriculture people United States Department of Agriculture officials Waltham High School alumni Columbia University School of Library Service alumni