Lady Katherine Sophia Kane (''née'' Baily; 11 March 1811 – 25 February 1886) was an Irish

botanist Botany, also called plant science, is the branch of natural science and biology studying plants, especially Plant anatomy, their anatomy, Plant taxonomy, taxonomy, and Plant ecology, ecology. A botanist or plant scientist is a scientist who s ...

, best known for her book on Irish flowering plants ''The Irish Flora'' (1833).

Life

Katherine Sophia Baily was born 11 March 1811, the only child of Henry and Bridget Baily (née O'Kelly). Her father was from

Berkshire Berkshire ( ; abbreviated ), officially the Royal County of Berkshire, is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Oxfordshire to the north, Buckinghamshire to the north-east, Greater London ...

, England, and he moved around Ireland for his work as a distiller. Her uncle was the astronomer and vice-president of the Royal Society,

Francis Baily Francis Baily (28 April 177430 August 1844) was an English astronomer. He is most famous for his observations of " Baily's beads" during a total eclipse of the Sun. Baily was also a major figure in the early history of the Royal Astronomical S ...

. After the deaths of both her parents at a young age, Katherine was raised by her uncle Matthias O'Kelly of Rochestown House,

Killiney Killiney () is an affluent coastal suburb on the southside of Dublin, Ireland. It lies south of Dalkey, east and northeast of Ballybrack and Sallynoggin and north of Shankill, in the local government area of Dún Laoghaire–Rathdown within ...

County Dublin County Dublin ( or ) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland, and holds its capital city, Dublin. It is located on the island's east coast, within the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster. Until 1994, County Dubli ...

. Matthias had an interest in natural history as one of his own sons,

Joseph O'Kelly Joseph O'Kelly (29 January 1828 – 9 January 1885), composer, pianist and choral conductor, was the most prominent member of a family of Irish musicians in 19th- and early 20th-century France. He wrote nine operas, four cantatas, numerous piano ...

, went on to become a geologist. Katherine married Robert Kane in 1838. It is believed that she met Robert Kane after the proof of ''The Irish Flora'' was sent to him in error. When her husband was elected President of the newly formed Queen's College Cork, Lady Kane refused to move there, preferring to stay in Dublin, tending to her collection of exotic plants. The Kanes had seven surviving children, including Robert Romney Kane and

Henry Coey Kane Admiral Sir Henry Coey Kane (3 December 1843 – 30 January 1917) was a Royal Navy officer. Biography He was the second son of Sir Robert Kane, the Irish chemist, and entered the Royal Navy as a cadet in 1853 having been educated at St. Vin ...

. She died 25 February 1886 in Dublin.

Botanical work

The 1833 Linnean botanical work ''The Irish Flora'', which was published anonymously, is ascribed to her. Katherine was aged 22 at the time of its first publication and although not a large work, it was one of the first of its kind, and lauded for its accuracy. The book became the recommended botany text in

Trinity College, Dublin Trinity College Dublin (), officially titled The College of the Holy and Undivided Trinity of Queen Elizabeth near Dublin, and legally incorporated as Trinity College, the University of Dublin (TCD), is the sole constituent college of the Univ ...

as it contained the first record of many plants. It is believed John White, of the Irish Botanic Gardens, helped with the compilation of the work, and that it was Dr. Walter Wade who encouraged her in this work. In 1836, the then 25-year-old Katherine became the first woman to be elected member of the

Botanical Society of Edinburgh Botany, also called plant science, is the branch of natural science and biology studying plants, especially their anatomy, taxonomy, and ecology. A botanist or plant scientist is a scientist who specialises in this field. "Plant" and "botany ...

, and her

herbarium A herbarium (plural: herbaria) is a collection of preserved plant biological specimen, specimens and associated data used for scientific study. The specimens may be whole plants or plant parts; these will usually be in dried form mounted on a sh ...

is housed in

University College Cork University College Cork – National University of Ireland, Cork (UCC) () is a constituent university of the National University of Ireland, and located in Cork (city), Cork. The university was founded in 1845 as one of three Queen's Universit ...

. She had an interest in the cultivation of trees, writing about the subject for the ''Irish Farmer's and Gardener's Magazine''.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kane, Katherine Sophia 1811 births 1886 deaths 19th-century Irish women scientists 19th-century Irish botanists Irish women botanists