Emma Nora Barlow, Lady Barlow (née Darwin; 22 December 1885 – 29 May 1989), was a British botanist and

geneticist A geneticist is a biologist or physician who studies genetics, the science of genes, heredity, and variation of organisms. A geneticist can be employed as a scientist or a lecturer. Geneticists may perform general research on genetic processes ...

. The granddaughter of the

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

naturalist

Charles Darwin Charles Robert Darwin ( ; 12 February 1809 – 19 April 1882) was an English naturalist, geologist, and biologist, widely known for his contributions to evolutionary biology. His proposition that all species of life have descended ...

, Barlow began her academic career studying

botany Botany, also called , plant biology or phytology, is the science of plant life and a branch of biology. A botanist, plant scientist or phytologist is a scientist who specialises in this field. The term "botany" comes from the Ancient Greek w ...

at Cambridge under Frederick Blackman, and continued her studies in the new field of

genetics Genetics is the study of genes, genetic variation, and heredity in organisms.Hartl D, Jones E (2005) It is an important branch in biology because heredity is vital to organisms' evolution. Gregor Mendel, a Moravian Augustinian friar wor ...

under

William Bateson William Bateson (8 August 1861 – 8 February 1926) was an English biologist who was the first person to use the term genetics to describe the study of heredity, and the chief populariser of the ideas of Gregor Mendel following their rediscove ...

from 1904 to 1906. Her primary research focus when working with Bateson was the phenomenon of herostylism within the primrose family. In later life she was one of the first Darwinian scholars, and founder of the

Darwin Industry The Darwin Industry refers to historical scholarship about, and the large community of historians of science working on, Charles Darwin's life, work, and influence. The term "has a slightly derogatory connotation, as if the scale of the research ...

of scholarly research into her grandfather's life and discoveries. She lived to 103.

Biography

Personal life

Nora, as she was known, was the daughter of the civil engineer Sir Horace Darwin and his wife The Hon. Ida, Lady Darwin (née Farrer), daughter of

Thomas Farrer, 1st Baron Farrer Thomas Henry Farrer, 1st Baron Farrer (24 June 1819 – 11 October 1899), was an English civil servant and statistician. Background and early life Farrer was the son of Thomas Farrer, a solicitor in Lincoln's Inn Fields. Born in London, he was ...

. Her elder brother

Erasmus Desiderius Erasmus Roterodamus (; ; English: Erasmus of Rotterdam or Erasmus;''Erasmus'' was his baptismal name, given after St. Erasmus of Formiae. ''Desiderius'' was an adopted additional name, which he used from 1496. The ''Roterodamus'' w ...

was killed during the

Second Battle of Ypres During the First World War, the Second Battle of Ypres was fought from for control of the tactically important high ground to the east and south of the Flemish town of Ypres in western Belgium. The First Battle of Ypres had been fought the pr ...

in 1915; She also had a sister,

Ruth Darwin Ruth Frances Darwin CBE (20 August 1883 – 15 October 1972) was Commissioner of the Board of Control for Lunacy and Mental Deficiency and an advocate of eugenics. Career Darwin was appointed to the Board of Control, as an unpaid member, in 1 ...

. In 1911 she married Alan Barlow, son of the Royal Physician Sir Thomas Barlow. They had six children: * Joan Helen Barlow (26 May 1912 – 21 February 1954) * Sir Thomas Erasmus Barlow, 3rd Baronet. (23 January 1914 – 12 October 2003), naval officer. *

Erasmus Darwin Barlow Erasmus Darwin Barlow, FRCPsych, Fellow of the Zoological Society of London, FZS (15 April 1915 – 2 August 2005) was a British psychiatrist, physiologist and businessman. Born in London in 1915, he was the second son of Sir Alan Barlow, son of S ...

(15 April 1915 – 2 August 2005) * Andrew Dalmahoy Barlow (16 September 1916 – 2006) * Hilda Horatia Barlow (14 September 1919 – 1 February 2017) married psychoanalyst

John Hunter Padel John Hunter Padel (3 May 1913 – 24 October 1999) was a British psychoanalyst and classicist. He was born in Carlisle, where his father Charles Padel was headmaster of Carlisle Grammar School. His mother was Mòrag (née Hunter), 3rd daughte ...

; their daughter is the poet

Ruth Padel Ruth Sophia Padel FRSL FZS is a British poet, novelist and non-fiction author, known for her poetic explorations of migration, both animal and human, and her involvement with classical music, wildlife conservation and Greece, ancient and modern. ...

. * Horace Basil Barlow (b. 8 December 1921 - 5 July 2020 ) Additionally, she temporarily cared for her cousin

Gwen Raverat Gwendolen Mary "Gwen" Raverat (née Darwin; 26 August 1885 – 11 February 1957), was an English wood engraver who was a founder member of the Society of Wood Engravers. Her memoir '' Period Piece'' was published in 1952. Biography Gwendolen ...

's daughters Elisabeth and Sophie during Gwen's breakdown after the death of her husband

Jacques Raverat Jacques Pierre Paul Raverat (pronounced Rav-er-ah) (20 March 1885– 6 March 1925) was a French painter; Raverat was the son of Georges Pierre Raverat and Helena Lorena Raverat, née Caron; he was born in Paris, France, in 1885. Raverat s ...

. She became Lady Barlow after her husband was knighted in 1938. She was widowed in 1968.

Cambridge University Library Cambridge University Library is the main research library of the University of Cambridge. It is the largest of the over 100 libraries within the university. The Library is a major scholarly resource for the members of the University of Cambri ...

has a painting of her in old age by her daughter-in-law Yvonne Barlow.

Scientific research

She worked as a research assistant at the John Innes Institute from 1905, and studied

plant genetics Plant genetics is the study of genes, genetic variation, and heredity specifically in plants.Hartl D, Jones E (2005) It is generally considered a field of biology and botany, but intersects frequently with many other life sciences and is strongly ...

under

at Cambridge in 1906, a centre for pioneering genetics research, and was an active member of the Cambridge University Genetics Society. She published papers on her study of the primrose flower in 1913 and 1923 which drew on her grandfather's ''

The Different Forms of Flowers on Plants of the Same Species ''The Different Forms of Flowers on Plants of the Same Species'' is a book by Charles Darwin first published in 1877. It is the fifth of his six books devoted solely to the study of plants (excluding ''The Variation of Animals and Plants Under D ...

''. She did not publish any further work after her marriage, but she continued her study in genetics throughout her family life. She carried out controlled cross pollinations, including in

aquilegia ''Aquilegia'' (common names: granny's bonnet, columbine) is a genus of about 60–70 species of perennial plants that are found in meadows, woodlands, and at higher altitudes throughout the Northern Hemisphere, known for the spurred petals Pu ...

. She visited the John Innes Institute every summer to observe the plants that had grown there. She was among the founders of the

Genetics Society The Genetics Society is a British learned society. It was founded by William Bateson and Edith Rebecca Saunders in 1919 and celebrated its centenary year in 2019. It is therefore one of the oldest learned societies devoted to genetics. Its member ...

in 1919, and regularly attended its meetings, maintaining contact with friends including

Ronald Fisher Sir Ronald Aylmer Fisher (17 February 1890 – 29 July 1962) was a British polymath who was active as a mathematician, statistician, biologist, geneticist, and academic. For his work in statistics, he has been described as "a genius who ...

Darwin's editor

Her first book as editor was a new edition of ''

The Voyage of the Beagle ''The Voyage of the Beagle'' is the title most commonly given to the book written by Charles Darwin and published in 1839 as his ''Journal and Remarks'', bringing him considerable fame and respect. This was the third volume of ''The Narrative ...

'' (1933). She published an unexpurgated version of '' The Autobiography of Charles Darwin'', which had previously had personal and religious material removed by his son, Francis. She also edited several collections of letters and notes, including correspondence between Darwin and

John Stevens Henslow John Stevens Henslow (6 February 1796 – 16 May 1861) was a British priest, botanist and geologist. He is best remembered as friend and mentor to his pupil Charles Darwin. Early life Henslow was born at Rochester, Kent, the son of a solicit ...

, his mentor.

Legacy

The Columbine flower cultivar ''Aquilegia'' "Nora Barlow" is named after her. Nora Barlow appears as a supporting character in Scott Westerfeld's 2009

young adult A young adult is generally a person in the years following adolescence. Definitions and opinions on what qualifies as a young adult vary, with works such as Erik Erikson's stages of human development significantly influencing the definition of ...

steampunk novels ''

Leviathan Leviathan (; he, לִוְיָתָן, ) is a sea serpent noted in theology and mythology. It is referenced in several books of the Hebrew Bible, including Psalms, the Book of Job, the Book of Isaiah, the Book of Amos, and, according to some ...

'', '' Behemoth'', and '' Goliath''. In Westerfeld's alternate history series, Barlow is re-imagined as a prominent genetic engineer and diplomat.

Bibliography

* 1933. ''Charles Darwin's Diary of the Voyage of HMS'' Beagle, editor. * 1946. ''Charles Darwin and the Voyage of the Beagle'', editor. (A collection of letters and notebooks from the voyage.) * 1958. ''The Autobiography of Charles Darwin, 1809–1882'', editor. * 1963. ''Darwin's Ornithological Notes'', editor. (Barlow also wrote the Introduction, Notes, and Appendix.) * 1967. ''Darwin and Henslow: The Growth of an Idea. Letters, 1831–1860'', editor.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Barlow, Nora 1885 births 1989 deaths Darwin–Wedgwood family English biographers English centenarians Women centenarians Wives of baronets