Charlotte Goodding Reeder (born Charlotte Olive Goodding; July 26, 1916 – October 23, 2009) was an American agrostologist who was active in identifying the flora of

Arizona Arizona is a U.S. state, state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States, sharing the Four Corners region of the western United States with Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah. It also borders Nevada to the nort ...

. The abbreviation C.O.Goodd. has also been used.

Biography

Reeder was born on July 26, 1916, in

Flagstaff, Arizona Flagstaff ( ), known locally as Flag, is the county seat of Coconino County, Arizona, in the southwestern United States. As of the 2020 United States census, the city's population was 76,831. Flagstaff is the principal city of the Coconino Cou ...

. She was the daughter of accomplished botanist

Leslie Newton Goodding Leslie Newton Goodding (1880–1967) was an American botanist who was considered an expert in the flora of the Southwestern United States. Biography Goodding attended the University of Wyoming from 1899 to 1903, learning botany under Aven Nelson ...

. Picking up from her father, she began to help him identify species in Arizona. She attended the

University of Wyoming The University of Wyoming (UW) is a Public university, public land-grant university, land-grant research university in Laramie, Wyoming, United States. It was founded in March 1886, four years before the territory was admitted as the 44th state, ...

, earning her

M.A. A Master of Arts ( or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA or AM) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Those admitted to the degree have ...

in 1939 for her thesis on ''

Muhlenbergia ''Muhlenbergia'' is a genus of plants in the grass family. The genus is named in honor of the German-American amateur botanist Gotthilf Heinrich Ernst Muhlenberg (1753-1815). Many of the species are known by the common name muhly. The greatest ...

''.Reeder, Charlotte Olive (1916-)
/ref> She then took classes at

Oregon State University Oregon State University (OSU) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Corvallis, Oregon, United States. OSU offers more than 200 undergraduate degree programs and a variety of graduate and doctor ...

where she met John R. Reeder. The two married in 1941. With her husband conscripted in the military during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, Reeder went to work at the

Smithsonian Institution The Smithsonian Institution ( ), or simply the Smithsonian, is a group of museums, Education center, education and Research institute, research centers, created by the Federal government of the United States, U.S. government "for the increase a ...

under

Agnes Chase Mary Agnes Chase (April 29 1869 – September 24 1963) was an American botanist who specialized in agrostology, the study of grasses. Although lacking formal education past elementary school, Chase was able to rise through the ranks as a botanis ...

. Upon John's return from the war, he took a post at

Yale University Yale University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701, Yale is the List of Colonial Colleges, third-oldest institution of higher education in the United Stat ...

and the couple moved to

Connecticut Connecticut ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York (state), New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. ...

. Reeder continued her studies on ''Muhlenbergia'', titling herself "Rogue Botanist". The Reeders moved to Wyoming in 1968, where they collaborated on work at the Rocky Mountain Herbarium of the University of Wyoming. In 1976, they moved to

Tucson, Arizona Tucson (; ; ) is a city in Pima County, Arizona, United States, and its county seat. It is the second-most populous city in Arizona, behind Phoenix, Arizona, Phoenix, with a population of 542,630 in the 2020 United States census. The Tucson ...

, to research at the

University of Arizona The University of Arizona (Arizona, U of A, UArizona, or UA) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Tucson, Arizona, United States. Founded in 1885 by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, it ...

Herbarium. After a severe car accident, the two decided to retire.

Legacy

The genus '' Reederochloa'' and species '' Muhlenbergia reederorum'' were named in honor of the Reeders by

Thomas Robert Soderstrom Thomas Robert Soderstrom (9 January 1936 Chicago – 1 September 1987) was an American agrostologist His special field of study was the grass family Gramineae or Poaceae. He was Curator of Grasses at the National Museum of Natural History in Was ...

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Reeder, Charlotte Goodding 1916 births 2009 deaths American botanists Agrostologists