Frederick Andrews Walpole (17 January 1861 Port Douglas, Essex County, New York - 11 May 1904

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 ...

) was a botanical illustrator employed by 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 ...

. Walpole's documented life is fragmentary. In 1871 his family relocated to

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

where Frederick studied under an artist named Sloan, possibly Junius R. Sloan (1827–1900), a landscape and portrait painter of the period. In 1882 Walpole left Chicago and journeyed by rail to Southern Oregon to acquire land for a homestead. One of his journals records that on arriving at

Redding, California Redding is a city in and the county seat of Shasta County, California, and the economic and cultural capital of the Shasta Cascade region of Northern California. Redding lies along the Sacramento River, north of Sacramento, California, Sacrame ...

in the

Sacramento Valley The Sacramento Valley is the area of the Central Valley of the U.S. state of California that lies north of the Sacramento–San Joaquin River Delta and is drained by the Sacramento River. It encompasses all or parts of ten Northern California ...

on 22 March, he found the stage fare of $36.00 to

Jacksonville Jacksonville ( ) is the most populous city proper in the U.S. state of Florida, located on the Atlantic coast of North Florida, northeastern Florida. It is the county seat of Duval County, Florida, Duval County, with which the City of Jacksonv ...

beyond his means. He accordingly freighted his luggage ahead and walked the 177 miles remaining. After combing the area, he settled on land near the present town of

Trail A trail, also known as a path or track, is an unpaved lane or a small paved road (though it can also be a route along a navigable waterways) generally not intended for usage by motorized vehicles, usually passing through a natural area. Ho ...

in the

Crater Lake Crater Lake ( Klamath: ) is a volcanic crater lake in south-central Oregon in the Western United States. It is the main feature of Crater Lake National Park and is a tourist attraction for its deep blue color and water clarity. T ...

region. Walpole's known journals do not cover the period 1884 to 1899, but it is known that Walpole's family settled in

Portland, Oregon Portland ( ) is the List of cities in Oregon, most populous city in the U.S. state of Oregon, located in the Pacific Northwest region. Situated close to northwest Oregon at the confluence of the Willamette River, Willamette and Columbia River, ...

. where, In 1886 Frederick found employment as illustrator at the Lewis & Dryden Printing Company. In 1891/2 he made the acquaintance of an English girl who was visiting in Oregon and duly married her in England in 1893. Their only child, Sidney, was born in 1894. In 1898 Walpole's wife was struck down by

typhoid fever Typhoid fever, also known simply as typhoid, is a disease caused by '' Salmonella enterica'' serotype Typhi bacteria, also called ''Salmonella'' Typhi. Symptoms vary from mild to severe, and usually begin six to 30 days after exposure. Often th ...

while in

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

, as was he in May 1904 in California. Walpole's work drew the attention of

Frederick Vernon Coville Frederick Vernon Coville (March 23, 1867 – January 9, 1937) was an American botanist who participated in the Death Valley Expedition (1890-1891), was honorary curator of the United States National Herbarium (1893-1937), worked at then was Ch ...

(1867–1937) in 1896. Coville was a

(USDA) botanist and herbarium curator, who at that time was in Oregon documenting plants found useful by the Klamath Indians. Encouraged by Coville, Walpole applied for the position of artist at USDA's Division of Botany, and was duly appointed on 19 September. His journals record his going on botanical field trips, drawing, botanising, and collecting specimens of plants which he readily identified by their Latin names. In Walpole's obituary it is noted that the Victorian polymath

John Ruskin John Ruskin (8 February 1819 20 January 1900) was an English polymath a writer, lecturer, art historian, art critic, draughtsman and philanthropist of the Victorian era. He wrote on subjects as varied as art, architecture, Critique of politic ...

(1819–1900) was a favorite author of his and quite likely inspired and influenced him. Walpole's workplace as a botanical illustrator was initially in Washington, D.C., at the

USDA The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is an United States federal executive departments, executive department of the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government that aims to meet the needs of commerc ...

, and after November 1902 at the

National Museum A national museum can be a museum maintained and funded by a national government. In many countries it denotes a museum run by the central government, while other museums are run by regional or local governments. In the United States, most nati ...

- he also went on field trips to the

Northwest The points of the compass are a set of horizontal, radially arrayed compass directions (or azimuths) used in navigation and cartography. A '' compass rose'' is primarily composed of four cardinal directions—north, east, south, and west— ...

. His journals for the period 1900–1903 dealt with his work in Washington, D.C., and his expeditions across the country, as well as two trips to

Alaska Alaska ( ) is a non-contiguous U.S. state on the northwest extremity of North America. Part of the Western United States region, it is one of the two non-contiguous U.S. states, alongside Hawaii. Alaska is also considered to be the north ...

in 1900 and 1901. He also kept details of railroad timetables and shipping schedules, descriptions of terrain, weather reports, his movements and work carried out, and meticulous records of his finances, detailing the purchase of newspapers and magazines, even of toothpicks and a tip to an urchin of one cent. His journal records on the Alaska trips painted quite a different picture: Walpole concentrating on his work, enjoying spectacles of glaciers and mountains, recording details of natives and fellow travelers, and affording an insight into the man.

References

External links

Hunt Institute
{{DEFAULTSORT:Walpole, Frederick Andrews American botanical illustrators 1861 births 1904 deaths People from Essex County, New York Artists from New York (state)