Richard Cunningham (12 February 1793 – April 1835) was an
English
English usually refers to:
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* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
** English national ide ...
botanist
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 wo ...
who became Colonial Botanist of
New South Wales
)
, nickname =
, image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg
, map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates:
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name = Australia
, established_title = Before federation
, es ...
and superintendent of the
Sydney Botanic Gardens
The Royal Botanic Garden, Sydney is a heritage-listed major botanical garden, event venue and public recreation area located at Farm Cove, New South Wales, Farm Cove on the eastern fringe of the Sydney central business district, in the City of ...
.
Early life
He was born in
Wimbledon
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,
Surrey
Surrey () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South East England, bordering Greater London to the south west. Surrey has a large rural area, and several significant urban areas which form part of the Greater London Built-up Area. ...
, England, the second son of gardener Allan Cunningham, who came from
Renfrewshire
Renfrewshire () ( sco, Renfrewshire; gd, Siorrachd Rinn Friù) is one of the 32 council areas of Scotland.
Located in the west central Lowlands, it is one of three council areas contained within the boundaries of the historic county of Renfr ...
, Scotland, and his English wife Sarah. Cunningham was educated at a
Rev. John Adams Academy at
Putney
Putney () is a district of southwest London, England, in the London Borough of Wandsworth, southwest of Charing Cross. The area is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London.
History
Putney is an ancient paris ...
and then went to work for
William Townsend Aiton
William Townsend Aiton FRHS FLS (2 February 1766 – 9 October 1849) was an English botanist. He was born at Kew on 2 February 1766, the eldest son of William Aiton.
He brought out a second and enlarged edition of the ''Hortus Kewensis'' in 181 ...
on ''
Hortus Kewensis
''Hortus Kewensis, or a Catalogue of the Plants Cultivated in the Royal Botanic Garden at Kew'' by William Aiton was a 1789 catalogue of all the plant species then in cultivation at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew
Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew is ...
'' for six years.
For the next 18 years, he worked at the
Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew
Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew is a non-departmental public body in the United Kingdom sponsored by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. An internationally important botanical research and education institution, it employs 1,100 ...
, England, cataloguing specimens sent from Australia by his brother
Allan
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.
[
]
Australia
After being recommended for the position by both his brother Allan
Allan may refer to:
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and botanist Robert Brown, Cunningham sailed to Australia to take up the position of Colonial Botanist of New South Wales and superintendent of Sydney Botanic Gardens
The Royal Botanic Garden, Sydney is a heritage-listed major botanical garden, event venue and public recreation area located at Farm Cove, New South Wales, Farm Cove on the eastern fringe of the Sydney central business district, in the City of ...
, arriving in January 1833. Later that year he made an expedition to New Zealand
New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...
, on . He was dropped off in the Bay of Islands
The Bay of Islands is an area on the east coast of the Far North District of the North Island of New Zealand. It is one of the most popular fishing, sailing and tourist destinations in the country, and has been renowned internationally for its ...
and remained in Northland until March 1834 and was collected in May 1834 by . While he was there he made a large collection of plants, amongst them a new orchid, '' Dendrobium cunninghamii'', and the discovery of a new Hebe species.[ In 1834 he assisted ]John Lhotsky
John Lhotsky (1795–1866) was a Galicia-born Austrian naturalist, lecturer, artist and author. He wrote and published on the topics of zoology, botany, geology, geography and politics. Lhotsky was active in the early colonies of New South Wales ...
in the writing up for the botanical results of Lhotsky's expedition to the Australian Alps
The Australian Alps is a mountain range in southeast Australia. It comprises an interim Australian bioregion, .
Mitchell expedition and death
In 1835, Cunningham joined Thomas Mitchell's expedition to find the course of the Darling River
The Darling River ( Paakantyi: ''Baaka'' or ''Barka'') is the third-longest river in Australia, measuring from its source in northern New South Wales to its conflu
ence with the Murray River at Wentworth, New South Wales. Including its longes ...
. He caused Mitchell some concern by repeatedly straying away from the rest of the party in search of plants. One day near the Bogan River
Bogan River, a perennial river that is part of the Macquarie– Barwon catchment within the Murray–Darling basin, is located in the central west and Orana regions of New South Wales, Australia.
From its origin near Parkes, the Bogan River ...
he failed to return, and a search organised by Mitchell—led by Mitchell's second-in-command, James Larmer
James Larmer (b. 1808 or 1809 – d. 1886) was a government surveyor in the colony of New South Wales. Between 1830 and 1859, he surveyed land, roads and settlements in New South Wales. He was an Assistant Surveyor to the Surveyor-General, Sir Th ...
—only found some of his belongings and his dead horse. A search party in November headed by Henry Zouch
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ascertained that Cunningham was camping with a group of aborigines, and was later killed by them when they became alarmed by his behaviour, thought to be the result of his delirious state. He was aged 42.[ His brother Allan paid for a memorial plaque to be placed in St. Andrew's Scots Church in Rose Bay.]
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cunningham, Richard
Botanists active in Australia
English botanists
People from Wimbledon, London
1793 births
1835 deaths
Explorers of Australia