Sir Joseph Hooker
Sir Joseph Hooker
- Born
- 30 June 1817
- Died
- 10 December 1911 (age 94)
The 19th century history of Kew Gardens displays the radical shift in the way in which science was managed and presented during that time, and key to the shift was Sir Joseph Hooker.
During the 1800s, there was a slow decline in the ‘gentleman naturalist’ and instead, the rise of the professional scientist. Science also proliferated at this time as a form of popular entertainment, and arguably became something that we would recognise it as today.
Much like how Sir Joseph Banks, the first Director of Kew, had reflected and shaped the needs of the eighteenth century, Sir Joseph Hooker did the same in the Victorian age. Both these men, through managing a botanical garden, helped to change the face of British science. Their influence stretched from South West London to the far reaches of the then British Empire.
By the time Hooker was offered the position of Director of Kew Gardens, in 1865, following in the footsteps of his father, the role was one of the most sought after positions within the scientific establishment. Hooker had established himself as one of Britain’s leading botanists. In 1845 he was made the Chair of Botany at the University of Edinburgh and a year later was offered the position as botanist to the Geological Survey of Great Britain. He was a great researcher, but also an excellent leader.
the blaze of Rhododendron flowers and various coloured jungle proclaims a differently constituted region in a naturalist's eye & twenty species here, to one there, always are asking me the vexed question, where do we come from?
Sir Joseph Hooker in a letter to Charles Darwin, 24th June 1849.
Under the command of Hooker, Kew had multiple functions. It acted as a centre for showcasing public displays, collecting research, offering information storage and retrieval, managing publications, plant collecting and the training of new botanists. Kew was transformed into a wonderful day out for the well-off of London, while maintaining and entrenching its position as the botanical sorting house of the Empire.
Because of his scientific credentials, Hooker carried a great amount of clout. So when he offered his opinions on evolution in favour of Charles Darwin’s work, his word, as well as his contacts, meant a great deal. In fact, Darwin felt that Hooker was the only individual who had ever given him constant sympathy for his scientific views.
Very often within historical literature, the work and life of Hooker can appear as a side story to the achievements of his close friend Darwin, but not only does that not appreciate the importance of Hooker’s scientific offerings, it also misunderstands the man himself. His widow Hyacinth was offered the chance to bury her late husband in Westminster Abbey alongside Darwin. But she refused this request, despite its huge prestige. Hooker was buried next to his Father in the churchyard of St. Anne’s on Kew Green. Ultimately, it was botany, rather than ceremony and evolution, which would define Hooker’s resting place and it is for his discipline-defining work within that science for which he should be remembered.
This page was written by a Biology: Changing the World volunteer.