Ferguson, Margaret Clay (1863–1951)
Ferguson, Margaret Clay (1863–1951)
American botanist. Born in Orleans, New York, on August 20, 1863; died in San Diego, California, in1951; fourth of six children; attended Genesee Wesleyan Seminary in Lima, New York; attended Wellesley College as a special student in botany and chemistry; earned Ph.D. at Cornell University, 1899.
Head of science department at Harcourt Place Seminary in Gambier, Ohio (1891–93); spent the rest of her career at Wellesley, heading the botany department by 1902.
Margaret Clay Ferguson graduated in 1899 from Cornell University and later became head of the department of botany at Wellesley College, where she spent close to 40 years. While at Wellesley, she planned, designed, and raised the money for a botany building and two greenhouses; she also studied the genus of higher plants. Ferguson, who retired in 1938 from Wellesley at age 75, was elected a fellow by the American Association for the Advancement of Science. Her writings consist mainly of papers on plant embryology and physiology.
suggested reading:
Hart, Sophie C. "Margaret Clay Ferguson," in Wellesley Magazine. June 1932, pp. 408–10.