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Collectors of the UNC Herbarium
Clyde Ritchie Bell
b. 1921
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The name C. Ritchie Bell is inextricably
linked to the flora of the southeastern U.S. He is probably most familiar
to students as one of the authors (along with Albert Radford and Harry
Ahles) of the venerable Manual of the Vascular Flora of the Carolinas,
a work still relied upon by students and professional botanists alike.
He was born in Cincinnati, Ohio in 1921 and
received AB and MA degrees form the University of North Carolina in 1947
and 1949. He earned his Ph.D. in botany at the University of California at
Berkeley in 1953. From there, he went on to his first professional position
as a botany instructor at the University of Illinois.
In 1951, Dr. Bell returned to UNC to teach
botany and to work on the formation of a research garden. In 1961, Dr. Bell
became the Acting Director of the North Carolina Botanical Garden; he was
named official Director in 1966. By the late 1970s the Garden had truly
become something for the state to be proud of (despite the fact that the
state itself gave no money to the Garden until 1971).
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"Now we have a state botanical garden
that has a very good standing both nationally and internationally with very
modest cost to the state itself," Bell commented in a 1986 interview
with the Chapel Hill News. "The garden is one-of-a-kind; everyone
wants to know how we do it." Dr. Bell retired from the Directorship of
the Garden in 1986, although he is still very active in its affairs. The Ritchie Bell Conference Room in
Building A of the North Carolina Botanical Garden’s Education Center is
named in his honor.
Reliquiae
Below are a handwriting sample and a specimen
of Thelypteris hexagonoptera collected by Bell. The handwriting sample
may be clicked upon to view a larger image.
 
All specimens and handwriting samples
are from the UNC Herbarium and are used with permission.
Bibliography
Bell is a prolific writer with a large number
of books and articles to his credit. Best known of his books are, of course,
the above-mentioned Manual of the Vascular Flora of the Carolinas, as
well as Wild Flowers of North Carolina (with William S. Justice,
Chapel Hill: UNC Press, 1968, title page and frontispiece shown below) and Florida
Wild Flowers and Roadside Plants (with Bryan J. Taylor, Chapel Hill:
Laurel Hill Press, 1982). Both of the wildflower books are fully illustrated
with color photographs and are easily accessible to non-botanists.
Some of Dr. Bell's most recent accomplishments
are in the realm of videography. With Anne H. Lindsey, he has constructed a
series of video recordings, published by Laurel Hill Press, each focusing on
the visible flora of a particular season. The most recent is Woodland
Harvest of the Eastern Forests, highlighting fruits rather than flowers
(Laurel Hill, 1996).
Dr. Bell's papers have been compiled by Rhonda
Teague Rogers and are available at the Couch Biology Library, located
just downstairs from the Herbarium. Papers pertaining to Dr. Bell's work with
the Botanical Garden are available in the Records of the North
Carolina Botanical Garden, housed in the University Archives.
This page was constructed by Ron
Gilmour with the assistance of Mr. Bill Burk, Mrs. Mary Felton,
Dr. Jim Massey, and Mr. Jim Murphy. Additional information and corrections
are welcome.
   Curriculum North Carolina UNC
In Ecology Botanical Garden Biology Department
University
of North Carolina Herbarium
CB# 3280, Coker Hall
University of North Carolina
Chapel Hill, NC 27599-3280
phone: (919) 962-6931
fax: (919) 962-6930
email: mccormickATSIGNunc.edu
Last
Updated: 28 December 2010
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