[Manuscript] Carson family herbarium

[Philadelphia]: not published, ca 1840. Unique.. Original wrappers.. Very good; only a handfull of samples are missing parts or have damage.. Folio. There are appx. 165 identified mounted samples in their original collection folios.

A varied herbarium of 165 samples in their original folio collection folders. Each specimen is grouped according to the Latin genus (21 distinct groups in this collection); separate specimens are then individually identified. This herbarium has the feel of being a remnant of a larger collection. Individual samples are dated and cluster around two separate dates: those collected about 1833 and again around 1858. There are occasional notes or a printed label that identify the collector, e.g., J C Booth or J[ohn] H Balfour who were professional collectors. Many of the samples bear the intials 'H.C.' on the mount. This may correspond to Henry Carson the brother of Joseph Carson the noted medical botanist and author or possibly, though not likely, Hampton Carson, Joseph's son. The geographical range is broad, encompassing Montgomery County, PA and Cassel, Germany. Most of the collected specimens are uncommon plants. Alas, the collection originated in an auction of the remainder of the Carson family estate and there is no further information available as to its original form or purpose. See DAB for Joseph Carson, medical botanist; see Mears, Guide to Plant Collectors....