Scott, Leland

In 1973, Leland E. Scott, professor emeritus of horticulture, rescued this collection of historic glass plate negatives and photographic prints from storage in the attic of Holzapfel Hall. Scott was born in Kentucky in 1906 and graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in 1927 from the University of Kentucky. He received a Master of Science in Horticulture in 1929 from Michigan State University. After ten years of teaching at Clemson State University, Scott came to the University of Maryland, where he completed his Ph.D. in Horticulture in 1943. During his time at the University of Maryland, Scott held various positions in the Department of Horticulture, including Assistant in Pomology for the Agricultural Experiment Station, Associate Professor of Pomology, and Professor of Horticultural Physiology, before his retirement in 1973.

In 1975, Scott published a comprehensive history of the Department of Horticulture, entitled Horticulture at the University of Maryland, 1856-1975 . The Department of Horticulture was formally established in 1863 to provide classroom instruction, empirical fieldwork, and research opportunities in horticulture for students and faculty at the Maryland Agricultural College, as the University of Maryland was originally known, as well as to provide extension service for the residents of the state of Maryland.

Leland E. Scott died in Adelphi, Maryland, on June 8, 1997.

The images Scott rescued document activities of the University of Maryland's Department of Horticulture, horticulture, and horticultural subjects, primarily relating to Maryland. B.W. Anspon, an associate professor of floriculture and landscape gardening in the Department of Horticulture from 1913 to 1918, was the primary photographer. Anspon was also listed as a graduate student in the department in 1914-1915 and served as an instructor during this time. He taught landscape and ornamental horticulture classes at the college.

A smaller number of photographs are attributed to E. P. Walls, who was also a member of the faculty of the Horticulture Department. He was an Assistant in Agriculture from 1905 to 1906, an Assistant Professor of Botany, and Professor of Canning Crops from 1910 to 1952. Walls also served the Maryland Cooperative Extension Service as County Agent of Talbot County and Assistant Canning Specialist.

From the guide to the Leland Scott collection, 1900-1920, 1885-1976, (State of Maryland and Historical Collections)