Smith, Lyman B.

Lyman Bradford Smith (1904-1997) was born on September 11, 1904, in Winchester, Massachusetts. He went to Harvard University in 1921, and went on to get his Master's in 1928 and his PhD in 1930. He was awarded a senior assistantship at the Gray Herbarium where he eventually became curator in 1943. He came to the United States National Herbarium in 1947 as associate curator. He became curator of phanerogams from 1956-1966 and then senior botanist. He did many collecting trips to South America. His research mainly focused on Bromeliaceae, Velloziaceae, and Begoniaceae. He was famous for identifying unknown specimens. He retired in 1974, but never stopped conducting botanical research. He died on May 4, 1997.

Smithsonian Institution Archives Field Book Project: Person : Description : rid_541_pid_EACP538