Druce, George Claridge, 1850-1932

George Claridge Druce (1850-1932) was a pharmacist and botanist born in Northamptonshire but later based in Oxford where he ran a profitable pharmacy business on the city's High Street. During his time in Oxford, Druce became heavily involved in restoring and reorganising the University's herbarium collections. Druce published a number of books on the flora of several English counties including Oxfordshire (1886), Berkshire (1897), Buckinghamshire (1926) and Northamptonshire (1930). Druce held an influential position in the botanical world through his presidency of the Botanical Exchange Club (BEC), now known as the Botanical Society of the British Isles. Druce was also heavily involved in local politics and became Mayor of Oxford in 1900.

His papers, including the Birthday Book were acquired by the University as part of a bequest upon Druce's death in 1932.

The Birthday Book was presented to Druce on the occasion of his 80th Birthday in 1930. It is now kept as part of the collections of the Sherardian Library of Plant Taxonomy, Oxford University.

For further information on Druce see D. E. Allen, Druce, George Claridge (1850-1932), Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, 2004 [http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/32898, accessed 14 Dec 2011]

From the guide to the Druce Birthday Book, 1930, (University of Oxford, Bodleian Libraries, Sherardian Library of Plant Taxonomy)