W.J. Beal Botanical Garden

W.J. Beal Botanical Garden (HM20LT)

Location: East Lansing, MI 48864 Ingham County
Buy Michigan State flags at Flagstore.com!
Country: United States of America
Buy United States of America flags at Flagstore.com!

N 42° 43.856', W 84° 29.115'

  • 0 likes
  • 0 check ins
  • 0 favorites
  • 306 views
Inscription
Side 1

Botany pioneer William James Beal was born March 11, 1833 in Adrian, Michigan. Taking up teaching after earning degrees from the University of Michigan, Harvard University, and the University of Chicago, he was named professor of botany and horticulture in 1870 at what was then the State Agricultural College.

Beal began to experiment with a wide variety of plants and in 1873 planted different forage grasses and clovers in small plots in the depression now known as Sleepy Hollow, across West Circle Drive between Beaumont Tower and the Music Building.

Likely inspired by Harvard's arboretum, Beal proposed one of the same caliber here: "For this we still hope that the day is not distant when it will be thought best to keep up at least one good (botanic) garden in the state." He expanded the garden into its present primary location, south of his clovers and grasses collection, in 1877.

Side 2

The newer plot was known as the "Wild Garden," although Beal's reports to the State Board of Agriculture eventually referred to it as "the Botanic Garden." It became a popular destination and was the site of Beal's famous 1878 work to hybridize corn. Inspired by the work of evolutionist Charles Darwin.

Beal added soil to the garden
through the late 1800s and early 1900s to protect it from flooding of the Red Cedar River. A stream that flowed into the Red Cedar River through the garden and Sleepy Hollow was enclosed and covered to serve the community as an underground sewer.

Beal retired in 1910 and directorship of the garden passed to Professor Henry T. Darlington until 1930. It was officially named the W.J. Beal Botanical Garden by the State Board of Agriculture in 1924.

Michigan State College, as MSU was known then, grew rapidly in the post-World War II years, necessitating a new library that displaced aging botany department greenhouses. President John Hannah instructed Campus Park and Planning director Harold Lautner to reinvigorate the botanic garden to fulfill Professor Beal's vision for a living laboratory and classroom. Under the leadership of campus landscape architect Milton Baron, the garden was redesigned in its current form of distinctive plant collection beds and plant assemblages along the garden slopes.
Details
HM NumberHM20LT
Tags
Marker ConditionNo reports yet
Date Added Thursday, August 10th, 2017 at 1:02pm PDT -07:00
Pictures
Sorry, but we don't have a picture of this historical marker yet. If you have a picture, please share it with us. It's simple to do. 1) Become a member. 2) Adopt this historical marker listing. 3) Upload the picture.
Locationbig map
UTM (WGS84 Datum)16T E 705870 N 4734002
Decimal Degrees42.73093333, -84.48525000
Degrees and Decimal MinutesN 42° 43.856', W 84° 29.115'
Degrees, Minutes and Seconds42° 43' 51.36" N, 84° 29' 6.8999999999999" W
Driving DirectionsGoogle Maps
Area Code(s)517, 734
Closest Postal AddressAt or near 776-782 Red Cedar Rd, East Lansing MI 48864, US
Alternative Maps Google Maps, MapQuest, Bing Maps, Yahoo Maps, MSR Maps, OpenCycleMap, MyTopo Maps, OpenStreetMap

Is this marker missing? Are the coordinates wrong? Do you have additional information that you would like to share with us? If so, check in.

Check Ins  check in   |    all

Have you seen this marker? If so, check in and tell us about it.

Comments 0 comments

Maintenance Issues
  1. Is this marker part of a series?
  2. What historical period does the marker represent?
  3. What historical place does the marker represent?
  4. What type of marker is it?
  5. What class is the marker?
  6. What style is the marker?
  7. Does the marker have a number?
  8. What year was the marker erected?
  9. Who or what organization placed the marker?
  10. This marker needs at least one picture.
  11. Can this marker be seen from the road?
  12. Is the marker in the median?