From the Director's Chair

A Review of "The Forgotten Botanist, Sara Plummer Lemmon's Life of Science & Art"

Portrait of Sara Plummer Lemmon

What unmarried unaccompanied woman in 1869 would board a side-paddle steamer out of New York Harbor for a transcontinental move knowing not a soul at her destination? A plucky, fearless, and educated Sara Plummer would. Driven by poor health, at 33, Plummer pulled up stakes and relocated to California, where she eventually became a botanist, largely self-taught. She was born in Maine, attended college in Massachusetts, and moved to New York City to study at Cooper Union. An accomplished watercolor artist, she painted many of her specimens, a number of which artworks still exist today and some of which are reproduced in this beautiful book.

Married at the ripe old age of 44 to John Gill Lemmon, also a botanist and also in ill health, she made her mark in the world of botany in the 1800s, all the while struggling to be recognized among her many male contemporaries of the time; not an easy feat. Many of her scientific contributions were credited only as “J.G. Lemmon and wife,” a fact that understandably irked Plummer. The Lemmons traveled extensively throughout the American southwest, Mexico, Oregon, and the Sierras with well-known activists and industrialists. Not only were many new species of plants and trees named for Plummer and Lemmon, but Mt. Lemmon in Arizona also bears her moniker.

Additionally, Plummer formed the first library in Santa Barbara, worked as a journalist, teacher, and nurse, and was instrumental in getting the golden poppy recognized by the state of California as the state flower. She championed the women’s suffrage movement and counted among her friends Clara Barton, founder of the American Red Cross, and John Muir, known as the “Father of the National Parks,” as well as other movers and shakers of her time.

As one can imagine, the field of botany was not lucrative in the 1800s. Plummer and Lemmon were chronically short of cash and moved house fairly often. Both Plummer and Lemmon continued to suffer long-term health issues yet made annual summer treks into the Chiricahuas mountains West of Arizona, an incredible feat. Her retelling of a life lived in the and in military forts of the southwest, including skirmishes with the Native Americans of the area, is a window into frontier life which I found fascinating. Her view of Native Americans at the time was not sympathetic— as a matter of fact, some of her views would be considered downright racist today. Brown certainly acknowledges this.

Wynne Brown has done extensive research into the life of Sara Plummer Lemmon, and it seems she’s left no stone (or plant) unturned. The author’s admiration of Sarah Plummer Lemmon and her life story, warts and all (and believe me, there are warts), shines through this extraordinary retelling of how Plummer came to be one of the most prolific botanists in the late 19th century. A biography that reads like fiction keeps you engaged, moves the story forward, AND raises the stakes throughout? Now that’s a rarity. And it’s a pleasure indeed, particularly if you are a historical fiction fan but tend to shy away from biographical works. Wynne Brown’s The Forgotten Botanist, Sara Plummer Lemmon’ s Life of Science and Art ticks all the boxes.

Brown has structured this biography chronologically with details gleaned from correspondence with Plummer’s family on the east coast, some of which are reproduced in this book. In addition, Brown poured through “6 feet” of research materials found at the University of California Berkley despite a great deal of the couple’s work having been lost to raging fire following the 1906 earthquake that decimated the San Francisco area. Brown’s bibliography alone will attest to the extent of investigation that went into this marvelous literary work. One of Plummer’s lovely watercolor paintings graces the cover; it’s no wonder it won the New Mexico-Arizona Book Awards Finalist in Cover Design. A beautiful book, inside and out. Other awards include the Western Writers of America Spur Award 2022, Women Writing the West, Willa Literacy Award, Top Pick in Southwest Books of the Year 2022, and Honorable Mention in the At-Large NFPW Communications Contest. This book is widely available at online booksellers.

About the reviewer: Joan M Lyons lives on the East End of Long Island in East Hampton, NY. She manages a law firm by day and is an accomplished theater director by night.