John Goldie (botanist)
| John Goldie | |
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John Goldie
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| Born |
21 March 1793 Kirkoswald, South Ayrshire, Scotland |
| Died | 23 July 1886 (aged 93) Ayr, Ontario, Canada |
| Resting place | Ayr Cemetery, Ayr, Ontario |
| Nationality | British |
| Alma mater | University of Glasgow |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Botany |
| Institutions | Glasgow Botanic Gardens |
| Influences | William Jackson Hooker |
| Author abbrev. (botany) | Goldie |
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John Goldie (21 March 1793 – 23 July 1886) was a Scottish-born botanist and author. He is credited with recording the existence of fourteen plant species previously unknown to science including Dryopteris goldiana.
Goldie was born in Kirkoswald in 1793, the son of William Goudie and Janet McClure. When Goldie was a teenager he apprenticed as a gardener and was employed at the Glasgow Botanic Garden where he accumulated most of his knowledge of botany. He also studied language at the University of Glasgow and could speak fluent Greek, French and Hebrew, although he never registered for a degree due to financial problems. While in Glasgow Goldie made the acquaintance of James Smith, a well known local botanist and florist, and began spending time at his home near Minishant in Ayrshire. Smith would teach Goldie about horticulture and help him expand his knowledge of botany. In 1815, Goldie married Smith's daughter Margaret and would go on the have nine children with her.
Shortly after his marriage in 1815 the English Government decided to send an expedition to the coast of Africa to explore the Congo River. After passing an examination Goldie was selected to accompany the expedition as a botanist but at the last moment was superseded by someone else. Many of the officers and crew of the expedition contracted and died of coast fever and the expedition was later abandoned.
In 1817, at the instance of his colleague William Hooker, Goldie was able to raise enough money to voyage to North America to collect botanical samples. He departed from Leith and landed in Halifax after being diverted from his original destination of New York due to bad weather. From Halifax he traveled to Quebec and collected botanical samples for two weeks before departing to Montreal, Quebec.
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