William James Beal (March 11, 1833 – May 12, 1924) was an American botanist.
Beal was born in Adrian, Michigan, to William and Rachel (Comstock) Beal, and he married Hannah Proud in 1863. He attended the University of Michigan, which gave him an A.B. degree in 1859 and an A.M. degree in 1862; he also received an S.B. degree from Harvard University, 1865, an M.S. degree from the University of Chicago, 1875, and a number of honorary degrees.
He ser...
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William James Beal (March 11, 1833 – May 12, 1924) was an American botanist.
Beal was born in Adrian, Michigan, to William and Rachel (Comstock) Beal, and he married Hannah Proud in 1863. He attended the University of Michigan, which gave him an A.B. degree in 1859 and an A.M. degree in 1862; he also received an S.B. degree from Harvard University, 1865, an M.S. degree from the University of Chicago, 1875, and a number of honorary degrees.
He served as professor of botany at the University of Chicago in 1868-70, then went on to Michigan Agricultural College (now Michigan State University), where he was a professor of botany (1871-1910), and curator of the museum (1882-1903). He also served as director of the state Forestry Commission (1889-1892).
Beal was the founder of MSU's W. J. Beal Botanical Garden, the oldest continuously operated botanical garden in the United States. He was one of the pioneers in the development of hybrid corn. He was the author of The New Botany, Grasses of...
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