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On Her Own Terms: Annie Montague Alexander and the Rise of Science in the American West
At a time when women could not vote and very few were involved in the world outside the home, Annie Montague Alexander (1867-1950) was an intrepid explorer, amateur naturalist, skilled markswoman, philanthropist, farmer, and founder and patron of two natural history museums at the University of California, Berkeley. Barbara R. Stein presents a luminous portrait of this remarkable woman, a pioneer who helped shape the world of science in California, yet whose name has been little known until now.
Alexander's father founded a Hawaiian sugar empire, and his great wealth afforded his adventurous daughter the opportunity to pursue her many interests. Stein portrays Alexander as a complex, intelligent, woman who--despite her frail appearance--was determined to achieve something with her life. Along with Louise Kellogg, her partner of forty years, Alexander collected thousands of animal, plant, and fossil specimens throughout western North America. Their collections serve as an invaluable record of the flora and fauna that were beginning to disappear as the West succumbed to spiraling population growth, urbanization, and agricultural development. Today at least seventeen taxa are named for Alexander, and several others honor Kellogg, who continued to make field trips after Alexander's death.
Alexander's dealings with scientists and her encouragement--and funding--of women to do field research earned her much admiration, even from those with whom she clashed. Stein's extensive use of archival material, including excerpts from correspondence and diaries, allows us to see Annie Alexander as a keen observer of human nature who loved women and believed in their capabilities. Her legacy endures in the fields of zoology and paleontology and also in the lives of women who seek to follow their own star to the fullest degree possible.
Alexander's father founded a Hawaiian sugar empire, and his great wealth afforded his adventurous daughter the opportunity to pursue her many interests. Stein portrays Alexander as a complex, intelligent, woman who--despite her frail appearance--was determined to achieve something with her life. Along with Louise Kellogg, her partner of forty years, Alexander collected thousands of animal, plant, and fossil specimens throughout western North America. Their collections serve as an invaluable record of the flora and fauna that were beginning to disappear as the West succumbed to spiraling population growth, urbanization, and agricultural development. Today at least seventeen taxa are named for Alexander, and several others honor Kellogg, who continued to make field trips after Alexander's death.
Alexander's dealings with scientists and her encouragement--and funding--of women to do field research earned her much admiration, even from those with whom she clashed. Stein's extensive use of archival material, including excerpts from correspondence and diaries, allows us to see Annie Alexander as a keen observer of human nature who loved women and believed in their capabilities. Her legacy endures in the fields of zoology and paleontology and also in the lives of women who seek to follow their own star to the fullest degree possible.
397 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2001
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
December 5, 2015
What a thoroughly satisfying California history book.
Because make no mistake, the "American West" alluded to in the book's title actually turns out to be UC Berkeley.
At the turn of the last century, Annie Montague Alexander never met an animal she didn't want to kill, stuff and mount, three skills which she practiced with a personal fervor and turned to the cause of Science in founding UCB's Museum of Vertebrate Zoology and the University of California Museum of Paleontology. She and her partner, Louise Kellogg, were insatiable in their love of camping and killing every vertebrate they could get their hands on, so that natural scientists of the day could gain a better understanding of evolutionary biology.
There's a great section in the book, which is largely reconstructed from Alexander's voluminous correspondence, where she proudly informs the zoology museum director that she and Louise have already killed 75 Alaskan birds for his approval. He writes back, somewhat tentatively (she was his boss after all) suggesting that maybe she'd bagged enough birds for one day, and Alexander responds by noting that the party is low on ammunition so please send more killing bullets at once.
She seems to have been just that kind of person.
She and Kellogg also founded a profitable asparagus farm on Grizzly Island near Suisan (which I had to look up as, despite being from that area the presence of an island full of asparagus completely escaped me) which formed one of my favorite parts of the book. The details of how they took completely wild land and turned it to for-profit agriculture AND still managed to hit the road most of the year on animal-whomping trips was fascinating.
The epilogue notes that in 1991 the farm was taken over by the California Department of Fish and Game, who knocked down all the farm buildings and returned it to a marsh-like state. On the one hand I was saddened by the destruction of these historically relevant structures, but on the other hand, it was done in the name of conservation, and as the author notes, both women would have likely approved of the maneuver. Because rest assured that all the hunting and stuffing Alexander did she did largely because even in her lifetime she noticed the rapidity with which the environment was being trammeled as development overtook the state like some kind of incurable cancer.
The story of Alexander and Kellogg's remarkable life together, as well as Alexander's firm, demanding hand in the shaping of UC Berkeley could well have been just another story of a busybody rich white woman dabbling in campus politics. But in Stein's hands, the historical significance of the women's work, the circumstances surrounding the founding and growth of the school and its impact on natural history and biology come to life, to the extent that I cried a little at the end.
As did, no doubt, all the animals who wandered into Alexander's path.
Because make no mistake, the "American West" alluded to in the book's title actually turns out to be UC Berkeley.
At the turn of the last century, Annie Montague Alexander never met an animal she didn't want to kill, stuff and mount, three skills which she practiced with a personal fervor and turned to the cause of Science in founding UCB's Museum of Vertebrate Zoology and the University of California Museum of Paleontology. She and her partner, Louise Kellogg, were insatiable in their love of camping and killing every vertebrate they could get their hands on, so that natural scientists of the day could gain a better understanding of evolutionary biology.
There's a great section in the book, which is largely reconstructed from Alexander's voluminous correspondence, where she proudly informs the zoology museum director that she and Louise have already killed 75 Alaskan birds for his approval. He writes back, somewhat tentatively (she was his boss after all) suggesting that maybe she'd bagged enough birds for one day, and Alexander responds by noting that the party is low on ammunition so please send more killing bullets at once.
She seems to have been just that kind of person.
She and Kellogg also founded a profitable asparagus farm on Grizzly Island near Suisan (which I had to look up as, despite being from that area the presence of an island full of asparagus completely escaped me) which formed one of my favorite parts of the book. The details of how they took completely wild land and turned it to for-profit agriculture AND still managed to hit the road most of the year on animal-whomping trips was fascinating.
The epilogue notes that in 1991 the farm was taken over by the California Department of Fish and Game, who knocked down all the farm buildings and returned it to a marsh-like state. On the one hand I was saddened by the destruction of these historically relevant structures, but on the other hand, it was done in the name of conservation, and as the author notes, both women would have likely approved of the maneuver. Because rest assured that all the hunting and stuffing Alexander did she did largely because even in her lifetime she noticed the rapidity with which the environment was being trammeled as development overtook the state like some kind of incurable cancer.
The story of Alexander and Kellogg's remarkable life together, as well as Alexander's firm, demanding hand in the shaping of UC Berkeley could well have been just another story of a busybody rich white woman dabbling in campus politics. But in Stein's hands, the historical significance of the women's work, the circumstances surrounding the founding and growth of the school and its impact on natural history and biology come to life, to the extent that I cried a little at the end.
As did, no doubt, all the animals who wandered into Alexander's path.
May 5, 2024
fascinating. I only wish I could accomplish half the things Annie did, and travel with my wife in the desert when I am 80. it was a dense biography so it was tough to work through, but I loved every minute of it
could have done with another map or two though.
could have done with another map or two though.
December 6, 2022
I became interested in Annie Montague Alexander because of a passing reference to her and her "lifetime companion" Louise Kellogg in a National Park Service brochure at the Petrified Forest National Park in Arizona. Her Wikipedia page was so fascinating that I wanted to learn more, and this book by Barbara Stein is the most complete work about Annie out there.
Annie had a fascinating life that was extraordinarily free and independent given that she was born in 1867. The reason, of course, is that she was extraordinarily wealthy. While I was thrilled to read about a woman of her era doing the things that Annie did, a lot of her activities don't sit well with my current-day sensibilities.
As a professional fundraiser, I cringed at Annie's style of "philanthropy," which was to give money under very strict terms and insisting on control and involvement over every aspect of the programs she funded. As a non-scientist, I was horrified by the thousands of animals she and Louise collected as museum specimens and the way in which she seemed obsessed with collecting far more than conservation or protection. As someone who enjoys a good love story, I was disappointed that there are no records documenting the personal aspect of Annie and Louise's relationship -- a "Boston marriage" in which they lived together, shared a business, and spent all of their time together for years, until Annie's death, yet not a single letter or diary entry sheds light on the emotional side of their bond.
Annie had a fascinating life that was extraordinarily free and independent given that she was born in 1867. The reason, of course, is that she was extraordinarily wealthy. While I was thrilled to read about a woman of her era doing the things that Annie did, a lot of her activities don't sit well with my current-day sensibilities.
As a professional fundraiser, I cringed at Annie's style of "philanthropy," which was to give money under very strict terms and insisting on control and involvement over every aspect of the programs she funded. As a non-scientist, I was horrified by the thousands of animals she and Louise collected as museum specimens and the way in which she seemed obsessed with collecting far more than conservation or protection. As someone who enjoys a good love story, I was disappointed that there are no records documenting the personal aspect of Annie and Louise's relationship -- a "Boston marriage" in which they lived together, shared a business, and spent all of their time together for years, until Annie's death, yet not a single letter or diary entry sheds light on the emotional side of their bond.
November 15, 2017
Annie Alexander sounds like an amazing woman. Often described in terms of her charity and support of the mvz, she sounds like a wild woman lucky enough to be rich. At 79 she takes a botanical collecting trip to Baja California with her girlfriend and another lady they picked up. The three of them end up stripping down and jumping in the pacific in one instance. They sleep on the ground under the stars each night, undeterred by rattlesnakes. She also is extremely knowledgeable about natural history and singleminded in the advancement of science. Seriously impressive lady.
September 11, 2023
Fascinating, scholarly biography of the philanthropist and naturalist Annie Montague Alexander (1867-1950), including her 42-year domestic and work partnership with Louise Kellogg (1879-1967).
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews