Samuel Frederick Gray
Encyclopedia
Samuel Frederick Gray was a British
botanist, mycologist, and pharmacologist. He was the father of the zoologists John Edward Gray
and George Robert Gray
.
, Staffordshire
, where he established an assay office, before moving back to London in 1800. He subsequently set up an apothecary
business in Wapping
, but this failed within a few years, after which time he seems to have maintained himself by writing and lecturing.
natural system of plant classification, an improvement on the artificial classification of Linnaeus. Probably for this reason, it was not well received by conservative botanists of the day. The Natural Arrangement of British Plants also included substantial sections on fungi, then classed as cryptogamic plants, introducing many new genera
, including Auriscalpium
, Coltricia
, Leccinum
, and Steccherinum
, that remain in current use.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
botanist, mycologist, and pharmacologist. He was the father of the zoologists John Edward Gray
John Edward Gray
John Edward Gray, FRS was a British zoologist. He was the elder brother of George Robert Gray and son of the pharmacologist and botanist Samuel Frederick Gray ....
and George Robert Gray
George Robert Gray
George Robert Gray FRS was an English zoologist and author, and head of the ornithological section of the British Museum, now the Natural History Museum, in London for forty-one years...
.
Background
S.F. Gray was the son of Samuel Gray, a London seedsman. He received no inheritance and, after to failing to qualify for medicine, turned to medical and botanical writing. He married Elizabeth Forfeit in 1794 and moved to WalsallWalsall
Walsall is a large industrial town in the West Midlands of England. It is located northwest of Birmingham and east of Wolverhampton. Historically a part of Staffordshire, Walsall is a component area of the West Midlands conurbation and part of the Black Country.Walsall is the administrative...
, Staffordshire
Staffordshire
Staffordshire is a landlocked county in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes, the county is a NUTS 3 region and is one of four counties or unitary districts that comprise the "Shropshire and Staffordshire" NUTS 2 region. Part of the National Forest lies within its borders...
, where he established an assay office, before moving back to London in 1800. He subsequently set up an apothecary
Apothecary
Apothecary is a historical name for a medical professional who formulates and dispenses materia medica to physicians, surgeons and patients — a role now served by a pharmacist and some caregivers....
business in Wapping
Wapping
Wapping is a place in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets which forms part of the Docklands to the east of the City of London. It is situated between the north bank of the River Thames and the ancient thoroughfare simply called The Highway...
, but this failed within a few years, after which time he seems to have maintained himself by writing and lecturing.
Medical writings
Gray wrote a Supplement to the Pharmacopoeia, published in 1818 with several subsequent editions. In 1819 he became co-editor of the London Medical Repository, to which he contributed many articles on medical, botanical, and other topics. In 1823 he published The Elements of Pharmacy and in 1828 The Operative Chemist, both practical reference works.The Natural Arrangement of British Plants
Gray's major text of interest today is The Natural Arrangement of British Plants, published in two volumes in 1821. The authorship is disputed, his son John Edward Gray later claiming to have done most of the work, though this was not supported by his grandson.The book itself is innovative, being the first British flora to employ Jussieu'sAntoine Laurent de Jussieu
Antoine Laurent de Jussieu was a French botanist, notable as the first to propose a natural classification of flowering plants; much of his system remains in use today.-Life:...
natural system of plant classification, an improvement on the artificial classification of Linnaeus. Probably for this reason, it was not well received by conservative botanists of the day. The Natural Arrangement of British Plants also included substantial sections on fungi, then classed as cryptogamic plants, introducing many new genera
Genera
Genera is a commercial operating system and development environment for Lisp machines developed by Symbolics. It is essentially a fork of an earlier operating system originating on the MIT AI Lab's Lisp machines which Symbolics had used in common with LMI and Texas Instruments...
, including Auriscalpium
Auriscalpium
Auriscalpium is a genus of mushrooms typifying the family Auriscalpiaceae and characterized by in part by rough-walled, amyloid spores that are produced on pendant spines, hence it is considered to be a tooth fungus. The type species, A...
, Coltricia
Coltricia
Coltricia is a genus of fungi in the family Hymenochaetaceae.-Species:*Coltricia bambusicola*Coltricia barbata*Coltricia cinnamomea*Coltricia confluens*Coltricia duportii*Coltricia focicola*Coltricia fragilissima...
, Leccinum
Leccinum
Leccinum is a genus of fungi in the family Boletaceae. It was the name given first to a series of fungi within the genus Boletus, then erected as a new genus last century. Their main distinguishing feature is the small, rigid projections that give a rough texture to their stalks...
, and Steccherinum
Steccherinum
Steccherinum is a genus of fungi in the Meruliaceae family. The genus has a widespread distribution, and contains 33 species.-Species:*Steccherinum aggregatum*Steccherinum alaskense*Steccherinum albidum*Steccherinum albofibrillosum...
, that remain in current use.