Thomas Meehan (botanist)

Thomas Meehan
Born	(1826-03-21)21 March 1826 Potters Bar, England
Died	19 November 1901(1901-11-19) (aged 75) Germantown, Philadelphia, PA, USA
Citizenship	United States
Known for	Meehans’ Mallow Marvels, Pink Dogwood
Awards	Veitch Medal[1] (1901)
Scientific career
Fields	Nurseryman, Botanist, Author, Legislator, Public Benefactor[2]
Institutions	Kew Gardens, Bartram's Garden, Meehan's Nurseries

Thomas Meehan (21 March 1826 Potters Bar, which was in Middlesex at the time and is now in Hertfordshire, England – 19 November 1901), was a noted British-born nurseryman, botanist and author. He worked as a gardener in Kew between 1846 and 1848, moving afterwards to Germantown in Philadelphia. He was the founder of Meehan’s Monthly (1891–1901) and editor of Gardener’s Monthly (1859–1888).

Meehan grew up on the Isle of Wight. His interest in plants was sparked by his father, who was a gardener. He published his first botanical contribution at age fourteen, which led to his membership of the Wernernian Society. His knowledge and skills resulted in his securing a position at Kew Gardens from 1846 to 1848, where he was influenced by William Jackson Hooker.

Meehan travelled to Philadelphia in 1848 and worked first for Robert Buist at his Rosedale Nursery, then between 1850 and 1852 for the owner of Bartram's Garden, who was pioneer locomotive builder Andrew M. Eastwick (1811–1879) and who, with Thomas De Kay and Joseph Harrison Jr., had contracted to build the first railroad in Russia. In 1854 Meehan started a nursery firm in partnership with William Saunders in Germantown near Philadelphia, where he lived with his family for the rest of his life. When his business with Saunders ended, he started the Germantown Nurseries, which became Thomas Meehan & Sons in 1896. His brother Joseph Meehan (1840-1920) joined the firm in 1859.^[3] Thomas Meehan's three sons Thomas B. Meehan, Mendelson Meehan and J. Franklin Meehan also had notable careers while they ran the nursery. J. Franklin designed parks and golf courses including Spring Ford Country Club, Ashborne Country Club and North Hills (originally called Edge Hill Golf Club). He left Edge Hill to design Sandy Run Country Club, where he also served as its first president.

Meehan and family supplied plants to the United States and Europe for seven decades, expanding to cover 60 hectares in the twentieth century. Their specialty was ornamentals, such as Japanese maples. In 1888, Thomas Meehan rediscovered the Pink Dogwood Cornus florida var. rubra, which was thought to be extinct, along the banks of the Wissahickon Creek, which is now part of Philadelphia municipal park system. Meehan's researches in botany led to his being the editor of The Gardener’s Monthly (1859–1875), which then became The Gardener's Monthly and Horticulturist in 1876,^[4] and he was also editor of Meehans' Monthly (1891–1902), two horticultural journals with the largest circulation at that time. Meehan wrote his own agriculture columns for five newspapers and also authored 'The Native Flowers and Ferns of the United States', consisting of four volumes describing and illustrating, in colour, over 300 species.^[5]

Meehan was a member of the Historical Society of Pennsylvania, the American Association of Nurserymen, the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society,^[6] the American Pomological Society, the Academy of Natural Sciences, the American Association for the Advancement of Science and the American Philosophical Society. He was also an honorary member of the Royal Horticultural Society (London). He corresponded with foremost botanists William Darlington, Josiah Hoopes,^[7] William Saunders, George Engelmann, John Torrey, Asa Gray, Maxwell T. Masters, Ferdinand von Mueller, George Nicholson and Charles Darwin.