Patrick Neill (naturalist)
Patrick Neill
Neill' works include A Tour Through Some of the Islands of Orkney and Shetland (1806), which caused much public debate at the time, due to its descriptions of the economic misery of the islanders. He also authored the Gardening article in the seventh edition of the Encyclopædia Britannica. This article was subsequently expanded and published as a separate book under the title of The Fruit, Flower, and Kitchen Garden, which was popular and ran through several editions.
When the
The rosaceous genus Neillia is named after Neill.
Life
He was born in
Neill's residence at Canonmills Cottage (in
Death and legacy
A short time before his death he became enfeebled by a stroke of paralysis, and after several months of suffering he died at Canonmills on 3 September 1851, and was buried in Warriston Cemetery, on the western wall in the extreme south-west corner of the original cemetery, just west of the archway to the southern extension. His tombstone states that he was "distinguished for literature, science, patriotism, benevolence, and piety".[1] The memorial was restored by the Friends of Warriston Cemetery 2014/2015.
The Royal Society of Edinburgh has John Syme's portrait of Neill.[4]
He died unmarried, and among his various charitable bequests was one of £500 to the Caledonian Horticultural Society to found a medal for distinguished Scottish botanists or cultivators (now the Dr Patrick Neill Medal), and a similar sum to the Royal Society of Edinburgh for a medal to distinguished Scottish naturalists. He is botanically commemorated by the rosaceous genus Neillia.[1]
Edinburgh is indebted to Neill for the scheme of the
Works
In 1806 appeared his Tour through Orkney and Shetland, a work which gave rise to discussion because of its reports of poverty. In 1814 he issued a translation, An Account of the Basalts of Saxony, from the French of Dubuisson, with Notes, Edinburgh. He was the author of the article "Gardening" in the seventh edition of the Encyclopædia Britannica, and it was subsequently published as The Flower, Fruit, and Kitchen Garden (several editions). In 1817 Neill, with two other deputies from the Caledonian Society, made a tour through the Netherlands and the north of France, and he wrote an account of it, which was published in 1823.[1]
Family
His great niece was the Scottish lady golfer and
Botanical Reference
References
- ^ a b c d e f g . Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co. 1885–1900.
- ^ Gardener's Magazine, July 1836, p. 333–41; Google Books.
- ^ THE BOTANICAL SOCIETY OF EDINBURGH 1836-1936 (PDF). p. 15. Archived from the original (PDF) on 11 March 2017. Retrieved 11 August 2018.
- ISBN 9781466573871.
- ^ International Plant Names Index. Neill.
External links
- Attribution
This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: "Neill, Patrick (1776-1851)". Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co. 1885–1900.
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