Description

The story of Ireland’s first female botanist, told in words and pictures, with letters, specimens and drawings. Discover the life and times of a remarkable young woman from Ballylickey, Bantry Bay, West Cork. In just eight years of botanising, cut short by her death aged 29, Ellen Hutchins discovered many new species, and made a significant contribution to the understanding of seaweeds, lichens, mosses and liverworts. Ellen was an accomplished botanist, a talented botanical artist, an endearing letter writer, as well as a devoted daughter and sister, and a kind friend. Her story is relevant to all those with an interest in botany, heritage, the history of women in science, the time (the early 1800s) and the place: Bantry Bay and West Cork.