Alfred James Ewart facts for kids

Alfred James Ewart (born February 12, 1872 – died September 12, 1937) was an English-Australian botanist. A botanist is a scientist who studies plants. He was also a Fellow of the Royal Society, which is a very important group of scientists.

Growing Up and Learning

Alfred Ewart was born in Toxteth Park, Liverpool, England. His parents were Edmund Brown Ewart and Martha Williams. He went to school at the Liverpool Institute and University College, Liverpool. He then earned advanced degrees, a Ph.D. from Leipzig University in Germany and a D.Sc. from Oxford University in England. These are very high academic achievements.

His Work as a Botanist

Alfred Ewart started his career teaching botany at Liverpool. Later, he became a science teacher at King Edward's School, Birmingham. He also taught botany at Birmingham University, where he sometimes filled in as a professor.

In 1905, Ewart moved to Australia and became a Professor of Botany at the University of Melbourne. Before this, he had already done a lot of important work. He translated a big book about The Physiology of Plants by Wilhelm Pfeffer. This book was published in three parts between 1900 and 1906.

He also wrote several of his own books, including:

• First Stage Botany (1900)
• New Matriculation Botany (1902), which later became known as Ewart's Elementary Botany
• On the Physics and Physiology of Protoplasmic Streaming in Plants (1903)
• Rural Calendar (1905)

In 1906, Ewart became the first head of the botany and plant physiology department at the University of Melbourne. For the next 15 years, he also worked as the government botanist. This meant he advised the government on plant-related issues.

He worked with other scientists on important projects:

• In 1909, he worked with James Richard Tovey to publish The Weeds, Poison Plants and Naturalized Aliens of Victoria. This book helped people identify harmful plants.
• In 1917, he worked with Olive B. Davies on The Flora of the Northern Territory. This book described all the plants found in that area.

When Ewart first started at the university, he didn't have his own building. He shared space with Sir Walter Baldwin Spencer in the biology school. After World War I, a separate building was finally built for the botany department.

In 1927, the government asked Ewart to create a new Flora of Victoria. This was a huge project to list all the plants in the state of Victoria. With help from other scientists, he finished it, and it was published in 1930.

Some of his other works include:

• Handbook of Forest Trees for Victorian Foresters (1925)
• Many scientific papers published in journals, some of which were later printed as small booklets.

Ewart was recognized for his important work. He was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1922. This is a very high honor for scientists. He also led important science meetings:

• He was president of the Biology section at the Australasian Association for the Advancement of Science meeting in Melbourne in 1921.
• He was president of the Botany section at the meeting in Perth in 1926.

Personal Life

Alfred Ewart was married twice. His first wife was Florence Maud Donaldson, who was a talented violinist and composer. They married in 1898 and had two sons. His second wife was Elizabeth Bilton, whom he married in 1931. Alfred Ewart passed away suddenly on September 12, 1937.