Jepson, Willis Linn (1867–1946)

US botanist who spent his career at the University of California, Berkeley 1899–1937, which now holds his extensive notes, library, and herbarium. Known as the ‘dean of California botanists’, he wrote over 200 scientific papers and eight books, including the classic A Manual of the Flowering Plants of California 1925 and the uncompleted A Flora of California published 1909–43. He founded the California Botanical Society in 1913 and the Save the Redwoods League in 1918. A genus of flowering herbaceous plants, Jepsonia, is named after him.

He was born near Vacaville, California. He was a taxonomic conservative whose writings emphasized using the living plant as a model and making detailed field observations. His dedication and erratic emotionalism caused him to be either admired or resented by his associates.