The Herbarium

An herbarium is a museum collection of dried plant specimens. Generally, the specimens are filed according to a systematic classification system that not only permits ready retrieval but also groups specimens of closely related plants in close physical proximity. The first herbarium collection at the University of Richmond was assembled by Paul R. Merriman in the early 1920s. Merriman’s collection was lost in a fire that destroyed the University’s Science Building in 1925; however, Merriman’s manuscript and a set of illustrations survived and went on to later be published. Robert Smart, who joined the Department of Biology in 1929, continued the collection and his work set the standard for the extensive collection the University has today, which has been managed by Dr. W. John Hayden since 1980.

Digitization of data held by the University of Richmond Herbarium has been underway since 2012. Digitization involves uploading high resolution images of whole specimens and/or specimen labels and display of label data in spreadsheet format on publicly available websites. To date the following UR specimens have been digitized and can be viewed online using host site search functions:

The current herbarium (known in the botanical community by the acronym URV) features approximately 30,000 specimens.  In addition to the specimens listed above, there are 2,000 specimens of Algae, 1,000 specimens of Fungi, and several thousand additional vascular plants and bryophytes awaiting digitization.

The herbarium supports teaching and research in plant biology.