William J. Beal Collection

Botanist, forester, teacher, mentor, experimenter, geneticist, author, contributor, advocate, colleague, friend – William James Beal embodied these many personas during his forty-year professorship at Michigan Agricultural College, from 1870-1910. Once a student of Asa Gray and Louis Agassiz’s, Beal graduated from Harvard and soon after at M.A.C. arose to the status of a valued scholar and colleague, establishing himself as a dedicated botanical scientist, conducting his own studies and collaborating with other scientists on topics of plant taxonomy and morphology (especially the grasses), hybridization (famously using corn varieties as test subjects), plant hardiness, and seed viability. Beal shared his findings not only with students and academic colleagues, but with those who could apply them, i.e. farmers, woodlot owners, orchardists, and agriculturalists, to their benefit in large part through publishing a countless number of articles in trade and scientific newspapers and journals, as books and as bulletins. He frequently taught at Farmers’ Institutes held across Michigan and answered questions discussion-based forums. He and his colleagues established the Michigan Forestry Commission, the Society for the Promotion of Agricultural Science, and the Michigan Academy of Science, and published continually in their reports and proceedings.

Beal didn’t squander his time, always conducting studies either in the lab or on his dozens of field and greenhouse experiments, teaching and mentoring students during classes and during manual labor work sessions, traveling and presenting to countless conferences, all the while writing it all down. His zeal to discover more and more about botanical ecosystems didn’t stop on any day or for anything as ‘frivolous’ as social outings, novels, or a day off. Beal’s famous statement of ‘keep on squintin’ spurred his oft-exasperated students to dig deeper, look beyond the surface, and search for the ‘how and why for’ of what was in front of them. His students took this to heart and not only applied this intense examination to their botanical studies but to other disciplines as well. Many of his students went on to their own successes and fame, and many likewise encouraged their students to look below the surface for more.

Nearing his retirement, Dr. Beal compiled a list of his publications, providing the publication name, year, title, page number, volume, and, on occasion, the issue. Quite frequently, however, not all these components were included, thus locating the article became a treasure hunt. Upon comparing his ‘authored’ list with the actual article, it was noticed that not all were strictly penned by Dr. Beal himself, but often he was quoted, paraphrased, or his articles were reprinted from another sources. Thus, when Beal states he wrote over 1200 items in publication, note that a multitude of these articles give him writing credit, but are expounded upon by the local editor. Many of these accredited works are in this repository, with a subject heading of his name thus indicating that his byline is not on the article, but his wisdom is being spread by editors and publishers of the time.

As was popular in the day, proceedings reports would include discussions held after the reading of a paper, and they are included as part of the session. Dr. Beal participated in many discussions, lending his experiences to the topic, even when the paper was not his own. Multiple papers with discussions are included in this collection as they include Beal's direct words and contributions.

This collection of William James Beal’s contributions to the world of botany, forestry and other natural and applied sciences affirm Beal was a leading authority amongst his peers. His scientific discoveries were seen as impactful revelations of the time, from which everyone, farmers to scholars, tradesmen to government officials, learned and incorporated into their own work and practice. W. J. Beal was truly a leading and influential plant scientist, scholar and advocate then and still today.

Suzanne Teghtmeyer
April 29, 2025

PROFESSOR WILLIAM JAMES BEAL. —From a Photograph. Fig. 203
Image source: Garfield, Charles W. “Professor William James Beal.” Rural New-Yorker 39, no. 24 (June 12, 1880): 373

BEAL
Image source: Album of class of 1890 of Michigan Agricultural College. Cassey & Riley, 1890. [21]