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A letter written by Charles Darwin to famed MSU botanist William Beal is housed in MSU Archives and Historical Collections.
It was in 1872 that Beal, for whom MSU’s Beal Botanical Gardens are named, wrote Darwin a letter, telling him how much he admired his work. He also included a paper he wrote on cross-fertilization of corn. In his response to Beal, Darwin commends Beal for his experimental approach.
“This was one experimentalist writing to another, and shows how what we now call genetics research has a history at MSU extending back to our earliest days, when William Beal and Charles Darwin were contemporaries, linked by their scientific curiosity,” said Danita Brandt, an MSU associate professor of geological sciences who has been instrumental in organizing the Darwin Discovery Days at MSU.
Here is a transcription of the letter from Darwin to Beal:
“Dear Sir
I am much obliged for your extremely kind notice of my book on Cross Fertilization and for your note of May 2. I have further to thank you for a copy of your article on Hairs [grasses] etc. I am glad that you intend to experiment.
I remain, Dear Sir, Yours faithfully,
Ch. Darwin”
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