Ada Hayden
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Ada Hayden | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | 14 August 1884 |
| Died | 12 August 1950 (aged 65) |
| Alma mater | Iowa State University Washington University in St. Louis |
| Occupation | Botanist |
Ada Hayden (14 August 1884 – 12 August 1950) was an American botanist, educator, and preservationist. She was the curator of the Iowa State University Herbarium, which was renamed the Ada Hayden Herbarium (ISC) in her honour in 1988.[1] During her career, she added more than 40,000 specimens to the herbarium.[2] Her studies and conservation work were particularly important in ensuring the preservation of the tallgrass prairie.[3]
The Hayden Prairie State Preserve, the first area dedicated as a preserve under Iowa's State Preserves Act of 1965, is named in her honor.[2][4] Also named in her honor is the Ada Hayden Heritage Park in Ames, Iowa.[5]
Ada Hayden was born August 14, 1884 near Ames, Iowa to Maitland David Hayden and Christine Hayden. While still in high school, Louis Hermann Pammel became her mentor. She earned a bachelor's degree in botany from Iowa State College in 1908, a master's degree from Washington University in St. Louis in 1910, and a Ph.D. from Iowa State in 1918. She was the first woman and fourth person to receive a doctorate from Iowa State College.[2][3]
