William Louis Culberson
American lichenologist
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William Louis "Bill" Culberson (April 5, 1929 in Indianapolis, Indiana – February 8, 2003 in Durham, North Carolina) was an American lichenologist.
William Louis Culberson | |
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| Born | April 5, 1929 |
| Died | February 8, 2003 (aged 73) |
| Alma mater | University of Cincinnati, University of Paris, University of Wisconsin–Madison |
| Spouse | Chicita F. Forman (m. 1953) |
| Awards | Acharius Medal (1992) |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Lichenology |
| Institutions | Duke University |
| Doctoral advisor | John Walter Thomson |
Professional history
Culberson earned his bachelor's degree at the University of Cincinnati, where he was influenced by E. Lucy Braun;[1] he subsequently attended the University of Paris and the University of Wisconsin–Madison.
In 1955, Culberson joined the botany department at Duke University; he subsequently managed Duke's acquisition of the lichen-centric herbaria of Julien Harmand and Johan Havaas. He served as the Hugo L. Blomquist Professor.[2] In 2010, the lichen collection was officially named the William Louis & Chicita F. Culberson Lichen Herbarium & Library. In the mid-1970s he hosted Ingvar Kärnefelt at Duke; Kärnefelt studied the Culbersons' collections of Cetraria and later published a widely reproduced photograph he took of William and Chicita Culberson seated at their garden table.[3]
He served as president of the Botanical Society of America and the American Bryological and Lichenological Society[4] and as director of the Sarah P. Duke Gardens.[5] He was the first editor-in-chief of the journal Systematic Botany.[6] In 1992, he became one of the first modern recipients of the Acharius Medal.[7]
In 2000, Theodore Esslinger erected Culbersonia, which is a fungal genus in the family Caliciaceae and named in Bill Culberson and Chicita F. Culberson's honour, his "longtime friends and mentors".[8][9]
Personal life
In 1953,[10] Dr. Culberson married fellow lichenologist Chicita F. Forman.