George William Francis

George William Francis (1800–9 August 1865) was an English botanical and general science writer. An emigrant to the colony of South Australia in 1849, he made a reputation there as a horticulturalist, becoming the first director of the Adelaide Botanic Garden in 1860.

Life

Born in London, Francis emigrated to Australia for improved prospects of supporting his family; he arrived in the Louisa Baillie 2 September 1849. Shortly he took over the old botanical garden of Adelaide, north of the Torrens River, as a tenant. Subsequently he was appointed director of the Adelaide Botanic Garden, a position he held for the rest of his life.

Francis died after a long illness, of dropsy on 9 August 1865 and was buried the next day. He left a widow and ten children.

Legacy

• The establishment of much of the garden, the pagoda and the first botanical museum in Adelaide, in the Adelaide Botanic Garden.
• Hakea francisiana, an Australian shrub that grows to 4 metres (13 ft), is named after him.

Works

Francis published:

• Catalogue of British Plants and Ferns, 1835; 5th edition, 1840.
• Analysis of British Ferns, 1837; 5th edition, 1855.
• Little English Flora, 1839.
• Grammar of Botany, 1840.
• Chemical Experiments, 1842, abridged by W. White, 1851, and republished as Chemistry for Students.
• Favourites of the Flower Garden, 1844.
• Manual of Practical Levelling for Railways and Canals, 1846.
• Art of Modelling Wax Flowers, 1849.
• Electrical Experiments, 8th edition, 1855.
• Dict. Practical Receipts, new edition, 1857.
• Acclimatisation of Animals and Plants, Royal Society, South Australia, 1862.

Francis also edited the first five volumes of the Magazine of Science and School of Arts, 1840–5.