{"id":824,"featured":0,"modified":"2026-04-17 19:32:18","latitude":41.74509299999999711872078478336334228515625,"longitude":-111.809720999999996138285496272146701812744140625,"title":"Intermountain Herbarium","subtitle":"","fullsize":"https://www.intermountainhistories.org/files/fullsize/28eb59623097df251d744081d5e0c68f.jpg","address":"","all_locations":[],"zoom":15,"creator":["Cristal A. DeSantiago, Northern Arizona University"],"description":"The Intermountain Herbarium is at Utah State University (USU) in Logan, Utah. It began with Dr. Bassett Maguire, a botanist, who initiated a project exploring the local flora in the early 1930s. He recorded and published his findings as the Intermountain Flora project, eventually publishing seven volumes. In 1939, Maguire joined USU as a Professor of Botany and used his project findings to establish the Intermountain Herbarium that same year, becoming its first collector and curator. Maguire remained active in his project and curator role,  often working on both simultaneously. He would travel to various locations to continue his studies and enlarge the herbarium collections, often accompanied by a selection of students and USU Professor of Biology Arthur H. Holmgren. However, in 1942, he left to become the New York Botanical Garden curator.
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Upon Maguire's departure, Professor Arthur H. Holmgren assumed the role of curator and remained in that position until 1978. Over the thirty-plus years, the herbarium flourished under Holmgren's leadership. Then, by 1963, he had collected over 110,000 specimens. Years later, in 1976, he had grown the herbarium to 150,000 specimens, and it became a popular research source for academic students and government agencies. International organizations also requested samples from the Intermountain Herbarium to study the Utah flora. International organizations also requested samples from the Intermountain Herbarium to study the Utah flora. Most of the collection originated from the West, including Utah, southern Idaho, most of Nevada, a small portion of California (including the Great Basin), and southwest Oregon. The rest of the collection resulted from exchange transactions with global institutions.

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After Holmgren's retirement, Dr. Mary Barkworth assumed the role of herbarium director until 2012. When she took over in 1979, the herbarium collection included 172,000 specimen samples and additional folders that were not officially part of the herbarium due to being unidentifiable plant samples. Under her leadership, the herbarium became part of a loaning system that allowed the Intermountain Herbarium to borrow files from other herbariums when specific information was unavailable at USU. The loan could last as long as someone needed the information or until they published their paper. Additionally, the herbarium had a policy that if it achieved new flora identification and had extra samples of the new specimen, it would send the additional specimen to other collection centers. In 1986, Barkworth moved the herbarium to the fourth floor of the Utah State University Plant Industry building. The work of the curators and collectors to grow the collection and researchers began to recognize the Intermountain Herbarium as a major regional herbarium.

","sponsor":null,"accessinfo":"","lede":"In the 1930s, Bassett Maguire began a personal project of gathering local plants and publishing the findings. Maguire brought the collection to Utah State University in 1939 and created the Intermountain Herbarium. His collection grew to be the second-largest herbarium in the Intermountain Region and the largest public herbarium in the region.
","website":"","related_resources":["Cahoon, Cliff. “Have 150,000 Plants and Want More.” Herlad Journal (Logan, UT), Jun. 3, 1976. Accessed November 13, 2023. Intermountain herbarium - Newspapers.com™","

“Dr. Mary E. Barkworth.” GulfBase. Accessed November 28, 2023.  Dr. Mary E. Barkworth | GulfBase

","“Former Aggie.” Herlad-Journal (Logan, UT), May 6, 1949. Accessed November 13, 2023. Article clipped from The Herald-Journal - Newspapers.com™","

“Holmgren, Arthur Hermann ( 1912-1992).” JSTOR. ITHAKA. Last revised April 19, 2023. Accessed November 28, 2023.  Edit History: Holmgren, Arthur Hermann (1912-1992) on JSTOR

","

“Intermountain Herbarium Holds 115,000 Specimens of Plants.” Daily Herald ( Provo, UT), Feb. 24, 1982. Accessed November 13, 2023. Article clipped from The Daily Herald - Newspapers.com™

","

“Intermountain Herbarium reaps from old seeds.” Utah Statesman ( Logan, UT), Jan. 22, 1982. Accessed November 13, 2023.  Article clipped from The Utah Statesman - Newspapers.com™

","“To give program for USU Faculty Legue.” Herald-Journal ( Logan, UT) Nov. 10, 1963. Accessed November 13, 2023. Article clipped from The Herald-Journal - Newspapers.com™"],"factoids":[],"files":{"https://www.intermountainhistories.org/files/fullsize/28eb59623097df251d744081d5e0c68f.jpg":{"id":3637,"mime-type":"image/png","title":"A sample of Castilleja alkoensis Edwin, also known as Prairie-Fire","description":"A sample of Castilleja alkoensis Edwin, also known as Prairie-Fire, from the Intermountain Herbarium digital database. Collected in 1943 by Bassett Maguire and Arthur H. Holmgren. Accession #: 93290. |

Utah State University Libraries, Castilleja alkoensis Edwin. Available at    Castilleja alkoensis Edwin\" by Bassett Maguire and A. H. Holmgren (usu.edu)

","thumbnail":"https://www.intermountainhistories.org/files/square_thumbnails/28eb59623097df251d744081d5e0c68f.jpg"},"https://www.intermountainhistories.org/files/fullsize/12df4095ed1ffd823212fccbcd99d694.jpg":{"id":3638,"mime-type":"image/png","title":"Plant Industry building in 1923","description":"Captured by Harry R. Reynolds is the Plant Industry building in 1923, sixty years before the herbarium collection took residence on its fourth floor. |

Utah State University, Digital Exhibits. Available at Students leaving the Plant Industry building, undated · USU Digital Exhibits

","thumbnail":"https://www.intermountainhistories.org/files/square_thumbnails/12df4095ed1ffd823212fccbcd99d694.jpg"},"https://www.intermountainhistories.org/files/fullsize/be92a9cd9ecade147ae8bf59895a69ef.jpg":{"id":3639,"mime-type":"image/png","title":"Bassett Maguire going over their finds during one of his expeditions for his Intermountain Flora project in Neblina","description":"Bassett Maguire going over their finds during one of his expeditions for his Intermountain Flora project in Neblina. Photo taken in 1953–54 by Kathleen D. Phelps. This image was used with the permission of Utah State University. | New York botanical Gardens, Bassett Maguire Archive. Available at LuEsther T. Mertz Library Collection: Bassett Maguire Archive - Plant Talk (nybg.org)","thumbnail":"https://www.intermountainhistories.org/files/square_thumbnails/be92a9cd9ecade147ae8bf59895a69ef.jpg"}}}