WollastonAFR

Career

Collecting localities

Collections

Literature

Biographical data

Wollaston, Alexander Frederick Richmond

(Source: Flora Malesiana ser. 1, 1: Cyclopaedia of collectors)

Born: 1875, Glifton, Gloucestershire, England. Died: 1930, Cambridge, England.

career:

Physician, educated at Cambridge, who from 1905-07 explored the Ruwenzori Mountains in Uganda (Centr. Africa); later he made two New Guinea expeditions, aiming at the Carstensz Mountains in the Dutch part, succeeding only the 2nd time. In 1921 he made a Mt Everest expedition,¹ and explored in Colombia in 1923. After his return in England he settled as a private tutor at Cambridge, where he finally was murdered by a raffish student.

The genus Neowollastonia Wernh. and several New Guinea plant species were named in his honour.

Collecting localities:

ITINERARY. Mimika Expedition, 1910-11.² Dutch S. New Guinea: mouth of the Mimika River (Jan. 5, 1910; the Dutch Government had stipulated that the expedition was not to start before 1910, as this would give H.A. Lorentz (see there) the first chance to reach the snow mountains); Wakatimi, base bivouac; exploring the Tuaba, Wataikwa, Iwaka, Mimika, Kamoera, and Kaparé rivers till up into the mountains, and making tours by land between the various river basins; in Oct. the leader, W. Goodfellow, was obliged to return on account of illness, but operations were continued under the surveyor Capt. Rawling; back at Parimau (Febr. 14, 1911); exploring Atoeka River; Wakatimi (March 10); leaving New Guinea (Apr. 7). -Wollaston Expedition, 1912-13.³ Dutch New Guinea, cf. itinerary etc. sub C.B. Kloss. By an accident, when going downstream the river, Wollaston’s diary, collections, etc., were lost.⁴

collections:⁵

He accompanied the Mimika Expedition of the British Ornithologists’ Union as medical officer, entomologist and botanist, but up till now we have no evidence of any plant collection, though Rawling in his paper (cf. Literature 2) mentions the collecting of botanical specimens. During the second expedition C.B. Kloss (see there) was in charge of the botany department, assisted by five native collectors from Sarawak.

literature:

(1) cf. Journ. Bot. 59, 1921, p. 120.
(2) cf. Tijdschr. K.N.A.G. 1910, p. 817-821, 1043, 1254-1256; 1911, p. 393-394, 575, 714-720, and 832-833.
A.F.R. Wollaston: ‘Pygmies and Papuans. The stone age to-day in Dutch New Guinea’ (London 1912).
C.G. Rawling: ‘Explorations in Dutch New Guinea’ (Geogr. Journ. Lord. 1911; p. 233-252 map and ill.); ‘The land of the New Guinea pygmies. Account of a pioneer journey of exploration into the heart of New Guinea’ (London 1913).
cf. Versl. Milit. Expl. Ned. Nieuw Guinea 1907-15 (Weltevreden 1920), p. 29-30.
(3) Account of the 2nd expedition by A.F.R. Wollaston in Geogr. Journ. Lond. 43, 1914, p. 248-273 + map (incl. chapter on botany); cf. also in l.c. 42, 1913, p. 60-81.
cf. Tijdschr. K.N.A.G. 1913, p. 539-542, 671; l.c. 1914, p. 388-394, 2 fig.
(4) cf. Tijdschr. K.N.A.G. 1913, p. 542.
(5) The results of the expedition are embodied in ‘Reports on the collections made by the British Ornithologists’ Union Expedition and the Wollaston Expedition in Dutch New Guinea, 1910-13’ (London 1916, 2 vols). The ‘Botany’ in the 2nd volume is a reprint of Ridley’s paper in the Transact. Linn. Soc., l.c. sub Kloss; no mention is made of botanical collections made during the Mimika Expedition.

biographical data:

Nature 125, 1930, p. 944, 981-982; Backer, Verkl. Woordenb., 1936; Who was who 1929-40.

	Career Collecting localities Collections Literature Biographical data
	Wollaston, Alexander Frederick Richmond
	(Source: Flora Malesiana ser. 1, 1: Cyclopaedia of collectors)
	Born: 1875, Glifton, Gloucestershire, England. Died: 1930, Cambridge, England.
	career: Physician, educated at Cambridge, who from 1905-07 explored the Ruwenzori Mountains in Uganda (Centr. Africa); later he made two New Guinea expeditions, aiming at the Carstensz Mountains in the Dutch part, succeeding only the 2nd time. In 1921 he made a Mt Everest expedition,¹ and explored in Colombia in 1923. After his return in England he settled as a private tutor at Cambridge, where he finally was murdered by a raffish student. The genus Neowollastonia Wernh. and several New Guinea plant species were named in his honour.
	Collecting localities: ITINERARY. Mimika Expedition, 1910-11.² Dutch S. New Guinea: mouth of the Mimika River (Jan. 5, 1910; the Dutch Government had stipulated that the expedition was not to start before 1910, as this would give H.A. Lorentz (see there) the first chance to reach the snow mountains); Wakatimi, base bivouac; exploring the Tuaba, Wataikwa, Iwaka, Mimika, Kamoera, and Kaparé rivers till up into the mountains, and making tours by land between the various river basins; in Oct. the leader, W. Goodfellow, was obliged to return on account of illness, but operations were continued under the surveyor Capt. Rawling; back at Parimau (Febr. 14, 1911); exploring Atoeka River; Wakatimi (March 10); leaving New Guinea (Apr. 7). -Wollaston Expedition, 1912-13.³ Dutch New Guinea, cf. itinerary etc. sub C.B. Kloss. By an accident, when going downstream the river, Wollaston’s diary, collections, etc., were lost.⁴
	collections:⁵ He accompanied the Mimika Expedition of the British Ornithologists’ Union as medical officer, entomologist and botanist, but up till now we have no evidence of any plant collection, though Rawling in his paper (cf. Literature 2) mentions the collecting of botanical specimens. During the second expedition C.B. Kloss (see there) was in charge of the botany department, assisted by five native collectors from Sarawak.
	literature: (1) cf. Journ. Bot. 59, 1921, p. 120. (2) cf. Tijdschr. K.N.A.G. 1910, p. 817-821, 1043, 1254-1256; 1911, p. 393-394, 575, 714-720, and 832-833. A.F.R. Wollaston: ‘Pygmies and Papuans. The stone age to-day in Dutch New Guinea’ (London 1912). C.G. Rawling: ‘Explorations in Dutch New Guinea’ (Geogr. Journ. Lord. 1911; p. 233-252 map and ill.); ‘The land of the New Guinea pygmies. Account of a pioneer journey of exploration into the heart of New Guinea’ (London 1913). cf. Versl. Milit. Expl. Ned. Nieuw Guinea 1907-15 (Weltevreden 1920), p. 29-30. (3) Account of the 2nd expedition by A.F.R. Wollaston in Geogr. Journ. Lond. 43, 1914, p. 248-273 + map (incl. chapter on botany); cf. also in l.c. 42, 1913, p. 60-81. cf. Tijdschr. K.N.A.G. 1913, p. 539-542, 671; l.c. 1914, p. 388-394, 2 fig. (4) cf. Tijdschr. K.N.A.G. 1913, p. 542. (5) The results of the expedition are embodied in ‘Reports on the collections made by the British Ornithologists’ Union Expedition and the Wollaston Expedition in Dutch New Guinea, 1910-13’ (London 1916, 2 vols). The ‘Botany’ in the 2nd volume is a reprint of Ridley’s paper in the Transact. Linn. Soc., l.c. sub Kloss; no mention is made of botanical collections made during the Mimika Expedition.
	biographical data: Nature 125, 1930, p. 944, 981-982; Backer, Verkl. Woordenb., 1936; Who was who 1929-40.