John Merle Coulter

John Merle Coulter, Ph. D. (November 20, 1851 – December 23, 1928) was an American botanist and educator. In his career in education administration, Coulter is notable for serving as the president of Indiana University and Lake Forest College and the head of the Department of Botany at the University of Chicago.

Early life and education

John Merle Coulter was born in Ningpo, China to missionary parents Caroline Elvira Crowe and Moses Stanley Coulter. His brother was the botanist Stanley Coulter. He graduated from Hanover College in Indiana receiving the degree A.B. in 1870, followed by an A.M. in 1873 and Ph.D. in 1883 from the Indiana University. Indiana University conferred a pro merito Ph.D. to Coulter in 1884 while he was serving as professor of botany at Wabash College. He married Georgie M. Gaylord of Delphi, Indiana, on January 1, 1874.

Career

John Merle Coulter held the following positions:

1871–1879 Professor of Natural Sciences at Hanover College

1872–1875 Botanist to the United States Geological Survey in the Rocky Mountains

1879–1891 Professor of Botany at Wabash College

1891–1893 President and Professor of Botany of Indiana University, succeeding David Starr Jordan as president

1893–1896 President of Lake Forest University

1896–1925 Professor and head of the department of Botany at the University of Chicago.

1925–1928 Dean and adviser of the Boyce Thompson Institute for Plant Research in Yonkers, New York, a position he held until his death.

Memberships in scientific societies

Coulter was elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 1898. In 1901, Coulter was the general secretary of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and in 1918 served as the Association's president. From 1897 to 1898, he was the president of the Botanical Society of America. He was also an elected member of both the United States National Academy of Sciences and the American Philosophical Society.