Table Of ContentMadrono, Vol. 45, No. 1, pp. 88-90, 1998
OBITUARY
Lauramay Tinsley Dempster herbarium and wondering ifshe could do some collecting
(1905-1997) for ProfessorJepson.
On October 8, 1927, Lauramay Tinsley and Everett
Lauramay Tinsley Dempster, who died at home in Or- Dempster were married at Berkeley's First Unitarian
inda, California, on November 14, 1997, started her bo- Church; and Lauramay, who had always had a distinct
tanical career at the University ofCalifornia, Berkeley as disgust for housework, began the combination ofbeing a
a freshman when she was sixteen and finished this career housewife and working in biology, continuing to assist
at the s—ame institution almost eighty years later! H—er ac- Jepson with his research as well as creating a new house-
tive life abalancing ofpersonal and professional is in- hold. By early May of 1928, she was perceptibly ready to
deed a salutory reflection ofdistinguished women in sci- conclude, in a note to Dr. Jepson: "How could a married
ence during the twentieth century. lady be a botanist even if so inclined?"
Born on May 11, 1905, in El Paso, Texas, daughter of The ensuing academic-year (1928-1929), as Everett
creative parents (hermotherawriter,herfatheratelescope pursued an engineering job with Magnavox in Oakland,
builder), she grew up in the San Francisco Bay area, with Lauramay tackled teaching again, this time a beginning
an early interest in natural history. Encouraged by her botany course for seven young people at Cora Williams
mother and grandmother, she became a botany student at Institute on College Avenue in Berkeley. She flunked six
Berkeley in 1921 and soon was active both in and out of of the seven students both semesters, incurring the wrath
class, joining enthusiastic fellow students to create the ofadministrators and parents alike. But she was latervin-
University's first field botany club, Calypso. The club dicated, since the six who flunked went on to the Univer-
would draw faculty and pupils together for memorable sity of California, where they also flunked. Lauramay's
junkets into the natural bounty of California for almost ultimate reaction to pedigogy after these teaching experi-
two decades, an antidote for what William Morton Whee- ences: "teacherly ambitions do not in any way harmonize
ler once called "the dry rot ofbiology." with my plan oflife."
Lauramay's undergraduate course in "phaenogamic Everett's electricalengineeringpositionwithMagnavox
botany" from Professor Willis Jepson about 1923 Company now took the young couple to Chicago in late
launched an academic relationship which would flourish May of 1929, where they were "installed" in atiny apart-
on and off for more than two decades. Upon graduation ment in the heart of a big city. Lauramay complained to
in 1925, she was urged by Jepson, who was working on Jepson that "There is very little here to tease the eye of
the mustard family for his monumental Flora, to consider a botanist, though the new weeds in vacant lots might
doing a master's with him, focusing on Lepidium for a prove interesting." She thought ofvisiting the University
thesis, undoubtedly not the most exciting genus in the of Chicago and Northwestern University Botany Depart-
botanical world. But the challenge resulted in a superb, ments in the event that there might be some botanical
comprehensive monograph, which contained many mati- occupation, and Jepson suggested she go to the Depart-
culous line drawings (photographed for the thesis by her ment ofBotany at the Field Museum, where Jepson's ca-
father) and was a portent for this budding botanical artist. sual acquaintancePaul Stanleywascurator.Alas,although
Said Jepson, when Lauramay completed her master's she enjoyed the Field Museum exhibits, she was bluntly
work, "If it were up to me, I would give you a doctor's told that "there was no room for me. . ."
degree." Lauramay's—lifetime regret was that she didn't The only appealing Middle West experience came dur-
published that thesis "a terrible mistake"; but Jepson's ing a vacation trip with Everett by second-hand canoe
regret would be rectified by Lauramay's eventual profes- northward in Wisconsin and into Lake Michigan, where
sional accomplishments. the canoe eventually swamped and the couple had to re-
Meanwhile, while a university senior Lauramay had turn to Chicago by train. Also, Lauramay visited New
met and fallen in love with her future husband, Everett York and New Jersey, finding the countryside in the latter
Ross Dempster, an engineering student and native ofSan state superiorin every way to Illiois. But, as shereflected,
Francisco, two years her elder. The Dempster clan had a "I am more than ever impressed with the uniqueness of
retreat at Inverness, and the Dempster family young peo- California, geographically and climatologically. Com-
ple shared Lauramay's love for the out-of-doors. Indeed, pared with it, all the rest of the country that I have seen
part of the summer before she started her graduate work is nearly monotonously alike. Simultaneously, mylonging
had been spent on an extended Dempster hiking hagiera for California increases .... Hoping to come back some
in the southern Sierra. day."
Miss Tinsley received her master of arts degree early Everett's engineeringjob wouldshifthimfromChicago
in 1927 and then served as a research assistantfortherest to Fort Wayne, Indiana, back to Chicago, and to England
of the academic year. Everett would not complete his en- for a time. But eventually he and Lauramay did return to
gineering program until 1928, but already the couple was Berkeley, in 1933,where,ofallunexpectedthings,Everett
looking forward to a wedding in the autumn of 1927. gave uphis engineering profession anddecidedtobecome
Lauramay decided to explore the science teaching profes- a biologist like his wife. He began taking the necessary
sion in the interim. During the summerof 1927 she taught background courses and started his pursuit of a Ph.D. in
biology at a Fresno State College field session atHunting- genetics, meanwhile commencing his own teaching career
ton Lake (ajob which had been turned down by Herbert as a botanical assistant in 1935. Dempster received his
Mason). She was the youngest teacher there, expressed Ph.D. in 1941 and in his botanical career would go on to
some concerns about her abilities, but at least reveled in becomechairman ofthe DepartmentofGeneticsatBerke-
the botany of the mountain area, adding to her personal ley for many years.
1998] OBITUARY 89
Thus it was that Lauramay Tinsley Dempster again be- Scrophulariaceae, Solanaceae, and Gilia. In 1958 shepub-
came a research assistant to Professor Willis Lynn Jepson lished her first major paper, "Dimorphism in the fruits of
in 1933. To be specific, she was his "botanical dissector Plectritis [a genus in the Verbenaceae family] and its tax-
and preparateur of details for drawings," working part- onomic implications", in Brittonia. It was Dr. Bacigalupi
time forhim on the Flora and to agreaterextentas some- who first suggested that Lauramay tackle the revision of
what ofa personal secretary, especially when Jepson was that difficult Rubiaceae genus Galium, and she would
off campus, handling his correspondence, reading proof, eventually become world famous for this research.
toiling overthe index ofMadrono, visiting the libraryand Shortly before Jepson died, Lauramay had written him
herbarium, coping with students, visitors, and other assis- that "All my life I have craved land, as many people do
tants. Incidentally, Jepson was continually piqued beyond the seas. In fact there is no type ofland that I do not love,
measure that he, supposedly unlike his academic col- and the plants upon it are only its most charming mani-
leagues, never had a full-time secretary. Unfortunately, festations." Starting in the 1950's—, alone or with other
this working arrangement which was beneficial to both comp—anions, she was to see lands and their natural his-
Jepson and Lauramay came to an end by early 1936 as tory that encompassed the Biosphere. It was across Af-
Lauramay anticipated the birth of her second child (she rica, Europe fromFrance to Sweden, the Alaskanhighway
had lost her first several years earlier). through Canada to Fairbanks and Mt. McKinley, the di-
Although overensuing years, until World War II, Laur- versity ofAustralia from the tropics ofDarwin to the Red
amaydidkeep in contact withJepson, and indeedcasually CenteratAlice, the alpine tundraofthe Snowy Mountains
did little jobs for him such as proof reading sections of and the coastal rainforests of Queensland; New Zealand,
the Flora as they appeared, she increasingly devoted her Malayasia . . . and of course North, Central, and South
life to Everett and their growing family. As she wrote Dr. America. In 1988 the continent of Antarctica was added
Jepson in 1939, "My botany is at present petty and quite to Lauramay's geographical roster.
avocational . . . but has not been dropped altogether." At home in California her botanical research and writ-
While Everett Dempster was advancing at the Univer- ing accelerated. From 1959-1964, with National Science
sity ofCalifornia from instructor in 1941 to assistant pro- Foundation grants and especially in close association with
fessor of genetics in 1944, Lauramay again commenced Ledyard Stebbins, she was almost continually in the field
helping Jepson with his Flora, "far from an expert typist spring-summer-and-fall the length oftheGolden State and
but improving," spending about an hour every evening, elsewhere, working on Galium. Publications began ap-
typing and proof-reading. As she informed him, "Wel- pearing, in Madrono, University of California Publica-
come though the money is [from Jepson's university tions in Botany, Allertonia, Phytologia, Boletin de la So-
grant], I have enjoyed feeling that I was helping you in a ciedadBotanicadeMexico, GreatBasinNaturalist, Field-
waythatrelativelyfew people wouldbeabletodo. Indeed iana, Brittonia, Leaflets ofWestern Botany, Sida. Her bi-
it is a pleasure to know that I have contributed, however ographical sketch appeared in the 1965 edition of
slightly to so great a work." A friend noted at this time American Men ofScience. In 1968 Lauramay Dempster
that although Lauramay did "have her hands full" with was designated as a Research Associate with the Jepson
her family, she "wouldn't do anything for anybody else Herbarium and Library, an appointment which she would
but for Jepson, she'd give him whatever time she could hold until her death. Commented Robert Ornduffwith re-
manage." Everett, incidentally, had not been too happy spect to this unpaid appointment: "Mrs. Dempster holds
about his wife working for Jepson, even part-time, be- an M.A. degree from this institution but does not have
cause her "job at home is more than man-sized already." Ph.D. Nevertheless, I believe that the quality and volume
Willis Lynn Jepson died in 1946, his great Flora un- of her research work are equivalent to that of a person
completed; but provisions of his will provided for con- holding a doctorate, and exceed that of a number ofdoc-
tinuing pursuit of the project. And on October 8, 1951, toral products of our department." Ornduff added that
Lauramay was employed by the University of California much of her research was carried out without financial
as Herbarium Botanist, part-time, fittingly on the Jepson support. When the new Jepson Manual appeared in 1993,
Endowment Fund, aposition which she would occupy un- Lauramay was author for not only Rubiaceae, but also
til the summer of 1963. With the establishment of the Apocynaceae, Caprifoliaceae, most of Valerianaceae and
Jepson Herbarium in 1951, she became the assistant of Convolvulaceae, not to mention the genus Lewisia. Her
the first curator, Dr. Rimo Bacigalupi, and was initially definitive treatment of Galium for the Flora of North
charged with organizing Jepson's botanical books into the America was completed in 1996, seventy years after she
herbarium library. Later, between 1959 and 1967, she also was doing research on Lepidium for her master's thesis.
received an appointment as ResearchGeneticist at60% of The shy young co-ed in the photograph of a Calypso
full time. Club excursion in the mid-1920's, LauramayTinsley then,
During these years, Lauramay and Everett'sown family would overthe decades become more than adistinguished
wasgrowingup, butan "extendedfamily" andbefriended taxonomic botanist. For one who detested housework,
friends (Everett was always known for putting students Lauramay learned to put on a memorable Thanksgiving
"first"), initially at the house in Berkeley and then in the spread for 30 people. But on the other hand, when Dr
new oak-woodland suburban home at Orinda and the In- Jepson came to her parents' home for dinner, Lauramay
verness retreat, made continuing demands on the Demps- spilled a platter of bisquits on his head. Her tenacity at
ters Their residence, as a friend once commented, was driving hercarfrom Orindathrough the tunnel to the Uni-
"like Grand Central Station!" versity when over ninety years old was probably a latter-
Nevertheless, despite familial distractions, Lauramay day manifestation of her youthful love for motorcycles.
was increasingly able to pursue what through the years Yet despite spending much leisure time along the northern
she had longed to pursue, the professional life of a taxo- California coast, she was not partial to boats. No wonder
nomic botanist. She had been continuing her work on re- that when she went overboard while floating the Colorado
vision ofUmbelliferae, and, thinking "there is great dan- River through the Grand Canyon, herhusband had to pull
ger in devoting all ofone's attentions to a single group," her back aboard by the hair. Although quiet spoken and
was also pursuing Hydrophyllaceae, had worked on self-contained, she was chairman ofthe Society ofAmer-
MADRONO
90 [Vol. 45
ican Geographers for three years, an active member of credit in publication for her research contributions. But
University Women's Club, California Botanical Society, she forgave him. "He was always ready to give me atten-
American Society ofPlantTaxonomists, andtheAmphion tion ifI askedforit, butforthe mostpartheleftmealone.
Club . . . not to mention a founding member of the Ca- Left me to use my own judgement. And I think he
lypso Club. couldn't have done better!"
Lauramay was accomplished at playing the recorder WhenLauramayDempsterdiedthispastNovember,her
and was remembered for her duets on the oboe with a surviving contemporaries were few. Many who had re-
dog. Her plant anatomy drawings were detailed and ex- ceived acovetedPh.D. diplomaduringthosebygonedays,
quisite; in the Orindahome hercolorful wall-sizedmurals and were entitled to spend a lifetime at research and/or
of tropical rainforest and of flowers were overwhelming. teaching in the hallowed Halls ofIvy, are now both gone
Although many an hour and day were spent indoors over and forgotten. Miss Tinsley need no longerregret that she
a typewriter, a manuscript, a dried plant specimen, Laur- couldn't have been one ofthem. Dividing hermany years
amay was an outdoorswoman, a world traveler, a com- between a pursuit ofbotany and a commitment to family
mitted conservationist ofthe natural world. Although she and society, she succeeded in transcending them all.
refused to snoop around another botany professor's office —
for Jepson, on the other hand Jepson rarely offered her Richard G. Beidleman
