Diary of an Ardent Naturalist: Letters from Austin H. Clark to his Wife from the 1906 Research Cruise of the Steamer Albatross DAVID L. PAWSON and DORIS J. PAWSON Introduction in the Smithsonian Archives. We were siz (1913). Published accounts of early astonished to find among the papers deep-sea research cruises, based upon Austin Hobart Clark (1880–1954) the letters, noted above, from Clark on letters home, are rare. Perhaps the best was a marine biologist who specialized the Albatross to his wife Mary. Regret- of them, written by Charles Matkin in the study of echinoderms (sea stars tably, none of Mary Clark’s numerous and edited by Philip Rehbock (1992), and allies), but his broad research in- replies to her husband appear to have describes the cruise of the HMS Chal- terests led him to become an expert in survived. lenger from the point of view of a several animal groups. He was a Cu- Our interest in Clark’s personal and crew member. Austin Clark’s letters rator in the National Museum of Nat- professional life, and in the Albatross offer unique and fascinating insights ural History, Smithsonian Institution, (Fig. 1), was stimulated by this collec- into daily life on board the Albatross, Washington, D.C., from 1908 until his tion of letters, for they describe, in in- and they also reveal how his 7-month retirement in 1950, and a Research As- timate and gossipy detail, life aboard cruise helped to shape his life in sci- sociate until his death in late 1954. the vessel, interpersonal relationships, ence. A large collection of the papers shore excursions, and the collecting of A few years after his Albatross of Austin Hobart Clark resides in marine specimens. Diaries and letters cruise, Clark wrote a short account of the Smithsonian Institution Archives revealing details of life on board the the cruise aimed at the general reader, (SIARU007183). In 2007, we were Albatross are not common and, while and sought to publish it, without suc- fortunate to receive a second collec- some are available for study in vari- cess (A. H. Clark, in ms.). We have tion of the papers of Austin Clark from ous archives (for example, diaries of P. drawn upon this account where indi- the late Mrs. Stella Clark, of Sper- Bartsch in the Smithsonian Institution; cated, mainly for information on crew ryville, Va. Stella Clark was the widow W. K. Fisher in the California Acad- members, and for confirmation of de- of Hugh U. Clark, Austin Clark’s sec- emy of Sciences; J. O. Snyder in the tails of the cruise itinerary. Then, in ond son. This additional collection was Stanford University Archives; C. A. 1950, he sent a brief autobiographical initially deeded to the National Muse- Kofoid in the Archives of the Scripps note to the Secretary of Harvard Col- um of Natural History, and it will be- Institution of Oceanography), they are lege’s Class of 1903. We have cited come part of the Austin Clark papers not generally available for public con- this memoir, where appropriate, as (A. sumption. H. Clark, in bio.). A notable exception is the fanatical The authors are in the Department of Inverte- diarist Alexander Agassiz, who pub- Brief Biography of brate Zoology, MRC163, National Museum of Austin Hobart Clark Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, Wash- lished his diaries from his cruises on ington D.C. 20013-7012 (email: Pawsond@ the USCGS Steamer Blake (Agassiz, Information for the following biog- si.edu). 1888), and whose Albatross cruise dia- raphy was derived from several sourc- doi: https://doi.org/10.7755/MFR.80.4.1 ries are extensively quoted in G. Agas- es: materials in the Smithsonian Insti- tution Archives and in the possession ABSTRACT—The United States Fish During the cruise, extensive collections of of the National Museum of Natural Commission Steamer Albatross (1882– marine and terrestrial organisms were ac- History (NMNH); correspondence in 1921) conducted research in the Western quired. These events, and many others, were the U.S. National Archives and in the Atlantic Ocean, Gulf of Mexico, and Pa- faithfully reported by young naturalist Austin cific Ocean. On board during the many re- Hobart Clark in numerous affectionate let- Library of Congress between vari- search cruises was a “veritable Who’s Who ters to his wife, Mary Wendell Upham Clark. ous scientists and Austin Clark; per- of American zoologists” (Hedgpeth, 1945). The letters, donated to the Smithsonian In- sonal reminiscences of Clark family The eventful 1906 cruise, from San Francis- stitution in 2007, are an intimate and fas- members during and after a “family co to Alaska, Japan, and back to San Fran- cinating diary of life aboard the ship; they reunion” held at the NMNH in Au- cisco, took 7 long months. It began with the report on interpersonal relationships, vis- great San Francisco earthquake on 18 April, its ashore, and scientific research. Unques- gust, 2006; and reminiscences of sci- and then, near its end, the ship’s captain, tionably, this incident-filledAlbatross cruise entists at NMNH who had known Aus- LeRoy M. Garrett, was lost overboard. helped to shape Clark’s career in science. tin Clark. 80(4) 1 Figure 1.—USFC Steamer Albatross. U.S. National Archives. a renowned scientist, and his facili- ty with the written word served him well. Austin Clark was born into privilege in Grantville, Mass. (now incorporated in Wellesley, Mass.), on 17 December 1880. His parents were Theodore Mi- not Clark (1845–1909; Fig. 2) and Jea- nette French Clark (1860–1914; Fig. 3). Theodore Clark was a prominent architect, based in Boston, and Aus- tin had two younger sisters, Rosamond and Mildred (Fig. 4). As a young boy, growing up in New- ton, Mass., Clark developed an intense and broad interest in natural history. His parents, ever affectionate and sup- portive, encouraged him, and he col- lected birds, birds’ eggs, insects, and Figure 2.—Theodore M. Clark other animals, and recorded his find- (1879). Smithsonian Archives. ings in carefully-written diaries, a few Figure 3.—Jeanette F. Clark (1879). of which are still extant. These note- Smithsonian Archives. In 1890, when he was 9 years old, books are filled with descriptions and Austin Hobart Clark wrote “Plants: a water-color paintings of birds, and de- book about botany.” On the first page tails of collecting sites. gy. His friends at Harvard called him of this hand-bound pamphlet was this Austin attended the high school “Texas,” for someone had suggested comment: “Preface. This is a book to at Newton, Mass., and then Cutler’s that he had been named after the city show you what I know about plants, School. He entered Harvard College in of Austin, Tex. During 1902–03, he which is not very much.” The author 1899, and graduated with an A.B. de- began graduate studies in genetics, en- of this modest introduction became gree in 1903, with a major in Zoolo- tomology, and ornithology, based in 2 Marine Fisheries Review Harvard’s Museum of Comparative Zoology (MCZ). In mid-1903, he spent 2 weeks at the Bermuda Biological Station, then in July he traveled to the Lesser Antilles, where he spent 13 months, mostly on the islands of Barbados, St. Vincent, Grenada, and The Grenadines, col- lecting and studying birds. During this long field trip, he apparently received some financial support from Dr. Out- ram Bangs, and perhaps others, in the ornithology department at the MCZ. The large bird collection that Clark amassed at that time is deposited in the MCZ. Clark (Fig. 5) never resumed his graduate studies at Harvard. Upon his return to Boston, he lived at home and worked for several months at Globe Optical—opticians in Boston, noting (A. H. Clark in bio.) that he wished to learn something about “business.” During 1905 he wrote several pa- pers on birds, including “The birds of the Southern Lesser Antilles” (Clark, 1905). Following his return to Boston, he courted Mary Wendell Upham (1881– 1931; Fig. 6) whom he had known for several years. Mary Upham was a first cousin twice removed of Oliver Wen- dell Holmes Jr., a renowned Associ- ate Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court from 1902 to 1932. Austin and Mary were married on 6 March 1906. The Clarks had five children (Aus- tin, born 1909; Sarah, born 1911; Hugh, born 1913; Ann, born 1915; Figure 4.—Austin H. Clark with his sisters Rosamond (left) and Mildred (right), in and Mary, born 1918). Justice Holmes approximately 1890. Smithsonian Archives. (known to the Clark children as “Un- cle Wendell”) played an important role in the education of the children, pro- on her gravestone are the words “five (Ann Clark in ms.). In 1921, when Al- viding financial assistance to enable are grateful you came our way.” bert, Prince of Monaco visited Wash- them to attend private schools. Mary Clark and his wife were gracious ington, D.C. for about 2 weeks, Clark Wendell Clark died of lung cancer in hosts to numerous scientists and stu- served as his personal aide (A. H. late 1931; at that time her youngest dents at their home. One of Clark’s Clark, in bio.). child, Mary, was 13 years old. children noted in an unpublished au- A.H. Clark Invited to In 1933, Austin Clark married Lei- tobiography (Ann Clark, in ms.) that Participate in 1906 Cruise la Gay Forbes (1887–1964), a librari- Clark and his family dressed formally an at the Smithsonian Institution. Lei- for dinner at home. Clark had a facil- Clark’s reputation as a field scien- la, who was a much-loved stepmother ity with languages—he was fluent in tist who published excellent papers to the five Clark children, later became Italian, French, and Russian—and he (i.e., Clark (1905) on birds of vari- the Head Librarian of the Smithson- frequently entertained foreign scien- ous Caribbean islands) had apparent- ian Institution.