William Richardson Linton

Who was William Richardson Linton?

Rev. William Richardson Linton, Corpus Christi College, M.A., was an English botanist and vicar of the parish of Shirley, Derbyshire. He married Alice Shirley on 26 January 1887, with whom he had one daughter, Viola Marion Linton.

Linton collected botanical specimens and records, often working with his elder brother who was also a cleric.. In 1890 W.R.Linton published a short article in the Journal of Botany describing a new species of Hawkweed found in Derbyshire. In 1892 he and his brother published a short eight page guide called Some Scottish Willows which they followed two years later with Set of British Willows.

Linton wrote an extensive book about the Flora of Derbyshire, published in 1903. The front cover of his Flora contained a large illustration in gold leaf of Rubus durescens, a species of bramble unique to Derbyshire which he had earlier discovered and described. His Flora contained 1,030 species of flowering plant and fern. He considered around 910 of these native, 70 aliens and 50 casuals. He also included mosses and liverworts. He included two maps of the county and two illustrations of plants he considered special in the area.