October 12, 1918 



HORTICULTURE 



363 



OBITUARY. 



Charles Gustavus Roebling. 



In the death, on October 5. of 

 Charles Gustavus Roebling, of Tren- 

 ton, New Jersey, president of the John 

 A. Roebling Sons Company, one of the 

 world's greatest organizations of en- 

 gineers, floriculture has lost a most 

 eminent enthusiast and patron. 



Mr, Roebling was born in Trenton 

 in 1849, and became engaged in the 

 business of his father, the late John 

 A. Roebling, in 1871, becoming active 

 in the progress of the plant from prac- 

 tically its infancy, until it reached the 

 enormous valuation of fifty million dol- 

 lars, furnishing employment for 8,000 

 workers, for many years being the 

 head of the enterprise. 



In the early eighties Mr. Roebling, 

 as a relaxation from the cares of busi- 

 ness, engaged in floriculture as a 

 hobby, specializing in orchids, and it 

 was in orchid culture that he became 

 best known to the trade in both 

 America and Europe. He gathered to- 

 gether a collection of orchids which 

 was recognized as the finest in 

 America, and which compared very 

 favorably with some of the best of 

 the European collections. He spared 

 neither money nor pains to secure the 

 rarest of specimens, the collection 

 eventually requiring about 12,000 ft. of 

 glass to accommodate it. He was 

 known as a successful hybridist, and 

 not a few of his hybrids have found 

 their way into commerce, notably 

 Cypripcdium Win. MiKitiley. Cypri- 

 pi'iUum Pres. Garfield. Cypripediitm 

 Abraham Lincoln. Eygopetalum Roe- 

 lilingianum and many others. Some 

 of the varieties in his collection were 

 considered as priceless, and he had at 

 all times facilities for hybridization 

 work such as few would consider 

 possible. 



He was well known as an exhibitor 

 at our most important shows, and won 

 many prizes. He is remembered as 

 the winner of the second prize at the 

 big orchid show held in Boston in 

 1910, in competition with the largest 

 commercial firms in the business. He 

 was a regular exhibitor at the flower 

 shows in New York, and any move- 

 ment looking to the advancement of 

 horticulture had his unstinted support. 

 The town of Roebling, which he 

 founded, very naturally benefited hor- 

 ticulturally through his interested 

 effort, home plantings receiving his 

 especial commendation and encourage- 

 ment. Every year this prosperous 

 little town held a flower show of no 

 mean order, of which he was patron 

 and leading spirit, and this annual 



event evoked much enthusiasm among 

 the population. 



The deceased will be greatly missed 

 in horticultural circles, where he was 

 greatly esteemed and looked up to as 

 one who had done much for horticul- 

 ture in this country. He was very 

 easy of approach and was at all times 

 ready to give time and attention to 

 the many in the trade with whom he 

 was acquainted. It was the privilege 

 of the writer to enjoy business rela- 

 tions with the deceased extending 

 over a period of nearly thirty years, 

 during which time his constancy to 

 his well-chosen hobby was most 

 marked, and his faith in the ultimate 

 appreciation generally of the benefit 

 and pleasure to be derived from the 

 study and practice of horticulture was 

 remarkable in its strength. 



Petek Crowe 



Mr. Roebling was a member of the 

 S. A. F. & O. H., of the Horticultural 

 Society of New York, JIass. Horticul- 

 tural Society, and the Pennsylvania 

 Horticultural Society. 



Jos. A. Masda. 



West Orange, N. J. 



Peter Crowe. 



One by one, the grand old men of 

 the past generation of florists are 

 rapidly passing into the great Beyond. 

 It is with deep sadness that it now 

 becomes our duty to add to the 

 lengthening list the name of Peter 

 Crowe of Utica, N. Y., one of the most 

 respected and lovable of the profes- 

 sion as a floriculturist and as a gentle- 

 man, in business, In his home and 

 among the trade wherever he was 

 known. 



Mr. Crowe was born in Limerick, 

 Ireland, seventy-seven years ago. He 

 came to this country at the age of 24, 

 already well versed as a gardener and 



after some further experience In com- 

 mercial and private places In the 

 neighborhood of New York City, 

 established himself in Utica, N. Y., in 

 1872, and was deservedly successful 

 from the start. He was an expert In 

 rose growing and possessed of excel- 

 lent judgment and good taste in all 

 details of the flower business. Fifteen 

 years ago he introduced an improved 

 form of Adiantum cuneatum. under 

 the name of Croweanum, a name 

 which the writer of these lines had 

 the honor of suggesting, and which 

 has taken a permanent place as a 

 favorite frond in the cut flower trade. 

 Mr. Crowe was long a member of the 

 S. A. F., the American Rose Society, 

 N. Y. Florists' Club and other bodies. 

 He was a much-sought judge in the 

 rose displays of the flower shows. 

 The death in 1902 of his son. William 

 J., was a terrible blow to Mr. Crowe 

 which he never ceased to mourn. He 

 leased the rose growing of his green- 

 house establishment to Brant Bros, 

 and devoted himself lovingly to his 

 home, his wife, his son's widow and 

 two grand-children of whom he was 

 passionately fond, and who, besides 

 three brothers, survive him. ■ He was 

 laid to rest In Forest Hill Cemetery. 



Nathan R. Graves. 

 The death of Nathan R. Graves took 

 place at his residence on Saturday. 

 Oct. 5th, 1918, at the age of 45 years 

 and eleven months. Mr. Graves for 

 considerable time had been suffering 

 from the effects of a nervous break- 

 down. He was an expert horticultural 

 photographer and his pictures have 

 been frequently reproduced in Horti- 

 CULTUBE and in the Park Commission 

 lists. He was born in Syracuse and 

 was educated In the High school and 

 completed his course through the 

 , Syracuse University, but for a num- 

 ber of years had lived in Rochester. 

 He was a member of the Rochester 

 Florists' Association, which will feel 

 a severe loss. Besides his wife he 

 leaves one son and three daughters. 



Herbert Meehan. 

 One of the many victims of the 

 Spanish influenza passed away on 

 October 3rd, in the death of Herbert 

 Meehan, oldest son of Charles E. Mee- 

 han of Philadelphia. He was taken 

 sick on Monday and succumbed in 

 about sixty-four hours. He was associ- 

 ated in business with his father at 

 Pelham and Churchville and was a 

 lad of great promise and highly es- 

 teemed. The sympathy of the trade 

 goes out in unstinted measure to his 

 sorrowing family. 



