March 1, 1919 



HORTICULTURE 



199 



WILLIAM J. STEWART 



William J. Stewart, founder, edit- 

 or and manager of Horn h t litre, 

 passed away on Sunday. February 

 23, at 10.30 p. m., aged 69 years, 11 

 months. For over a year he had 

 been in failing health which cul- 

 minated in June of last year in a 

 slight paralytic stroke from which 

 be never fully re- 

 covered and in 

 December last a 

 carbuncle formed 

 on his left temple 

 which finally 

 sapped up his re- 

 maining vitality. 

 Mr. Stewart was 

 born in Cam- 

 bridge, Mass., 

 March 17, 1849. 

 His strong sym- 

 pathy for the 

 beautiful in na- 

 ture was early de- 

 veloped and after 

 a high school 

 e d u c a t ion and 

 brief experiences 

 as a young man 

 in several direc- 

 tions he went to 

 work at the Har- 

 vard Botanical 

 Gardens and from 

 there to Boston, 

 engaging in the 

 retail flower trade 

 from 1872 to 1879, 

 afterwards taking 

 up the wholesale 

 commission sale 

 of flowers, first as 

 manager for E. M. 

 Wood and later 

 upon his own ac- 

 count, carrying 

 on a large and 

 successful busi- 

 ness from , 1879 

 to 1893. 



His work in a 

 public way having L 

 greatly increased he sold out his 

 business interests to devote his 

 time to his duties as secretary of 

 the Society of American florists 

 and as Eastern manager of the 

 American Florist. 



Mr. Stewart has been a member 

 of the Society of American Florists 

 since the Cincinnati meeting in 

 1885, and one of the first essayists 



of that organization. He was 

 elected its secretary in 1887 and 

 served continuously in that office 

 until he was elected to its presi- 

 dency in 1907 at the annual meet- 

 ing at Dayton, O. 



He was the first president of the 

 Gardeners' and Florists' Club of 



home at Winchester, Mass., took 

 great delight in his collection of 

 rare and beautiful trees, shrubs 

 and flowers which he constantly 

 enlarged with novelties which his 

 many friends delighted to send 

 him. 

 His 



position 



Boston, being elected to that office 

 in 18S7 and was re-elected again in 

 1895. He was also a member and 

 an active worker in the Massachu- 

 setts Horticultural Society and the 

 Xew York Florists' Club, and was 

 for a time secretary of the Ameri- 

 can Rose Society. 



Mr. Stewart wa< an ardent hor- 

 ticulturist and at his beautiful 



of secretary and 

 president of the 

 Society of Ameri- 

 can Florists 

 brought him in 

 affiliation with 

 the best thought 

 and activity of 

 the various horti- 

 cultural bodies 

 throughout the 

 east and west 

 and he has been 

 a close and inti- 

 mate friend of 

 the leading men 

 in the commer- 

 cial floral line 

 throughout the 

 country. 



In 1904 he found- 

 ed Horticulture 

 and since then 

 had made it his 

 life's work. 



Mr. Stewart al- 

 ways wielded a 

 forcible and fa- 

 cile pen and its 

 influence for the 

 good of the trade 

 as a whole will 

 be greatly missed 

 especially during 

 the present 

 period of recon- 

 struction. 



He is survived 

 by his wife and 

 three married 

 daughters. M r s. 

 Sadie Dunnell. 

 Mrs. Louise Mes- 

 senger and Mrs. 

 Ellen Crousse 

 and also a brother. Andrew J. 

 Stewart. 



The interment was at Mt. Au- 

 burn Cemetery. Cambridge. Mass., 

 on Wednesday afternoon, February 

 26. Many beautiful floral pieces 

 from his numerous friends from all 

 parts of the country and the many 

 societies of which he had been a 

 member covered the grave. 



