110 Trans. Acad. Sci. of St. Louis. 



In 1853 Wayman Crow secured from the Legislature 

 of Missouri a charter for an educational institution in 

 St. Louis to be called the Eliot Seminary. The gentle- 

 men named in this charter met and organized, and chose 

 William G. Eliot, President, in 1854. In deference to the 

 wishes of President Eliot the name of the institution 

 was changed to the Washington Institute, and in 1857. 

 when the charter was amended, to Washington Univer- 

 sity. 33 The university was formally inaugurated in 

 1857 — in President Eliot's words, "An institution for 

 the public benefit." 



Washington University has always been in close touch 

 with the Academy of Science of St. Louis. From its 

 faculty have come some of the most active workers and 

 officers of the Academy. To the Transactions they have 

 contributed many and important papers. At a time 

 when the Academy had no other home the doors of the 

 university were opened to it for its meetings and the 

 housing of its library and collections. 



In 1857 Henry Shaw, 34 a wealthy retired merchant of 

 St. Louis, who had a large garden connected with his 

 country home, commissioned Dr. Engelmann, then in 

 Europe, to examine botanical gardens and make such 

 suggestions as he might deem of value in establishing a 

 botanical garden. The Missouri Botanical Garden 35 is 

 the offspring of Dr. Engelmann 's researches in that line. 



33 Twenty-fifth anniversary. 1882. 



Chaplin, W. S. Higher education in St. Louis and Washington Uni- 

 versity. 1893. 



Snow, M. S. Higher education in Missouri. 129-163. 1898. 



Eliot, C. C. William Greenleaf Eliot, minister, educator, philanthro- 

 pist. 1904. 



Washington University 1857-1907. 1907. 



34Dimmock, Thos. Report Mo. Bot. Garden. 1: 7-25. 1890. 



35 Trelease, Wm. The Missouri Botanical Garden. Rept. Mo. Bot. 

 Gard. 1. 1890. 



Trelease, Wm. The Missouri Botanical Garden. Pop. Sci. Month. 

 62: 193-221. 1903. 



Spaulding, Perley. A biographical history of botany at St. Louis, 

 Missouri. Pop. Sci. Month. 1909: 246-250. 



