World-renowned botanist Harriet G. Barclay and her husband, Bertram D. Barclay, Sr., were the faces of The University of Tulsa’s Department of Botany for many years. The couple earned their doctorates from the University of Chicago in 1928, married, then arrived at TU to join the faculty in 1929. This endowment was created through a bequest from the estate of Harriet in memory of Bertram, who founded TU’s Department of Botany in 1929. Bertram led the department until his death in 1953, after which Harriet became chair and served as a faculty member until her retirement in 1971.

Harriet inspired many undergraduate and graduate students through her infectious enthusiasm for field studies of plants, not only at TU, but also at various field stations, particularly the Rocky Mountain Biological Laboratory. An alpine enthusiast, she greatly increased the knowledge of Rocky Mountain and Andean plants through her well-documented field station work. Her extensive collection of more than 5,000 photographic slides, taken from her field trips around the globe, is housed in the McFarlin Library Special Collections.

Harriet’s many awards include recognition as a 1976 TU Distinguished Alumna and induction into the Oklahoma Hall of Fame (also in 1976). To Tulsans and other Oklahomans, Harriet, who passed away in 1990, is primarily remembered as a legendary teacher, an unstinting leader in conservation, and a community organizer for the Redbud Valley Nature Preserve in North Tulsa.