Morris, Patrick Francis (Frank)   (1896–1974)

Born: Melbourne, Victoria, 16 January 1896. Died: Armadale, Victoria, 11 January 1974.

Frank Morris joined the staff of the National Herbarium of Victoria, Melbourne Botanic Gardens, on 22 August 1913 and remained with the institution for the next 48 years, until retirement on his 65th birthday (16 Jan. 1961). He became the Senior Botanical Officer. His special interests were grasses, pasture plants and weeds, but much of his time was taken up with routine work. Early in his professional career he worked under Professor A. J. Ewart.

Frank Morris never married, but lived for many years with his widowed mother and single sister at 6 Mandeville Crescent, Toorak, until they successively died.

He joined the Field Naturalists Club of Victoria in June 1918, was President in succession to P. Crosbie Morrison during a difficult war year (July 1943–June 1944) and was elected to honorary membership in April 1959.

Outside office hours, he was a most enthusiastic member of the Banks Rowing Club, regularly coaching crews on the Yarra River. Always interested in youth welfare work, he would annually collect toys and do them up for distribution to children's homes.

Morris was selected to succeed Nancy Burbidge as ABLO in Kew from 1956 but only remained in Kew for 8 months, returning to Australia early due to family circumstances. One anecdote recalled by Desmond Meikle, one of the Kew staff, was that he was "incessantly loquacious, always telling us how much better Australia was than the U.K. and trying to persuade us to emigrate. I don't think this mission met with much success." (Meikle in letter to Keeper, Kew, 28 Jan. 2005).

As noted above, he retired from the Herbarium in Victoria four years after returning from Kew and pursued other interests.

Two Australian plant species were named for P.F.Morris: Prasophyllum morrisii Nicholls (Orchidaceae) and Poa morrisii Vickery (Poaceae).

Sources: Willis, J.H. (1974), The late Patrick Francis Morris (1896-1974), The Victorian Naturalist Vol.91, p. 205-206
George, Alex (Ed), The Australian Botanical Liaison Officer scheme at Kew, 1937-2009, Four Gables Press, Perth, 2023.
Australian Plant Name Index records, https://biodiversity.org.au/nsl/services/search/names
Portrait Photo: Victorian Naturalist, Vol.61, Plate IV. 1944

Collecting localities for 'Morris, P.F.' from AVH (2023)

Data from 710 Australian specimens