American botanist interested in the flora of Pennsylvania. Otto Jennings was born on a farm near Olena and it seems that this rural upbringing instilled in the youngster an interest in natural history. He attended small local schools and after graduating from high school taught in such an institution for a further three years. Entering Ohio State University, he earned his way by working as a dairy farmer and later as the university's florist, before being awarded a BSc in agriculture in 1903. The following year he moved to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, gaining employment at the Carnegie Museum as Custodian of Botany. Jennings remained in this city, working as Curator of Botany from 1915 and Director of the museum from 1946. At the same time he continued his education through the University of Pittsburgh and was awarded a PhD in 1911, then embarking upon a teaching career at the university. Beginning as Instructor of Paleobotany in 1911 he rose to become Professor and Head of the Department of Botany in 1935, while throughout the summers between 1930 and 1946 he served as director of the university's Lake Laboratory in Erie.
As a researcher Jennings was concerned with the local flora, both in the field and in the laboratory, and published papers such as "A Manual of Mosses of Western Pennsylvania" (1912). Perhaps his most impressive work, the book Wild Flowers of Western Pennsylvania was published in 1953. Conducting fieldtrips in other regions of the USA and Canada, he visited Ontario (1912-1917), Washington State (1915), Tennessee (1924) and Florida (1917-1934). Jennings also studied the flora of Cuba, publishing his "Botany of the Isle of Pines" in 1917. Jennings was also particularly keen on fossil plants and on mosses, editing The bryologist between 1913 and 1938, and published numerous popular botanical articles, often furnished with his own illustrations. A member of a vast number of scientific societies, he served as first president of the Pennsylvania Academy of Science in 1925 and was president (1907-1909 and 1936-1960), secretary (1909-1936) and editor for the Botanical Society of Western Pennsylvania. Married to Grace E. Kinzer, he was awarded three honorary doctoral degrees (two in science and one in laws) and is remembered by the O.E. Jennings Memorial Fund for Plant Ecology of the Carnegie Museum.
Sources:
L.K. Henry, 1964, "Otto Emery Jennings", Castanea, 29(2): 121-123
M.G. Netting, 1965, "In Memoriam: Otto Emery Jennings", The Bryologist, 68: 353-359.
