Mimulus roseus, by Walter Hood Finch (1817–1892). 1 October 1834. Curtis's Botanical Magazine, Vol. VIII: 3353. This lithograph is celebrated as the first that Fitch signed. Native to northern California, as William Jackson Hooker explains in the text on the facing page, this flower was discovered by the botanist David Douglas (1799–1834), who explored western north America in the early nineteenth century and collected many such specimens. The plant is listed in Hooker's memoir of him as one of the plants he introduced (see p. 141). Like others that Douglas discovered, it adapted well to these islands and flourished even in chilly Glasgow, where Hooker was Regius Professor at the University. Bright, bold and accurate, Fitch's work made an immediate impact. [Click on the image to enlarge it.]
Image scan and text by Jacqueline Banerjee. [You may use this image without prior permission for any scholarly or educational purpose as long as you (1) credit the person who scanned the image and (2) link your document to this URL in a web document or cite the Victorian Web in a print one.]
Bibliography
Hooker, W. J. "A Brief Memoir of the Life of Mr David Douglas." Companion to the Botanical Magazine 2 (1836): 79-182. Internet Archive, from a copy in Harvard University. Web. 26 November 2025.
"Mimulus Roseus." Curtis's Botanical Magazine. Vol. VIII (1 October 1834): 3353. Internet Archive, from a copy at the Missouri Botanical Garden. Web. 26 November 2025.
Created 26 November 2025