Elizabeth Maude Herriott (1882 – 13 March 1936) was a New Zealand scientist and academic. She was the first woman appointed to the permanent teaching staff at Canterbury College, now theUniversity of Canterbury.^[1]

Herriott was born inCanterbury in 1882.^[1] Her parents were David and Elizabeth Susannah Herriott.^[2] Herriott attendedChristchurch East School andChristchurch Girls' High School, where she was head prefect in 1899. She won a scholarship to attendCanterbury College, and studied botany and chemistry there from 1900 to 1905. She graduated with a B.A. in 1904 and a M.A. in 1905.^[3] Her Master's research was on the leaf anatomy ofSubantarctic Islands species, and involved the study of plants brought back from an expedition in 1903 byLeonard Cockayne.^[4]

On graduation Herriott took up teaching positions, initially atRangi Ruru Girls' School and later atKaikōura District High School.^[3]

In 1916, Herriott was appointed to an assistant lecturer position in the Department of Biology at Canterbury College.^[1] She was promoted to the position of lecturer in 1928, and held this position until her retirement in 1934.^[5]

Herriott was particularly interested in the unusual anatomical adaptations that plants made to better survive in harsh environments.^[4] Her published work included papers on fresh water crustacean, biographies of early botanists Joseph and John Armstrong, and themorphology of the seaweedDurvillaea (which was presented to thePhilosophical Institute of Canterbury in 1921.^[1][4] Her most significant piece of work is considered to be her study of the development of the flora in the area of west Christchurch occupied by Hagley Park (which she also presented at the First New Zealand Science Congress in 1919).^[3] In this study she compared records of the plant life in the area in 1864 with later observations. She particularly noted the impact of land development such as the draining of a swamp in 1897 to create Lake Victoria, the introduction of non-native plants through ceremonial plantings by visiting dignitaries and the erection and destruction of buildings for theInternational Exhibition of 1906.^[4]

From 1921 to 1927 ProfessorCharles Chilton, the chair of the biology department, held the position of Rector of Canterbury College, and Herriott served as his clerical assistant.

Herriott was a member of the Philosophical Institute of Canterbury for many years; in 1919 she was elected to its council, and in the 1920s she served as its Honorary Librarian.^[1][4]

Herriott was a member of the Worcester Street Brethren assembly and held Evangelical Union prayer meetings in her college office.^[6]

On 13 March 1936, Herriott died at her home at St Andrews Square in the Christchurch suburb ofStrowan.^[2]

In 2017, Herriott was selected as one of theRoyal Society Te Apārangi's "150 women in 150 words", celebrating women's contributions to knowledge in New Zealand.^[7]

• On the Leaf-structure of some Plants from the Southern Islands of New Zealand.
• Notes on the Occurrence and Habits of the Fresh-water Crustacean Lepidurus viridis Baird.
• A History of Hagley Park, Christchurch, with Special Reference to its Botany.
• Some Morphological Notes on the New Zealand Giant Kelp, Durvillea antarctica(Chamisso).

• Academic staff of the University of Canterbury
• University of New Zealand alumni
• Academic staff of the University of New Zealand
• 1882 births
• 1936 deaths
• People educated at Christchurch Girls' High School
• People from Rangiora
• 20th-century New Zealand women scientists
• 20th-century New Zealand botanists
• New Zealand women botanists

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