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Frederick Traugott Pursh (or Friedrich Traugott Pursch) (February 4, 1774 – July 11, 1820) was aGerman–Americanbotanist.
Born inGroßenhain, in theElectorate of Saxony, under the name Friedrich Traugott Pursh, he was educated atDresden Botanical Gardens, and emigrated to theUnited States in 1799. From 1802 to 1805, he worked inPhiladelphia as the botanical manager of the extensive gardens of William Hamilton, Esq., "The Woodlands." By 1805, he was working forBenjamin Smith Barton on a newflora ofNorth America, under whom he studied the plants collected on theLewis and Clark Expedition. His work with Barton allowed him to travel farther afield. In 1805, he traveled south fromMaryland to the Carolinas and, in 1806, he traveled north from the mountains ofPennsylvania toNew Hampshire. He made both trips principally on foot, with only his dog and a gun, covering over three thousand miles each season.
Barton's proposed flora was never written, but Pursh, who then moved toLondon,England, did make a major contribution to North American botany in hisFlora americae septentrionalis; or A Systematic Arrangement and Description of The Plants of North America (variously dated as published in 1813 or 1814). He then returned to America, moving toCanada in 1816. He botanized a great deal inQuebec, but all the material he accumulated was destroyed by fire before it could be organized into suitable form for publication. His hopes of carrying out further major work were prevented by ill health due toalcoholism.
He was so destitute when he died inMontreal that his funeral expenses had to be defrayed by his friends. His remains lay in the Papineau Road cemetery until 1857, when they were moved to theMount Royal Cemetery. A proper monument was paid for by subscription. It read as follows:
His name is commemorated in the genusPurshia (bitterbush) and in several species, e.g.Rhamnus purshiana.
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