January Presentation: History of Penn State Herbarium

Penn State Herbarium Curator Sarah Chamberlain will guide us through the history of the herbarium from its humble beginnings as one of the oldest collections at Penn State to its present position as the third largest herbarium in Pennsylvania. Ms. Chamberlain will discuss why herbarium specimens are important and their current uses for both research and teaching. She will also bring specimens for examination after the presentation. Told with historic photos and sprinkled with humor and interesting stories tying specimens to history, art, entomology, and the “8th Wonder of the World”, this engaging virtual tour of the Penn State Herbarium will convince you herbarium collections are a lot more than just a bunch of dead plants!