Susan Delano McKelvey

Susan Adams Delano McKelvey (1883–1964) was an American botanist and writer, noted for her work at the Arnold Arboretum.

Early life McKelvey was born as Susan Magoun Delano on March 13, 1883, in Philadelphia and was a member of the prominent Delano family of Massachusetts. Her parents were Eugene Delano (1844–1920) and Susan Magoun (née Adams) Delano (1848–1904). Her siblings included architect William Adams Delano and she was a cousin of Franklin Delano Roosevelt. was published 1928 to great reviews, the first book to receive the Schaffer Medal of the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society. To date, it is still the only monograph published on the subject. In the same year, she was appointed to the committee to Visit the Arnold Arboretum by the Board of Overseers of Harvard University, a position she held for many years. published nine years apart. published in 1956, was described as her masterpiece and was very well received in the press. Meticulously researched, it examines early expeditions in the Western United States, detailing the specimens collected by explorers including Lewis and Clark and including excerpts of their journals and findings. The book earned her the New York Botanical Garden's Sarah Gildersleeve Fife award for her literary work.