Thomas Conrad Porter

Thomas Conrad Porter (1822–1901) was an American botanist and theologian known as an expert on the flora of Pennsylvania.

Biography Porter was born in Alexandria, Pennsylvania on January 22, 1822. He attended Harrisburg Academy before enrolling in Lafayette College at the age of 14. He graduated in 1840, and returned home to Alexandria and began to collect plants near Tussey Mountain. He went on to attend Princeton Theological Seminary, graduating in 1844. He moved down to Monticello, Georgia for a year as part of a Presbyterian mission. Here he collected at places such as Stone Mountain and Toccoa Falls, and began collaborating with Asa Gray. He discovered Gymnolomia porteri during his time at Stone Mountain.

He was personally interested in Germanic literature and scholarly arts, and published several critiques in the field. He died in 1901.

The genera Porterella and Porteranthus were named for him, as well as the species Aster porteri, Calamagrostis porteri, and Muhlenbergia porteri.

Selected publications

Porter, Thomas Conrad (1851). Sonnets. Mercersburg Review.