P001051 revised AU-VU:EOAS Encyclopedia of Australian Science and Innovation

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 English AACR2 Anglo-American Cataloguing Rules Person created 1993-10-20 human McCarthy, G.J. and Helen Cohn updated 2026-05-14 human https://www.eoas.info/biogs/P001051b.htm person French Charles AACR2 10 September 1842 21 May 1933 Place of Birth Lewisham, Kent, England Place of Death Malvern, Victoria, Australia Naturalist Entomologist Nurseryman Charles French was a nurseryman who spent his early career in the Melbourne nurseries of James Scott, Alex Bodie and Joseph Harris. He joined the staff of the Melbourne Botanic Gardens in 1865 as a propagator, specialising in native ferns and orchids. French was also an expert on insects, leading to his appointment as Government Entomologist in 1889. This position was created in the Department of Agriculture to investigate the native and introduced insect pests ravaging Victoria's agricultural crops. French was considered to be the founder of economic entomology in Victoria. His first paper in this field, published in the Department's annual report in 1874, was on timber-boring insects. French also published the landmark A handbook of the destructive insects of Victoria in five volumes between 1891 and 1911. From 1896 he had responsibility the for standardised spraying program for fruit trees. French was a founding member of the Field Naturalists Club of Victoria and regularly published in the Club's journal, the Victorian naturalist. In 1908 the National Museum of Victoria purchased his collection of over 3,000 insects, mostly Coleoptera. The National Herbarium of Victoria holds over 1,000 specimens collected by French. 1852 1852 Life event - Arrived in Victoria with his family 1858 1858 Career event - Apprenticed to nurserman James Scott (Hawthorn) 1865 1884 Career position - Propagator, Melbourne Botanic Garden 1880 1933 Career position - Foundation Member, Field Naturalists' Club of Victoria 1884 1889 Career position - Herbarium Assistant, Botanical Museum of Melbourne 1889 1908 Career position - Government Entomologist, Victorian Department of Agriculture 1908 1908 Life event - Retired French, Charles Hamilton (1868 - 1950) Botanical Museum of Melbourne, Colony of Victoria (1853 - 1896)

Herbarium Assistant 1884 - 1889

 Victorian Department of Agriculture, Colony and State of Victoria (1872 - 1985)

Government Entomologist 1889 - 1908

 Melbourne Botanic Gardens, Colony and State of Victoria (1846 - 1958)

Propagator 1865 - 1884

 National Museum of Victoria (1858 - 1983)

French's collection of over 3,000 insect specimens was purchased in 1908

 National Herbarium of Victoria (1896 - )

The Herbarium holds over 1,000 of French's specimens

 Brittlebank, Charles Clifton (1862 - 1945)

Brittlebank's illustrations were published in French's Handbook of the destructive insects of Victoria

Wikidata

VIAF - Virtual International Authority File

 French, C (1842-1933)

Trove

 'French, Charles', in Encyclopedia of Australian Science and Innovation, Centre for Transformative Innovation, Swinburne University of Technology French, Charles Swinburne University of Technology, Centre for Transformative Innovation Encyclopedia of Australian Science and Innovation Book: An Australian bird book: a complete guide to the identification of the Australian species Leach, J. A. An Australian bird book: a complete guide to the identification of the Australian species Melbourne Whitcomb and Tombs 1911 Book Section: French, Charles (1842-1933), horticulturalist, naturalist and entomologist, and Charles Hamilton (1868-1950), naturalist and entomologist Pescott, R. T. M. French, Charles (1842-1933), horticulturalist, naturalist and entomologist, and Charles Hamilton (1868-1950), naturalist and entomologist Melbourne Melbourne University Press 1981 Australian dictionary of biography, volume 8: 1891 - 1939 Cl-Gib Bede Nairn and Geoffrey Serle 585-586 Book: Bibliography of Australian entomology, 1775-1930: with biographical notes on authors and collectors Musgrave, A. Bibliography of Australian entomology, 1775-1930: with biographical notes on authors and collectors Sydney Royal Zoological Society of New South Wales 1932 Journal Article: Charles French Pescott, E.E. Charles French 1933 The Victorian naturalist 50 7 57-60 Book: A handbook of the destructive insects of Victoria : with notes on the methods to be adopted to check and extirpate them French, C. A handbook of the destructive insects of Victoria : with notes on the methods to be adopted to check and extirpate them Melbourne Government Printer 1891-1911 Journal Article: Notes on a holiday tour in Riverina and western Victoria [part 3] French, C.; and Barnard, F. G. A. Notes on a holiday tour in Riverina and western Victoria [part 3] 1887 The Victorian naturalist 4 9-14 Journal Article: Notes on a holiday tour in Riverina and western Victoria [parts 1-2] French, C.; and Barnard, F. G. A. Notes on a holiday tour in Riverina and western Victoria [parts 1-2] 1886 The Victorian naturalist 3 147-57, 170-2 Journal Article: The History of Economic Entomology in Victoria from the Time of Charles French Hogan, T. W. The History of Economic Entomology in Victoria from the Time of Charles French 1994 Journal of the Australian Entomological Society 33 3 279-288 Journal Article: Review and update of the nomenclature of arthropods discussed by Charles French in his work A handbook of the destructive insects of Victoria Malipatil, Mallik B.; Sermeraro, Linda; and New, Tim R. Review and update of the nomenclature of arthropods discussed by Charles French in his work <span style="font-style:italic">A handbook of the destructive insects of Victoria</span> 2021 The Victorian naturalist 138 5 128-44 Book: Dictionary of Australian biography Serle, Percival Dictionary of Australian biography Sydney Angus & Robertson 1949 Journal Article: Botanical pioneers in Victoria - II Willis, J. H. Botanical pioneers in Victoria - II 1949 Victorian Naturalist 66 6 103-9 Book: Botanical Pioneers in Victoria Willis, J. H. Botanical Pioneers in Victoria [Melbourne] [Brown Prior Anderson] 1949 The Victorian naturalist 66 19 Charles (2) French - Records Victorian College of Agriculture and Horticulture, Burnley Charles (2) French - Records 1891 - 1920 Records - no details (could be records of C.H. French the son) [in Plant Sciences Library]. Australian Botanists - Biographies Adolph Basser Library, Australian Academy of Science Australian Botanists - Biographies MS 064 Hunt Institute Biographies. Short biographies, averaging 2 pages, of Australian botanists, botanical collectors or artists. 0.24 m, 3 boxes Baldwin Spencer - Records Mitchell and Dixson Libraries Manuscripts Collection, State Library of New South Wales Baldwin Spencer - Records ML MSS 29 1880 - 1929 Includes manuscripts by Spencer, 1901-1913; correspondence, 1880-1926 including letters from Edgeworth David, H. Deane, J. J. Fletcher, C. French, W. A. Haswell, C. Hedley, G. C. Henderson, J. P. Hill, G. B. Howes, E. Jenks, J. A. Kershaw, A. Liversidge, A. H. S. Lucas, A. T. Magarey, A. J. North, T. Steel, E. C. Stirling, E. R. Waite, J. A. Watt, J. T. Wilson and C. Winnecke; miscellaneous papers, 1889-1929 consisting chiefly of tributes to Spencer on his retirement, and on his death, with a list of medical and scientific papers by E. C. Stirling. The collection also includes pictorial material. 10 volumes, 1 box, 1 folder Edward Pearson Ramsay - Records Mitchell and Dixson Libraries Manuscripts Collection, State Library of New South Wales Edward Pearson Ramsay - Records ML MSS 563 1860 - 1912 Correspondence and miscellaneous papers 1860-1912, containing letters dealing with natural history received from scientific colleagues, including, W.T. Denison, W. Woolls, W.B. Clarke, S. Diggles, A.W. Scott and his daughters Harriett and Helena, C. French (senior), K.H. Bennett, J. MacGillivray, G.W. Barnard, W.E. Armit, K. Broadbent, J.T. Cockerell, J. Rainbird, R. Grant, T.A. Gulliver, S. White, J.F. Wilcox, Count Castlenau [Laporte, François] and F. Mueller. 7 volumes