Thornton, Edith, Miss (1860 - 1909)

Born at the Macleay River, NSW, 1860; died at Thirlmere in 1909.

One of at least three children, to Capt. William Henry Thornton (c.1818-1903), district registrar and coroner, and his wife Rebecca Avis (d.1864). Edith's father had an experimental garden at Kempsey where he grew cotton, arrowroot, pineapples, bananas and coffee. In the late 1880s, Edith became a pioneering settler in the Coramba district, as did her sister, Annie (c.1853-1910), and brother-in-law, Eugene F. Rudder (d.1931).

Edith collected MEL specimens (including mosses and lichens) at Coramba and Clarence River, 1883-1884; Bellinger River, Bellingen Range and Orara, 1885; and Richmond River, 1891.

She retired to Eastern Creek, and died at Thirlmere in 1909 at the age of 49.

She did not marry.

Two letters from Edith to Mueller survive.

Source: extracted from: Maroske, Sara and Vaughan, Alison (2014) 'Ferdinand Mueller's female plant collectors: a biographical register', Muelleria Vol.32 [consult for source references]