Dodd, C. K. Jr. 2025. Herpetological Contributions of Charles Conrad Abbott, Eccentric 19th Century Archeologist and Naturalist. Bibliotheca Herpetologica 19(4):28–34.
Charles Conrad Abbott (4 June 1843 – 27 July 1919) was a controversial figure in the emerging science of archeology in the late 19th Century. He was not a major influence on herpetology, but he was certainly well-known among the naturalists and scientists of his day. Although he was primarily professionally interested in archeology, he communicated extensively with the naturalists of his era, including Frederic Ward Putnam, Edward D. Cope, and Henry W. Fowler. He was the first to attempt documentation of the vertebrates of New Jersey, and his natural history observations based on his own direct field notes were of interest and widely referred to by later authors. No doubt, his natural history books stimulated much interest in the subject, and his reliance on direct observation by-passed the many “nature-faker” writers of his day. Charles Conrad Abbott was viewed by colleagues as cantankerous, difficult-to-be-around, somewhat sloppy in technical fieldwork, lazy, and stubborn, but he was definitely a curious character and an influential writer and naturalist following his own path in life.
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