192 Harold M. Bower (1888-1963) Vo1.l8: no.3

HAROLD M. BOWER (1888 - 1963)

H. M. Bower, of Wausau, Wisconsin, was killed last New Year's eve when he was struck by a car in front of his home. Thus ended the career of one of the most devoted and enthusiastic collectors of the Lepidoptera fauna of the northern United States.1

Harold M. Bower was born September 27, 1888, in Carlisle, Pa. He attended high schools in Scranton, Pa., and Cincinnati, Ohio. He grad­uated Phi Beta Kappa from Wesleyan University, Middletown, Conn., in 1910. A career in investment banking and accounting followed, which included associations with the Harris Trust and Savings Bank in Chicago and Milwaukee and the Portland Electric and Power Company at Portland, Oregon, before his arrival at Wausau in 193:5. From 1937 until his retirement in 1957, he served as Treasurer of Employer's Mutuals Insurance Co. in Wausau. His wife, whom he married in 1912 in New York, died in 1954, and since 1952 his daughter had lJived with him and he had been father to his three young grandsons.

His interest in Lepidoptera dates back to his childhood when he would follow the man who changed the arc lights in the street and salvage the hugs that were dumped out of the globes. The development of his entomological interest and collections continued throughout his life, but his principal efforts were directed to increasing the knowledge of Lepidoptera in Wisconsin during the past 25 years. He became a member of the Lepidopterist's Society at the end of 19~53 and contributed to the pages of the Journal with two articles on foodplants of Wisconsin Sphingidae (Vol. 15, p. 64, 1961; Vol. 17, p. 36, 1963). Throughout his life his main interest was in the macros, particularly moths, and his magnificent collection featured Sphingidae and Noctuidae. The collec­tion, consisting of some 40,000 specimens, including about 25,000 spread, has been deposited at the Los Angeles County Mm:eum. In addition, Mr. Bower spent oonsiderable effort accumulating an excellent collec­tion of several thousand Microlepidoptera, largely Tortricoidea, during his last three years. These were gathered and given to the University of California, Berkeley, with the comment that he had "always felt guilty about throwing away the micros".

Mr. Bower's interest and enjoyment in lepidopterology were at all times reflected by the time and care for perfection which went into the collecting, preparation, and curating of his material. He had a specially constructed "bug room" with a steel beam floor to carry the weight of the cabinets. The collection was housed in five mahogany cabinets, each containing 30 drawers. The drawers had glass tops and bottoms,

lThe summary of his activities is extracted from correspondence with Mr. Bower and his daughter, Mrs. Sybil B. Ferguson and from an obituary published by the Wausau Daily Record-Harold.

1964 Journal of the Lepidopterists' Society 193

and those of the buttedly cabinet were each made of a different wood. All of these he built; antique furniture reconditioning and cabinet work was also his hobby. He owned a font of type and a small printing press with which he printed all his own labels; all of his spreading boards were homemade; he sewed his own nets, made his setting pins, mount­ings for magnifying glasses, etc. Spare moments were devoted to design­ing new traps and sheets which he constructed and wired from salvaged scraps, employing everything from broken window glass to a garbage can lid. In recent years his lights had evolved to ultraviolet in order to increase the take.

Many years ago he began a series of water color paintings of cater­pillars with the idea of developing a book on larvae. About 50 of the excellent plates, each depicting a caterpillar, the foodplant, and peltinent data, were completed before the project was postponed.

Mr. Bower did not go on extended collecting trips to various parts of the country; he simply collected all the time. The bulk of his collection originated from the family cottage at Lake Katherine, near Hazelhurst, Oneida County, Wisconsin. He "champed at the bit" until he could ge~ to the cottage in very early spring; this is early April in northern Wisconsin, too early for the plumbing to be operable at the cottage because of the danger of freeZing the pipes. Thus water had to be brought in with him or obtained by chopping ice from the lake. All summer he collected at least three or four nights a week, then on into fall after the family had returned to Wausau and the weather again forced him into the spring's situation with the water.

Since a great deal of material from this locality will eventually find its way to specialists, a description and sketch from a letter written by Mr. Bower in March, 1962, is given. The complexity of the collecting area gives an indication of the varied fauna which was sampled, and at the same time reflects the enthusiasm which was elevated to collecting. Four sheets and seven traps were run simultaneously, the site of each having been selected so as to be available to as different a habitat as possible. The "sugar path" included about 50 trees. The area comprises a 15 acre sample of excellent mixed northern Wisconsin flora, including white and Norway pines, balsam fir, spruce, tamarack, hemlock, white birch, maple, ironwood, black oak, cherry, and aspen, with an under­story of alder, hazel, dogwood, mountain holly, willow, huckleberry, arbutus, wintergreen, sheep laurel, honeysuckle, bergamot, leatherleaf, jewelweed, raspberry, Labrador tea, epilobium, strawberry, a long list of flowering annuals, ferns, etc.

The Lake Katherine site was sampled for moths by Mr. Bower in an extremely efficient manner throughout the whole season over many

194 Harold M. Bower (1888-1963) Vo1.l8: no.3

years. Comparable collections and collectors are rare indeed in this day and age when it has become fashionable for specialists and general collectors alike to work in as many and as remote areas as possible. The fruits of his efforts at Lake Katherine will be harvested by tax­onomists for decades to come. It is with considerable regret that the Society records the passing of H. M. Bower.

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JERRY A. POWELL, University of California, Berkeley.

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EXPLANATION OF FIGURE

Sketch map of H. M. Bower's collecting area at Lake Katherine. near Hazelhurst, Oneida County, Wisconsin.