Patrick Hues Mell

Background

Patrick Hues Mell was born on May 24, 1850 in Penfield, Georgia. He was the son of Patrick Hues Mell and Lurene Howard (Cooper). He was reared in an atmosphere of discipline, scholarship, and culture, which left its stamp upon him.

Education

Entering the University of Georgia in 1866, Mell received the degree of A. B. in 1871 and that of M. E. in 1872; eight years later he was awarded the degree of Ph. D.

Career

In 1874, Mell became chemist for the Georgia Department of Agriculture. Resigning in 1877 because of ill health, he tramped and rode through the mountains of Alabama, Georgia, and North Carolina collecting specimens of clays and other minerals. These and magazine articles which he wrote attracted attention, and in 1878 he was elected professor of natural history in the State Agricultural and Mechanical College at Auburn, Alabama; later his title was changed to professor of geology and botany. In 1884, in addition to his teaching, he had charge of the state weather service for Georgia, Florida, and Alabama, and when separate bureaus were formed in these states he became director of the Alabama weather service. In the latter work, which he carried on until 1893, he originated the system of weather signals long in use by the United States Weather Bureau. From 1888 to 1902 he was also connected with the Alabama Agricultural Experiment Station, serving as botanist and meteorologist and from 1898 as director. He declined the presidency of Mercer University, Georgia, in 1893, and of the North Georgia Agricultural College in 1897, but in 1902, accepted the presidency of the Clemson Agricultural College, South Carolina. The institution was then only nine years old, and Mell's experience was most valuable in directing its affairs, his enthusiasm and ability as a teacher of science making themselves distinctly felt. Resigning in 1910, he made his home thereafter in Atlanta and gave his time to the work of treasurer of the board of missions of the Southern Baptist Convention. He died on October 12, 1918 in Fredericksburg, Virginia, while visiting a brother-in-law.

Achievements

• Mell was a pioneer in several lines of science. His collections of fossils were one of the best in the South; his work in hybridizing cotton was extensive for his day and of suggestive value to plant breeders, and his work on the climatology of Alabama was of permanent value. He contributed extensively to periodicals, revised several works by others, and published a biography of his father, Life of Patrick Hues Mell (1895). Probably his most distinctive contribution, however, was his service as a teacher. The agricultural and mechanical colleges of the South were in their infancy when he went to Alabama, and in the development of two of these, he was an important agent.

Personality

Quotes from others about the person

• "He was a very modest man and an extremely courteous one, but his influence was not to be resisted. In this, he was a fine type of the Southern professor of the old days. He was not a specialist; he was a scientist with broad sympathies and attractive personality".

Connections

On June 15, 1875, Patrick married Annie R. White of Athens, Georgia.

Father:

Patrick Hues Mell

19 July 1814 - 26 January 1888

Mother:

Lurene Howard Cooper Mell

16 February 1819 - 6 July 1861

Half Brother:

Charles Irwin Mell

3 February 1867 - 23 February 1937

Half Brother:

James Cooper Mell

17 April 1869 - 11 February 1953

Half Brother:

John Dagg Mell

25 February 1865 - 31 May 1952

Half Brother:

Edward Baker Mell

27 February 1873 - 21 August 1959

Half sister:

Eliza Elizabeth Mell

29 August 1871 - 24 December 1871

Half sister:

Lurene Howard Mell Mell

30 September 1862 - 6 August 1898

Brother:

Thomas Sumner Mell

1 February 1859 - 28 March 1948

Brother:

William Henry Mell

15 November 1852 - 30 January 1870

Brother:

Benjamin Mell

27 August 1841 - 21 October 1862

Brother:

George Sumner Mell

22 March 1844 - 19 September 1858

Sister:

Emma V. Mell

23 November 1845 - 6 July 1898

Sister:

Mary Ann “Mamie” Mell Smith

7 June 1855 - 21 November 1927

Sister:

Ellen Lurene Mell

24 January 1848 - 3 April 1919

Wife:

Annie Rebecca White Mell

28 August 1849 - 14 October 1920

References

• Life of Patrick Hues Mell by His Son