Flora, Fauna, and Philanthropy: What Inspired Deecy Gray to Donate a Rare Mark Catesby First Edition to the Garden’s Library

Before John James Audubon ever sketched a feather, and before Carl Linnaeus created a tidy classification system, British naturalist Mark Catesby spent more than 10 years, over two separate journeys, traveling through more regions of North America than most single individuals would have ever seen. With meticulous delicacy, he documented its brilliantly colored birds, beasts, and botanical wonders. Buffalo and beaver, bullfrogs and turtles, southern flying squirrels and great hogfish, magnolias and coneflowers—nothing escaped him. Catesby was among the first to illustrate birds in their natural habitat, adapting Maria Sibylla Merian’s precedent-breaking work in entomology in Metamorphosis of the Insects of Surinam. The Carolina parakeet lands on a branch of bald cypress; the ivory-billed woodpecker chisels a willow oak’s bark. Catesby returned to England in 1726 and, while working as a gardener, polished his illustrations, described them in parallel English and French (a friend helped translate), and learned to etch his artwork on copper plates. Over the next two decades, he printed, volume by volume, the only colonial-era record of natural history in North America. The Missouri Botanical Garden’s Peter H. Raven Library has a globally respected collection, but until now, it possessed only the second and third editions of The Natural History of Carolina, Florida, and the Bahama Islands. Thanks to the intelligent appreciation of Burton C. Gray and the generosity of his widow, Dorothy (Deecy) Stephens Gray, the library recently announced that it now has, and will conserve and display, a richly colored, leatherbound Volume I and Volume II of the first edition—the only edition to include plates personally colored by Catesby himself. The page corners softly worn by centuries of use but the paper still bright and flexible, the volumes contain more than 200 etchings of, as Catesby wrote in his subtitle, “the Figures of Birds, Beasts, Fishes, Serpents, Insects and Plants: Particularly, the Forest-Trees, Shrubs, and other Plants, not hitherto described, or very incorrectly figured by Authors.” Some of the species have since become extinct. This is one of the most significant gifts in the library’s rich history. The Garden recently spoke with Ms. Gray about her family’s history with this book, why she entrusted the Garden’s library for her gift, and how she hopes to inspire others. How did this rare first edition come into your family? My late husband died from a heart attack in his mid-40s. Burton Craige Gray was his name, and he was a North Carolinian. He inherited these books from his grandfather, whose name was Burton Craige, through his parents, Jane and Gordon Gray. From interviews with family members, it seems that Mr. Craige bought the Catesby, possibly from Duke University in the early 1930s. Duke may have had more than one copy or simply wanted to raise cash. Burton always loved this book. His grandfather bought two books — this first edition and a second edition. Burton’s uncle inherited the second edition, which he gave to the Rowan Public Library in Salisbury, North Carolina, on condition that it be on permanent display. I am told the response from the public has been overwhelming. Upon the death of his parents, Jane and Gordon Gray, Burton was given the first edition, which you now have. Burton was beginning a rare book collection when he died. He left the book to me. I knew I was going to give the volumes away eventually, for safekeeping and so the public could view it, as he wished, and after much research and thought I decided this was the right time and that the Missouri Botanical Garden was the perfect place. My dear friend, Linn Upthegrove Wells, first suggested the Garden to me. She knew my parents, fourth-generation St. Louisans, Dorothy Manewal Stephens and John Krey Stephens, and knew how much they appreciated the Garden. Then there was my long connection with St. Louis. Krey Packing Company was started by my great, great grandfather, John Krey, and developed by my great grandfather, Fred Krey and my own father. I grew up here, graduated from Villa Duchesne and after college in the east, came back to St. Louis to earn my master’s degree at Saint Louis University, and then taught at the Florissant Valley Community College while working on my doctorate. So I made this gift in memory of my late husband, Burton and my parents. Why did now feel the right time to make this donation? Well, 2026, as you know, is our 250th anniversary as a nation. My current husband, Judge Douglas Ginsburg, and I have spent the last few years making videos for teaching civics in grades 7-12 and making a movie about our Declaration of Independence for public television, which can be viewed online at declarationmovie.com. Catesby was a young botanist, born in England who came here to the colonies to visit his extended family. Through marriage, I am told, he was related to Martha Washington, visited her, and met some of the families of our Founding Fathers. So, making his book available to others is another way to celebrate and draw attention to our Founding. Looking back nearly 300 years later, what Catesby accomplished was extraordinary. Catesby’s first volume deals with birds, and the second with other fauna—buffalo, bullfrogs, hawks, and fish. Today this may seem like no big deal, but it was a huge deal at the time. His first trip to what became the United States was in 1712, and he was here for seven years, traveling to wild, uncharted regions. He wanted to record as much natural history as he could. Even though he was trained solely as a botanist, he made himself a fine artist and an expert in printing, too. The plates in these volumes are said to be among the most important ever made. Not only is the book great for botanical study, it brings in history and climate. His work was amazing in that it covered so many fields of study. After several trips back and forth to England, he set up a studio where future editions were painted by the students he had trained. In his life he enjoyed success and acclaim. As Audubon rose in the 19th century, Catesby became less popular because his drawings were not as sophisticated as Audubon’s. But with the startup of Colonial Williamsburg, founded by John D. Rockefeller Jr., who discovered a Catesby book and realized the significance of having a colonialist who was also a naturalist, his fame grew again. Mr Rockefeller commissioned a film in 1965, The Colonial Naturalist. That brought Catesby back to life with more people. Williamsburg displayed his book. There was a round of publicity. Collectors had always known of him, but with Williamsburg’s push into the light of the 20th century came a new appreciation, not only of his botany but of his sophisticated printmaking. What do you hope people—especially young people—realize when they see these volumes? First, that it was all done by hand—they don’t realize there were no photographs to draw from. Second, it was done in the wild or from specimens he collected and took home. Third, he did this before there was any plant classification system. That was done by Linnaeus some years later. Did you think about whether you’d miss these books after your donation? Well, it’s not a question I thought about. It’s not about me. This is the only attempt to record natural history during that entire 50-year period. When you think about how far we’ve come in such a short time—it just doesn’t make sense to me to have this on a library shelf in my home, where no one is going to see it or study it. I was given the stewardship of this book, and I felt I should do something worthwhile with it for future generations. It is my hope that the public will see and learn about it for many generations through the efforts of the Garden. How did you decide where the book should go? What were your criteria? Well, I first thought that since the book is entitled The Natural History of Carolina, Florida and the Bahama Islands etc., it should go someplace in that region. The best institutions there, however, already had copies of the first edition. Meanwhile, I learned that you did not have the first edition, and I was already familiar with the Garden because I grew up here. I knew you had the ability to research the book, preserve it, and show it. Those were my three basic criteria. My parents visited the Garden often. They donated an annual lecture. They were good friends of Doris Schnuck and loved the children’s garden she donated. I know and respect several people on the board, and then my friend, Linn Wells, whom I mentioned earlier, set up a meeting for me with Doug Holland, who was then the head librarian. He was impressive, enthusiastic, and promised me that there would be scholarly work done and that the public would be given an annual viewing period. This combination secured the donation. Can you share any final thoughts about your donation? I’m hoping the book’s presence will bring some additional awareness of the Garden to both the public and the scientific community. There are only a dozen such libraries in the world and yours, with more than 8,000 books, is one of the most comprehensive collections in the world. I also hope that this will encourage other people to do some research about what may be on their shelves, or what they got from their grandparents or great-grandparents. Catesby’s are among the most important prints ever made. And their value is not just to botany. So, I’m hoping this book can be used in courses on print making, history, and geography, too. I hope to come back often and see the fruits of your labor. Thank you. Leave a Reply