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Edith Lowry, 1953..jpg

Hybridizer Mrs. Franklin (Edith) Lowry, 1892-1962.

Newton, Massachusetts, USA

Mrs. Edith (Franklin P.) Lowry, of 62 Walnut Place, Newton, Massachusetts, died March 10, 1962, at the age of 69 years. She joined the American Iris Society in 1933 and since that time had been an active member and accredited judge of our New England Region. She was keenly interested in hybridizing in which she had outstanding success. Each year our local group visited her garden and always found new seedling to admire.

Mrs. Lowry's first introduction was in 1942. It was a large white, named MOUNT HERMON for the school which her husband, Dr. Lowry, had attended. Her most widely known origination is VIOLET HARMONY, which has received every possible award of the American Iris Society. It received Honorable Mention in 1952, the Award of Merit in 1954, the Dykes Medal in 1957. It was next to the top of the Popularity Poll for the last four years, and received the Franklin Cook Memorial Cup for the best variety seen at the annual meeting in 1953. Other award irises which she introduced are SYRINGA, CARAMEL, AUTUMN BROWN, SWEET AFTON, MELLOW GOLD, HEATHERMIST, and MELOLITE. In 1957 she registered BEAU VIOLET, a seedling from VIOLET HARMONY, which is much admired, as well as BEACH PLUM, FULBRITE and MOON MAIDEN. WEE BIT is an attractive border iris.

In 1959 the American Iris Society awarded the Hybridizer's Medal to Mrs. Lowry. As recently as last year, the McKee Medal was voted to her #L 58-19 as the best seedling of the year from a New England grower. This is a blue-black self, now named BLACK EMBER.

Services were held at North Church, where Mrs. Lowry taught Sunday School for 23 years and where her father was at one time the pastor. Our Region has lost a longtime friend and we shall miss her presence at our meetings.

HAROLD W. KNOWLTON

[AIS BULLETIN #166, JULY 1962, p.76]

Registrations/Introductions:

Border Bearded: 'Wee Bit'.

Tall Bearded: 'Aberdeen', 'Autumn Brown', 'Beach Plum', 'Beau Violet', 'Caramel', 'Dark Emblem', 'Fair Damsel', 'Faith', 'Flying Ebony', 'Fulbrite', 'Goldlensong', 'Heathermist', 'Highland Fling', 'Loch Lomond', 'Mellow Gold', 'Melolite', 'Moon Maiden', 'Mount Hermon', 'Ravenwood', 'Ruffled Charm', 'Sweet Afton', 'Syringa', 'Violet Harmony', 'Yellow Diamond'.

-- Main.RPries - 2012-05-18
I Attachment Action Size Date Who Comment
Edith Lowry, 1953..jpgjpg Edith Lowry, 1953..jpg manage 2 MB 30 Nov 2022 - 22:21 Main.davepote Scanned by David Potembski from AIS Bulletin #131 (Oct. 1953), p. 10.
Topic revision: r10 - 30 Nov 2022, davepote
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