Berea College, Ralph L. Thompson Herbarium (BEREA)

The Ralph L. Thompson Herbarium contains approximately 22,000 specimens. Formerly located at Berea College, it is now permanently housed at Eastern Kentucky University alongside the Ronald L. Jones Herbarium. Together, these two herbaria contain over 100,000 specimens and are the largest collection in Kentucky, and the second largest in the Kentucky-Tennessee region (surpassed only by the University of Tennessee). ​Most specimens are from Kentucky and contiguous states, and nearly all specimens are of vascular plants. A number of important sets of specimens are housed at BEREA, including sets from several published floras, especially of surfaced mined lands. Important collectors include J. R. Abbott, R. A. Gelis, J. D. Pittillo, D. D. Taylor, R. L. Thompson.

Facilities Admin & Coordinator: Sally Chambers, sally.chambers@eku.edu, 8596228689
Collection Type: Preserved Specimens
Management: Live Data managed directly within data portal
Global Unique Identifier: urn:lsid:biocol.org:col:12653
Digital Metadata: EML File
Address:
The Ralph L. Thompson Herbarium
Eastern Kentucky University
Science Building, Room 3238
Richmond, KY   40475
USA
Collection Statistics
  • 27,828 specimen records
  • 14 (0.05%) georeferenced
  • 25,497 (92%) with images (25,497 total images)
  • 27,670 (99%) identified to species
  • 208 families
  • 1,077 genera
  • 2,960 species
  • 3,115 total taxa (including subsp. and var.)
Extra Statistics