The woman behind the naming of Lucy Moore Memorial Park

One of Warkworth’s most distinguished citizens, the botanist Lucy Beatrice Moore, was the fifth of eight children born to Harry and Janet Moore, and was raised in the family home on the corner of Wilson and McKinney Roads. Her father, an intellectual, was the town clerk and librarian, and was a great influence in Lucy’s formative years. His encouragement led to her interest in books and the outdoors.

The family habit of taking long walks to visit their Morrison grandparents at Kaipara Flats, or to walk home from Waiwera after travelling there by steamer, stood her in good stead in her later years of botanical exploration. As there was then no secondary school in Warkworth, Mr Moore told all his children they could continue with their education if they could win a scholarship. Lucy went on to win scholarships to Epsom Girls Grammar School, and then to Auckland University College.

Lucy graduated with an MSc (First Class Hons) in 1929 and, collaborating with her friend Lucy Cranwell, undertook field research in remote parts of New Zealand, including Te Moehau (Coromandel), Maungapohatu (Te Urewera), Arthur’s Pass, a double crossing of the Tararua Range, the Hen and Chicken and the Poor Knights Islands. Travel in those days was difficult so they travelled as best they could, by steamer, cream truck, horse-drawn bush railway, shanks’ pony, and on one memorable occasion under the escort of a policeman on the back platform of a railway carriage, “looking as disreputable as any pair of prisoners”.  This appearance was enhanced by the fact that, lacking any tramping gear made for women, they wore their brothers’ old school shorts and shirts.

Unable to obtain a university position, as there was always a “better man” applying, she spent eight frustrating years as a demonstrator in zoology at Auckland University College. The botany division of the Department of Scientific and Industrial Research (DSIR) refused to accept women on the scientific staff until a Member of Parliament pulled strings so his daughter was accepted as a botanist, and from that point on women could not be refused. 

In 1938, Lucy commenced her career with the DSIR, first in Wellington and later at Lincoln. Her important war-time work was to chart New Zealand’s seaweeds. Agar obtained from seaweed for medical research could no longer be imported from Japan, so Lucy, after exploring the East Coast largely on foot, organised Maori children to collect the requisite species.  She worked with HH Allan on producing New Zealand Flora Volume I, and was senior author of Flora Volume II. Her ecological study of Molesworth Station in Marlborough is the longest such study ever undertaken in this country. Other publications included many scientific papers, Plants of the New Zealand Coast, and The Oxford Book of New Zealand Plants, with artist, JB Irwin.

Lucy reached the highest grading for a woman in the public service and her eminence in the scientific world was recognised by the awarding of many honours. She was a feminist who had to fight her way to be accepted in a man’s world, and readily admitted that being brought up with five brothers had helped. Modern women owe much to her ilk.

She was raised in a home and a time when frugality was the order of the day, and she practised thrift throughout her life, particularly as an impoverished student. Nevertheless she was very generous to others, and after spending 11 years, with her eyesight failing, on writing The Oxford Book, she made over all the royalties to the artist.

In 1980 Lucy retired to the family home in Warkworth and became active in local conservation issues. She was much loved by family and friends, and died in Orewa in 1987.