William Edwin Safford
American botanist (1859-1926)
William Edwin Safford (December 14, 1859, Chillicothe, Ohio – January 10, 1926) was a United States botanist, ethnologist, and educator employed by the U.S. Navy and federal government.
Safford graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy in 1880 and pursued advanced studies at Yale and Harvard. He served in the Spanish–American War. In 1899 he was appointed deputy to the naval governor of Guam, Richard P. Leary. In practice, however, Leary delegated day-to-day administrative and judicial duties to Safford, indicating his preference to directly govern only in emergency situations.
While stationed on Guam, Safford compiled a thorough survey of the plants of economic importance to be found on the island. The resulting volume, published as The Useful Plants of the Island of Guam (Contributions from the United States National Herbarium Vol. IX), remains of interest not only as a pioneering work of ethnobotany but also for its insights into the natural history and folkways of the island. He also wrote a monograph on the Chamorro language of Guam.
Due to his interest in psychoactive plants and their traditional use, Safford can be considered one of the "fathers" of the ethnobotany of psychoactive plants.
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