Charles Whitman Cross (September 1, 1854 Amherst Mass. - April 20, 1949 Chevy Chase Md), American geologist and petrologist
[From
The Gardeners' Chronicle, 1941, p. 218:] Dr. Whitman Cross was awarded the Potomac Rose Society's Gold Medal for his work in raising new Roses....
[From "The American Philosophical Society Yearbook 1949", p. 307:] Afer his retirement, Cross devoted his time ...to the culture of roses and soon became a rebowned authority on that subject. His garden in Chevy Chase, Maryland, had two thousand rose bushes and was a show place. He developed several new varieties of roses and received several awards, notably the gold medal of the Potomac Rose Society in 1941 for his outstanding achievement in rose culture.
[From "Encylopedia.com:] Retirement in 1925 did not mark the end of Cross’s scientific career; his systematic methods were trasferred with equal vigor to the cultivation of roses. He developed new varieties, some of which became available commercially. The outstanding varieties include “Chevy Chase,” “Mrs. Whitman Cross,” and “Hon. Lady Lindsay.”
[From the Facebook page of "Chevy Chase Historical Society":] ..After his retirement from an illustrious career at the U.S. Geological Survey in 1925, Chevy Chase resident Dr. Charles Whitman Cross devoted his time to the cultivation of roses. Dr. Cross and wife, Virginia, lived at 101 E. Kirke Street and employed landscape architect Rose Greely to design their garden....Dr. Cross used his scientific training and rigor in the development of his garden and, according to the National Academy of Sciences, he grew two thousand rose bushes. Dr. Cross was a founding member of the Potomac Rose Society....
Niels J. Hansen, a gardener originally from Denmark, worked for Dr. Cross and together they experimented with different types of roses, creating new, disease-resistant varieties. In May 1938, Dr. Cross and Hansen demonstrated the hybridization of roses by pollination at the annual rose fete organized by the Potomac Rose Society. A year later, the main attraction at the event was the display of three new rose varieties engineered by Dr. Cross and Hansen, including one they named the "Chevy Chase" rose. According to the Evening Star, the Chevy Chase rose was a "mildew-resistant rambler rose" and this was a "distinct achievement" as most ramblers were seriously injured by mildew. Hansen was credited with the introduction of the Chevy Chase rose and went on to receive several patents for hybrid roses.
