Short Bibliography for Dr. Orson K. Miller Jr.

After graduating in 1952 Orson joined the Oak Wilt Survey, USDA for a summer and then enrolled for three years in the US Army Security Agency rather than be drafted. In 1953 Hope Hartigan (junior at the University of Massachusetts) and I were married and I served in Germany where Hope joined me. Our first daughter, Andrea was born there and we returned to the States and the University of Michigan where I enrolled for an MS in Forestry in 1955 which I received in 1956. In 1956 six months were spent at the Intermountain Forest and Range Experiment Station in Idaho where our second daughter, Lisa, was born and we then moved to Philadelphia and joined the Northeastern Forest Experiment Station.

In 1958 I enrolled in a doctoral program at the University of Michigan, where our 3rd and last daughter, Virginia, was born. I received my PhD in 1963 and was subsequently employed at the Forestry Sciences Laboratory at the University of Idaho and served as an adjunct professor on the Idaho faculty. In 1965 we moved to Laurel Maryland and I joined the US Forest Service Mycology Lab at Beltsville where we spent five years. In 1970 I became an Associate Professor of Botany and Curator of Fungi at Virginia Tech. I was promoted to Full Professor in 1973. My book "Mushrooms of North America" published in 1973 sold more than 240,000 copies. Seven more books on fungi and more than 160 scientific papers have been published by Hope and I and other colleagues from the mycology lab. Every other summer from 1968 to 1995 I was a Visiting Professor and taught mycology at the University of Montana Biological Station at Yellow Bay on Flathead Lake, Montana. During my career as Professor of Botany and Curator of Fungi at Virginia Tech I have had 32 graduate students and 15 students have earned the PhD under my direction. Research Projects have been carried out in Arctic Alaska, the Rocky Mountains, Canada, South Korea, Western Australia, Europe, Nepal, Thailand, the Greater Antilles and Namibia.

In 1981I received an award for Contribution to Amateur Mycology by the amateur North American Mycological Association (NAMA). I have also received the Weston Teaching Award in 1989, and Distinguished Mycologist award in 1997 from the professional Mycological Society of America (MSA). I was named a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) in 1995. I served the Mycological Society as chair of the Finance Committee from 1993 until 2004. In 1999 I received the Jefferson Medal for Outstanding Contributions to Natural Science presented by the Virginia Museum of Natural History Foundation. In the same year I was elected Vice President, Mycological Society of America and served as President Elect in 2000 and President in 2001. I am also a member of Sigma Xi, Phi Beta Delta, and Phi Sigma honorary societies.

Hope and I are currently involved research projects in the Dominican Republic and Belize. I officially retired in May 2002 after 31 years at Virginia Tech. and we moved permanently to our Idaho home. Hope and I are carrying on research and writing a new book as we continue to be involved in and work on fungi.

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On June 9, 2006 Dr. Orson K. Miller Jr. passed away from this life. 
He was not only a world-re noun mycologist and author but a loving husband and wonderful father. 
He will be sorely missed.