HENDERSON, John Loftus

Only son of John Henderson and Mary Loftus. Educated at Streatham College and joined his father at the printers Waterlows. Emigrated to Canada in 1910 and worked in the timber trade, but when war broke out he returned to England with the Canadian army and was obliged to remain here because of ill health. Subsequently he joined a firm of City accountants where he remained until he retired. He was inspired by his father to become interested in Lepidoptera but by his late teens had taken up the Coleoptera and in particular the water beetles in which he subsequently became very knowledgeable. Henderson added a number of species to the British list including Ceuthorhynchus turbatus Schultz and Chaetocnema aerosa Letzner and showed that Phyllobius artemisae Desb. (vespertinus (F)) was a valid species, he published little else however. Henderson was an active member of BENHS being at different times Treasurer and Vice-President and he bequeathed his collections to the Society. James (1973) describes the bequest as comprising 'his fine collection of British Coleoptera, five Hill units, his binocular microscope and card index of Ashtead, Surrey, Coleoptera' (p.78) K.C.lewis has some specimens in his collection. There is an obituary notice by F.Buck in Proc.SLENHS, 1966, pp.35-36. (MD 3/03)