The battle over the location of Iowa City’s herbarium specimens continues as Iowa State and the University of Iowa await the judge’s final decision.

The Friends of the University of Iowa Herbarium, University of Iowa faculty and students, and concerned citizens filed a lawsuit against the University of Iowa in February 2004, and later added Iowa State, seeking the return of the herbarium to Iowa City. The samples are now at Iowa State’s Ada Hayden Herbarium.

After a three-day trial, beginning last Monday at the Johnson County District Court, the judge dismissed three of the four motions filed by the plaintiffs. The evidentiary part is concluded, and the court is expected to issue a ruling shortly, said James Larew, lawyer for the plaintiffs.

“The goal of the litigation is to have the herbarium returned to the University of Iowa,” Larew said. “Several arguments have been made — the people who donated to the herbarium argued that the donations were made so that they would be used here in Iowa City and students would come to Iowa for [Liberal Arts and Sciences] and to use the herbarium and they weren’t able to because it’s not here.”

Former University of Iowa President Mary Sue Coleman approved the transfer in 2002 before leaving, and the current University of Iowa President, David Skorton, has stood by Coleman’s decision.

The collection was transferred to Iowa State in April 2004 when Judge Patrick Grady lifted a temporary injunction, filed by Diana Horton, associate professor of biology at University of Iowa and former curator of the herbarium, blocking the move.

Grady’s ruling said the court hearing should have preceded issuance of a temporary order, the parties should have taken their dispute to the Iowa Board of Regents, and it was doubtful Horton and the nonprofit group would succeed in blocking the transfer.

A herbarium contains information about plant diversity, relationships of plant groups and plant evolution.

“There are dried, actual plants, flattened and mounted on paper with a label of pertinent information,” said Lynn Clark, director of the Ada Hayden Herbarium. “It’s a plant library — more or less alphabetic — with all specimens of the same species together.”

Clark said the specimens are contained in folders and “looking through them is like reading a book.”

Steve Parrott, director of university relations for the University of Iowa, said the herbarium move was the result of a strategic academic decision.

“The decision was made in a time of budget constraints. We looked for ways to make cuts; the regents told us to look for duplication among universities, and we no longer emphasize plant sciences,” Parrott said.

“We took all things together and have higher priorities. It was a well thought out decision, not a spur-of-the-moment one.”

Another factor, besides budget constraints, was the herbarium’s location. It was located in the chemistry building, which was used to house both chemistry and botany, but botany was eliminated and a new chemistry building was built.

“We needed to get the herbarium out in order to renovate the building,” Parrott said. “We needed space; chemistry serves a lot of students.”

Parrott said three different university presidents have looked at this and have all agreed this was the best decision, with all things considered.

“It wasn’t an easy decision. I know the move wasn’t without pain for some faculty and students, but it didn’t eliminate courses, jobs or majors,” he said.

Clark said the University of Iowa made the decision not to support the herbarium anymore, and they came to Iowa State asking them to take it. Talk of moving the herbarium started in 1998.

“The only logical place to come was here,” she said. “Iowa made the official decision and our universities have cooperated on the venture.”

Before the move, Iowa State’s herbarium contained approximately 440,000 specimens.

Clark said they moved a group of about 30,000 specimens to another herbarium to make room for the 230,000 specimens from Iowa City. The total collection at Iowa State now holds 640,000 specimens.

“We have a long history of strong plant biology,” Clark said. “We are part of a big network and we have, ultimately, the best place for it.”

Parrott agreed Iowa State was the best place for the herbarium and said having a full-time curator helped the decision.

During the trial, allegations that the Ada Hayden Herbarium was disorganized and specimens from Iowa City were damaged during the move were proven to be false.

“Our herbarium is functional, usable and being used,” Clark said. “Since last July 1, we’ve had about 150 visits by 50 to 60 researchers, and nobody had any problems with finding anything.”

She said they are not at an ideal level of organization, but to achieve final order, the herbarium needs grant funding. Clark also said the lawsuit has impeded the organization process.