George R. Flower was born to Roswell S. and Phebe (Peck) Flower on May 19, 1848. The Flower family arrived in Iowa from Vermont in 1857 and acquired 160 acres of farmland in Humboldt County. Roswell served as Corinth township clerk (1860) and postmaster of the Addison post office.

George attended Iowa State Agricultural College (Iowa State University) starting in 1870. George received his B.S. in 1873 making him part of the second graduating class of the College. While studying at Iowa State, George enrolled in a number of math and chemistry courses and also worked in one of the laboratories.

After returning home from college, George struggled with illness throughout the following year. He died December 21, 1874, at his parents house four miles south of Humboldt. He is buried at Indian Mound cemetery near Lorbeers, Iowa.

This collection (1869-1873) contains the photocopied diary of George R. Flower. The diary contains entries related to George's time at Iowa State Agricultural College (Iowa State University). He records expenditures, names of classmates, and notes for several of his classes including chemistry and biology. He also carefully records his hours and duties performed in the College laboratory and back home during breaks. The collection contains additional biographical information including a biographical sketch written by Pat Baker of the Humboldt County Historical Museum where the original diary is housed.

The collection is arranged alphabetically.