Native Plants
Bransford, W.D. and Dolphia
Bill (W.D.) (1913-1996) and Dolphia Bransford (1915-2015) moved from San Angelo to Kingsland, Texas in 1950. There they established the first fish camp in the area. A carpenter, Bill built small cabins and a larger building which served as a general store.Bill was interested in photography so he and Dolphia would set out in their camper taking pictures of wildflowers and scenery along the way. After plants were photographed, Dolphia researched them and recorded their botanical name, family and common name on each slide. The Bransfords would travel for two or three months at a time and eventually visited nearly every corner of the United States and Canada. They spent 40 years pursuing their favorite pastime and stopped only when Bill’s vision diminished.
At the beginning, Bill photographed plants mostly from a distance, often too far to see enough detail necessary to identify his subjects. Dolphia encouraged him to get close-ups of the plants so that they could be identified and so that their full beauty could be appreciated. Many times he would lie flat on the ground to get the perfect shot. His extra effort shows in the quality of his photographs.
Bill enjoyed presenting prints of his photographs in collections, displaying images of entire genera or families in a single frame. In one case, it took six years of effort to get the photograph of a single species necessary to complete one of these framed collections.
Wishing to find a suitable, permanent home for their work, Mr. and Mrs. Bransford began donating their slide collection to the National Wildflower Research Center in 1987 and were privileged to enjoy Mrs. Johnson’s company on several occasions. Over the years, countless thousands of visitors to this website have enjoyed the work and study of this devoted couple.
Today, the nearly 4500 native plant slides contributed to the Wildflower Center by Bill and Dolphia Bransford remain one of the largest image collections in the NPIN Image Gallery.
The Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center is committed to developing the premier resource for native plant images in North America through continued growth of the Plant Image Gallery. You can help us achieve our mission ...to increase the sustainable use and conservation of native wildflowers, plants, and landscapes... by becoming a contributor.
scientific name | common name(s) | image gallery |
Clintonia borealis | Bluebead Yellow Bluebead-lily Clintonia Blue-bead Lily | |
Clarkia concinna | Red Ribbons Redribbons | |
Clarkia concinna | Red Ribbons Redribbons | |
Clarkia concinna | Red Ribbons Redribbons | |
Clematis columbiana | Rock Clematis | |
Clematis columbiana | Rock Clematis | |
Clematis columbiana | Rock Clematis | |
Clematis columbiana | Rock Clematis | |
Claytonia cordifolia | Heartleaf Springbeauty Broadleaf Claytonia | |
Claytonia cordifolia | Heartleaf Springbeauty Broadleaf Claytonia | |
Clematis columbiana var. columbiana | Rock Clematis | |
Clematis columbiana var. columbiana | Rock Clematis | |
Clematis crispa | Swamp Leatherflower Curly Clematis Blue-jasmine Curlflower Curly Virgin's Bower Marsh Clematis | |
Clematis crispa | Swamp Leatherflower Curly Clematis Blue-jasmine Curlflower Curly Virgin's Bower Marsh Clematis | |
Clarkia cylindrica | Speckled Clarkia | |
Clarkia cylindrica | Speckled Clarkia | |
Clematis drummondii | Old Man's Beard Drummond's Clematis Texas Virgin's Bower Goat's Beard | |
Clematis drummondii | Old Man's Beard Drummond's Clematis Texas Virgin's Bower Goat's Beard | |
Clematis drummondii | Old Man's Beard Drummond's Clematis Texas Virgin's Bower Goat's Beard | |
Clarkia dudleyana | Dudley's Clarkia | |
Clarkia epilobioides | Canyon Clarkia | |
Clematis hirsutissima | Hairy Clematis Sugarbowls Vase Flower Leatherflower Lion's Beard | |
Clematis hirsutissima | Hairy Clematis Sugarbowls Vase Flower Leatherflower Lion's Beard | |
Clematis hirsutissima | Hairy Clematis Sugarbowls Vase Flower Leatherflower Lion's Beard | |
Clematis hirsutissima | Hairy Clematis Sugarbowls Vase Flower Leatherflower Lion's Beard | |
Clarkia imbricata | Vine Hill Clarkia | |
Clarkia imbricata | Vine Hill Clarkia | |
Claytonia lanceolata | Western Spring Beauty Lanceleaf Spring Beauty Spring Beauty Indian Potato | |
Clematis lasiantha | Pipestem Clematis Pipestems Chaparral Clematis | |
Clitoria mariana | Atlantic Pigeonwings Butterfly Pea | |
Claytonia megarhiza | Alpine Springbeauty | |
Claytonia megarhiza | Alpine Springbeauty | |
Clematis pitcheri | Purple Leatherflower Purple Clematis Leatherflower Bluebill Bellflower Clematis Pitcher's Clematis | |
Clematis pitcheri | Purple Leatherflower Purple Clematis Leatherflower Bluebill Bellflower Clematis Pitcher's Clematis | |
Clematis pitcheri | Purple Leatherflower Purple Clematis Leatherflower Bluebill Bellflower Clematis Pitcher's Clematis | |
Clematis pitcheri | Purple Leatherflower Purple Clematis Leatherflower Bluebill Bellflower Clematis Pitcher's Clematis | |
Clarkia purpurea | Winecup Clarkia | |
Clarkia purpurea | Winecup Clarkia | |
Clarkia rubicunda | Ruby Chalice Clarkia | |
Clarkia rubicunda | Ruby Chalice Clarkia | |
Clarkia rubicunda | Ruby Chalice Clarkia | |
Clarkia rubicunda | Ruby Chalice Clarkia | |
Clarkia rubicunda | Ruby Chalice Clarkia | |
Claytonia sibirica var. sibirica | Siberian Springbeauty | |
Claytonia sibirica var. sibirica | Siberian Springbeauty | |
Claytonia sibirica var. sibirica | Siberian Springbeauty | |
Claytonia sibirica var. sibirica | Siberian Springbeauty | |
Claytonia sibirica var. sibirica | Siberian Springbeauty | |
Clarkia speciosa | Redspot Clarkia | |
Clematis texensis | Scarlet Clematis Scarlet Leatherflower Texas Clematis | |
scientific name | common name(s) | image gallery |