F.
Edgar Rice was born February 19, 1886, in Council Bluffs, Pottawattamie County, Iowa, the son of F. S.
and Minnie (Hughes) Rice.(1) He married Ida Zimmerman Schafer in
Tulsa, Oklahoma, February 1917. They had four children - 3 sons and 1 girl.F.
Edgar Rice was born February 19, 1886, in Council Bluffs, Pottawattamie County, Iowa, the son of F. S.
and Minnie (Hughes) Rice.(1) He married Ida Zimmerman Schafer in
Tulsa, Oklahoma, February 1917. They had four children - 3 sons and 1 girl.
Beginning in 1906, Edgar was draftsman for the Pittsburgh Filtration Plant, then for other places including a railroad bridges engineering office and a structural steel company. His work places included Galveston, Texas, and Tulsa, Oklahoma.
Beginning in 1918, Edgar became a construction engineer for the Phillips Petroleum Company in Bartlesville, Oklahoma. The Phillips Petroleum Company was founded in 1917 there. He specialized in natural gas plants. He became the Vice President of the Phillips Petroleum Company, and retired in 1951 after 33 years. He built 85 gas plants.(2) He was listed as chief engineer, vice president, and director.(3)
His interest and enthusiasm for daylilies dates from a visit in 1939 to the famous Urschel Estate, located in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, which featured an expansive planting of daylilies by Hugh M. Russell. The following year a collection of Russell hybrids was purchased and thus began the growing of modern daylilies in Bartlesville, Oklahoma. From this point on his enthusiasm was contagious and his garden was an inspiration to the many hundreds of people who visit it annually. His garden featured most of the newer varieties. Some of the featured daylilies included - Hemerocallis 'Black Prince' (Russell, 1942), H. 'Caballero' (Stout, 1941), H. 'High Noon' (Milliken, 1948), H. 'Mabel Fuller' (Kraus, 1949), H. 'Painted Lady' (Russell, 1942), H. 'Pink Prelude' (Nesmith, 1949), and H. 'Sceptre' (Bechtold, 1946). Edgar was a grower, collector, and reporter about newer daylilies. He knew numerous hybridizers well and was important in the developing years of the American Hemerocallis Society (AHS).
The initial 1946 meeting at which the Midwest Hemerocallis Society was formed was in Shenandoah, Iowa. In 1947, Edgar attended the second convention of the Society in Shenandoah. "Midwest" was dropped from the name of the Society. This meeting proved to be so interesting and satisfying that he attended every annual convention of the Society.
In 1948, Edgar was named Regional Director for the Society's Region 6, which at the time included the states of Arkansas, Louisiana, New Mexico, Oklahoma, and Texas. He held this position through 1950. The position of Regional Director was renamed to Regional Supervisor in 1950, so Edgar held the position of 1950 Regional Supervisor for Region 6.
At the invitation of Edgar Rice and Dave McKeithan, the 1949 Society's annual meeting was held at Bartlesville, Oklahoma.
Edgar's untiring and capable service to the Society included the holding of such offices as Regional Supervisor, Editor of the Newsletter, and Regional Director. He served as 1952-53 President of the Society. For these services and for his effectiveness in popularizing daylilies throughout the country, he was chosen as recipient of the 1956 Helen Field Fischer Award, the highest award presented in recognition of service to the Society
In 1953, Elmer A. Claar registered Hemerocallis 'President Rice' in honor of F. Edgar Rice.
After Edgar's retirement from Phillips Petroleum he devoted more time to his hobby, and made every effort to have an outstanding display ready for the 1957 AHS Convention. The Rice garden was a tour garden for the Convention. Those attending the Convention had a real treat, not only in enjoying the beautiful Rice garden, but also the gracious hospitality of Edgar and Ida Rice.
For about a dozen years, F. Edgar Rice and Dave McKeithan, also of Bartlesville, prepared a list of their favorite daylilies for the Yearbook Issue of the American Hemerocallis Journal. Their choices were made from named varieties they were growing in Bartlesville.
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