The genus Aldridgea was established by Massee (1892a) to accommodate effused, resupinate fungi 'allied to Coniophora in the large, coloured spores, but distinguished by the subgelatinous consistency when growing'. The basidiospores were said to be 'smooth, elliptical, coloured'. Only one species, Aldridgea gelatinosa Massee, was cited, based on a specimen growing among sawdust. Following this original description of Aldridgea which was published in June 1892 (fide Hanlin 1978), Massee (1892b: 103) produced a second and superfluous type description, published in October 1892 (fide Stafleu & Cowan 1981). This later description, which does not differ substantially from the first, was accompanied by two figures (Massee 1892b: 97), one showing a smooth featureless fruitbody, the other a basidium bearing four, tinted, ellipsoid spores. The basidium was drawn as atypically short and clavate, but is evidently stylized since it is identical to non-Aldridgea basidia drawn a few pages earlier (Massee 1892b: 94), including those illustrating Coniophora olivacea (Pers.) P. Karst. Wakefield (in Donk 1957) examined 'the original specimen' of Aldridgea and found the spores to be 'those of a Basidiomycete either a Coniophora or a Merulius (Gyrophana)'. She added that 'there is no structure to be seen'. Her conclusion was that 'the generic name should be eliminated as a nomen dubium'. Based on this, and after some additional discussion, Donk (1957) also concluded that Aldridgea was 'apparently to be treated as a nomen dubium'. Recent re-examination of the type folder at K revealed five specimens, one of which ('on Lobelia seedlings, April 1910', K(M) 39275) was clearly a later addition. Massee (1892a) claimed that 'the type was referred provisionally by Berkeley to Thelephora', but the only specimen identified as 'Thelephora' in Berkeley's handwriting ('Crandale, Sep. 26 1866', K(M) 39271) proved on examination to be a species of Tomentella Pat. with conspicuously echinulate spores. Two additional specimens from Berkeley's herbarium, annotated as 'Thelephora crustacea' ('Maidenhead, Sawyer', K(M) 39272 and 'Sawyer' K(M) 39273), were also found to be Tomentella species. The final specimen (K(M) 39274) bore no original label or marking, but carried the later pencil annotation 'spores smooth (Agrees with description)' in Wakefield's handwriting. Since this specimen is the only one which