David Fairchild

About

Botanist who introduced to the U.S. thousands of new plants and crops like soybeans and nectarines.

Before Fame

He joined the U.S. Department of Agriculture in 1889 and was tasked with finding plants growing abroad that could be useful if cultivated within the U.S.

Trivia

Altogether he brought some 200,000 plants to the U.S., including new varieties of cotton and wheat.

Family Life

He married Daisy Bell the daughter of the famed telephone inventor Alexander Graham Bell.

Associated With

Joseph Bergen was another prominent botanist whose efforts also revolutionized the science as it was practiced in the U.S.