JOHN TORREY 



1 796- 1 873 

 Torreya taxifolia — ARNOTT 



The names of John Torrey and Asa Gray seem 

 almost inseparable. In 1830, Gray, a lad of 

 twenty, came into New York bringing a packet 

 of undetermined plants for Torrey to label, and 

 from the dead plants sprang a vital lifelong 

 friendship. 



Torrey was born in New York on August 15, 

 1796, the son of a Revolutionary soldier, William 

 Torrey, and Margaret Nichols. He had the or- 

 dinary public school education, and when he 

 was fifteen two events occurred: his father was 

 appointed Fiscal Agent of the State Prison at 

 Greenwich, New York, and the family moved 

 there; and John met Amos Eaton,^ a pioneer of 

 instruction in natural science in America. Eaton 

 taught the lad the structure of plants and encour- 

 aged him in his taste for mineralogy and chemis- 

 try, no mean preparation for the study of medi- 

 cine in 1815 under Wright Post,' and in the Col- 

 lege of Physicians and Surgeons under Samuel 



'Amos Eaton, botanist, 1776-1842. 

 ^Wright Post, surgeon, 1766-1828. 



136 



