THE BRYOLOGIST 
Vol. XI 
May 1908 
No. 3 
LUC1EN MARCUS UNDERWOOD. 
Caroline Coventry Haynes. 
The story of Professor Lucien M. Underwood’s life has been well told 
elsewhere, the scope and power of his work has been estimated, and a com- 
plete list of his publications has been given. From Dr. Curtis’ paper; A 
Biographical Sketch of Lucien Marcus Underwood,* I have taken the greater 
part of the facts here given. 
Born October 26, 1853, in the town of New Woodstock, New York, Pro- 
fessor Underwood died at his home at Redding, Conn., November 16, 1907. 
His early life was spent on his father’s farm; he went regularly to school 
until, at the age of eleven, he became one of the farm hands and could only 
attend the winter term at school and seminary. When seventeen he gained 
the scholarship and mathematical prizes. His passion for collecting was 
shown at an early age, and though he was obliged to walk three miles to 
school, he would carry material which he habitually provided for the use of 
the natural history class. Professor L. M. Coon (afterwards Judge Coon, of 
Oswego) suggested his going to college ; determination was added to the 
suggestion through his reading Lyell’s Principles of Geology and other 
works, and, in 1873, he entered Syracuse University. This followed a year 
or two of farming and lumbering by which he obtained the necessary funds. 
In 1875 he began forming an herbarium, ferns being his first choice. 
Geology and entomology were also favorite studies ; his eloquence placed 
him among the orators of his college ; he was also an able writer. He visited 
New York and saw the Centennial Exposition at Philadelphia in 1876. 
After his graduation in 1877 he began teaching, showing marked ability 
in surmounting difficulties. Meanwhile he was working for the Master’s 
degree which he gained in 1878 at Syracuse University. He taught natural 
science at Cazenovia Seminary for two years, during which time he completed 
his graduate work in geology. After a year’s teaching at Hedding College,. 
Illinois, he became professor of geology and botany at the Illinois Wesleyan: 
University at Bloomington, where he remained during three busy years. 
From 1882-1896 he was actively interested in the Hepaticae, his desire- 
being to bring this greatly neglected group into notice and he unquestiona- 
bly succeeded in doing so. The year 1884 saw the publication of his ‘ ‘ Descrip- 
tive Catalogue of the North American Hepaticae, north of Mexico.” With 
O. F. Cook, he issued Hepaticae Americanae, a series, unfinished, of exsic- 
catae, numbering two hundred. He prepared the section on the Hepaticae 
in Gray’s Manual of Botany, sixth edition, published in 1890. Among a 
number of valuable papers may be mentioned “The Evolution of the : 
*Bull. Torrey Club 35: 1-12, 1908, 
The March Bryologist was issued March 5, 1908. 
