336 The American Geologist. i'.'<rinber, looi 
who from having" l)cen a wcallliy ])lanter, was reduced iur a 
time to rely on personal lalx^inr ; in the Masonic Lodge he for- 
got his misfortunes, and there, and nowhere else that I ever 
saw, assumed the proper station of an intelligent French gen- 
tleman, instructing and entertaining us l)y his ])hilosopincal 
views, occasionally peculiar, as well as by the numerous facts 
the state of the country he had lived in enabled him to give." 
Mr. Ralph 1). Lacoe had few advantages of education in his 
early youth, his mother supplying that which the country 
schools did not give, and with such success that before he was 
of age he taught school for a term or more in his neighboriiood, 
having among his pupils the young girl who subsef[uently be- 
came his wife. About 1850 he and his brothers went to Nichol- 
son, Luzerne Co., wdiere his grandfather, Jean Dupuy's land 
was located ; he invested in coal lands near Pittston, and vhen 
coal enterprises began to develcp he engaged in the real estate 
business near Pittston, laying the foundation for his wealtl) of 
land and other property. In 1850, when the Pittston bank was 
established, he became cashier, and in 1865, when the bank 
was made a National P>ank, he was elected vice-president. He 
was also president of the Wyoming Valley Knitting company 
in 1874, president of the Water Street Bridge company, trus- 
tee of the Miners' Savings bank of Pittston, &c.. &c. 
When about 1865 his health became somewhat impaired 
Mr. Lacoe retired from the activities of business and turned his 
attention to the study of geology, especially in connection with 
coal mining, and began to accumulate what became one of 
the largest collections of the fossil plants ever known. This 
collection was naturally divided into three departments — the 
Coal Flora, Fossil Insects of the carboniferous beds, and Fossils 
of the Paleozoic limestone beds. 
This special study brought him reputation that has placed 
his name in the Valhalla of science with that of Lesquereux, 
Dawsicn and Cope. As his collections grew in magnitude and 
value the question naturally forced itself upon him as to their 
ultimate disposition. The pecuniary value of his work doubt- 
less never entered his mind. He visited many public museums 
and institutions where such collections were preserved, but was 
pained with the want of attention and care given to them and 
hesitated to place the results of his research, and his outlay of 
