Lesquereux, Leo

Born in Fleurier, Canton Neuchatel, Switzerland; deafened by a fall at age 7. Attended the College of Neuchatel; held a brief professorship in French, then became a school principal. Entered his father's watch making business, but his interest in nature soon pulled him into becoming an authority on peat bogs. A revolution in Neuchatel prompted him to emigrate to America, where he soon participated in natural history expeditions and became an authority on fossil plants.