Elmer Drew Merrill
Elmer Drew Merrill was an American botanist. He spent more than twenty years in the Philippines where he became a recognized authority on the flora of the AsiaPacific region. Through the course of his career he authored nearly 500 publications, described approximately 3,000 new plant species, and amassed over one million herbarium specimens. In addition to his scientific work he was an accomplished administrator, college dean, university professor and editor of scientific journals.
Merrill and his twin brother, Dana, were born and raised in the small village of East Auburn, Maine. They were the youngest of six children by Daniel C. Merrill and Mary Merrill. Merrill showed an early interest in natural history, collecting and identifying plants, birds eggs, rocks, and minerals. In 1894 he entered the University of Maine with the intention of studying engineering but soon switched to a general science curriculum where he focused on the biology and classification of flowering plants. He was the valedictorian of his graduation class in 1898 and then stayed on for an additional year working as an assistant in the Department of Natural Science. During his time in college Merrill built a sizable herbarium of almost 2,000 specimens which he eventually donated to the New England Botanical Club.
Source: Wikipedia