Amos Eaton

“ As an educator and an active labourer in the general cause of natural history in America, his memory will long be cherished. The history of natural science on this continent can never be faithfully written without giving the name of Amos Eaton an honourable place. It was he, more than any other individual in the United States, who, finding the natural sciences in the hands of the learned few, by means of popular lectures, simplified textbooks, and practical instruction, threw them broadcast to the many. ”

“ Eaton diffused a great amount of knowledge on the subjects of his lectures; and so far excited the curiosity and enthusiasm of many young students that there sprang up, as a result of his labours, an army of botanists and geologists." The late Prof. Albert Hopkins, of Williams College, accrediting Prof. Eaton with being one of the first to popularize science in the Northern States, mentioned as among his special qualifications for the task an easy flow of language, a popular address, and a generous enthusiasm in matters of science, which easily communicated itself to his pupils. ”

“ Eaton was greatly aided in this enterprise by the patronage and encouragement he had received from the faculty and students of Williams College, and the fame he derived from his lectures there; and he made an acknowledgment of this fact in dedicating the second edition of his botany to the president and professors, when he said, "The science of botany is indebted to you for its first introduction into the interior of the Northern States, and I am indebted to you for a passport into the scientific world." ”