Michaux, François-André (16 August 1770–23 October 1855), plant explorer and silviculturist, was born at the royal estate at Satory, next to Versailles, France, the son of André Michaux, then overseer of the estate, and Cécile Claye, daughter of a local farmer. His mother died shortly after his birth. Little is known of his early education, but he appears to have been brought up by an aunt. In 1785 he accompanied his father to North America on a royal commission to explore the forests for trees that could be grown in France. Though the elder Michaux sometimes took his son on his journeys, he generally left him to look after the nursery that he had established near Charleston, South Carolina, in 1786....
