Elba Emanuel Watson (1871 – September 27, 1936) was an American botanist, noted for his study of the genus Helianthus.[1] [2] [3]
Raised in Grand Rapids, Watson attended University of Michigan for his bachelor's degree.[4] After graduation, Watson taught German in a high school located in Greater New York for many years.[5] He later returned to University of Michigan and earned his M.S. in botany in 1918. He then remained in the university one more year to work as a teaching assistant.[6] After moving back to the Greater New York area, he worked at New York Botanical Garden for a year and then taught at Rutgers College for a year. In 1922, he entered the Graduate School of Michigan State College, and in 1926, completed his Ph.D. thesis on the genus Helianthus. Watson worked as a German instructor after receiving his Ph.D. After his sudden death at age 65, he was buried in Okemos, MI.[7]