Thomas Coulter

Irish physician, botanist, and explorer (1793-1843).

Thomas Coulter (1793–1843), of Dundalk, was an Irish physician, botanist and explorer. He was a member of the Royal Irish Academy, a fellow of Trinity College, Dublin, and founder of that college's herbarium. After completing a medical degree in Dublin, Coulter studied botany in Geneva for 17 months under Swiss taxonomist Augustin de Candolle. He then left Switzerland and became a physician with the Real del Monte Company in Mexico. During this period he collected and catalogued plants in the region. He eventually left Mexico and travelled the world exploring many countries and conducting bota