Scottish horticulturalist who spent much of his life in Pennsylvania. Other than that he was born in Gillogie, Forfarshire, little is known of the early life of John Lyon. Towards the end of the 18th century he moved to the United States and by 1796 was in charge of William Hamilton's famous garden at Woodlands near Philadelphia. Undertaking numerous excursions in that state he gathered plant specimens to enhance the garden's collection. In 1805 Frederick Pursh took over from him as director and the following year Lyon returned to Britain, taking many plants with him which he sold at auction in London. Soon back in America he extended the range of his botanical exploration to the Carolinas, Georgia and Florida and particularly in the southern Appalachians. In 1812 he took these newly acquired specimens to England once more to sell before returning one final time to the States. A few years later he became ill and died in Asheville, North Carolina. John Lyon was responsible for bringing 31 new plant species into cultivation.

Sources:
J.W. Harshberger, 1899, Botanists of Philadelphia: 133
G. Ellison, 2006, "Lyon was among WNC's notable botanist", Smokey Mountain News:
http://www.smokymountainnews.com/issues/02_06/02_15_06/mtn_voices.html, accessed 18 January 2011.