Dr. Gideon Lincecum
historical marker
Dr. Gideon Lincecum, born in Georgia in 1793, was a self-taught physician, philosopher, and naturalist. With only five months of formal schooling, he developed a keen understanding of the natural environment. Lincecum spent his boyhood with Muscogee Indians and later lived among the Choctaw and Chickasaw tribes in Mississippi, learning their languages and traditional herbal remedies. In 1848, he moved to Texas, settling in Washington County, where he continued to practice medicine. In Texas, Lincecum made geological explorations, assembled a plant collection of 500 species, and kept a meteorological journal. He became recognized as an astute naturalist, conducting internationally renowned studies of Texas ants and corresponding with scientists like Charles Darwin. Dr. Lincecum, a veteran of the War of 1812, died in 1874. In 1936, his remains were reinterred in the Texas State Cemetery in Austin, Travis County. This historical marker, erected by the State of Texas that year, commemorates his significant contributions as a pioneer, an internationally famous botanist, and a friend of Darwin.