T. T. Lyon (1817-1900) was the donor and first superintendent of the South Haven Experiment Station. He served as President (1876-1893) and Secretary of the Michigan State Horticultural Society. He edited the American Pomological Society’s fruit variety catalogue for more than 40 years.

One of the early supporters of Michigan Agriculture College (now Michigan State University), Lyon, a native of New York, moved to Michigan with his parents in 1828. He operated a farm and sawmill in Plymouth, and there established a test orchard for apple and pear cultivars. He provided scions of many cultivars to the college for use in establishing orchards at East Lansing.

In 1874 Lyon moved to South Haven and established a new orchard and nursery. Lyon retired from the nursery business in 1885 and in 1888 signed an agreement with the Board of Agriculture to write a report on the cultivars under test in his orchard. This led to the Board’s leasing the orchard in 1889, retaining Lyon as superintendent. Lyon continued in his supervisory role until his resignation in 1898 at the age of 81. He was awarded an honorary Master of Horticulture degree by M.A.C. in 1891.

(From Seed to Fruit: 150 Years of Horticulture at Michigan State 1855-2005, Department of Horticulture, MSU, 2007)