William Young (1742-1785)
Dionaea muscipula Ellis fig.8, Venus Flytrap, 1767.
Watercolour on paper, 378 x 234 mm.


Born in Casell Hesse in Germany Young accompanied his parents to America, arriving in Philadelphia in 1744. Influenced by the success of John Bartram’s seed trade, Young decided to take up the business himself and became a plant collector and nurseryman up until 1785, when he tragically fell to his death and drowned at Gunpowder Creek, Maryland, while on a plant hunting expedition.

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