BAIRD

baird, henry martyn (1832-1906), american historian and educationalist, a son of robert baird (1798-1863), a presbyterian preacher and author who worked earnestly both in the united states and in europe for the cause of temperance, was born in philadelphia, pennsylvania, on the 17th of january 1832. he spent eight years of his early youth with his father in paris and geneva, and in 1850 graduated at new york university. he then lived for two years in italy and greece, was a student in the union theological seminary in new york city from 1853 to 1855, and in 1856 graduated at the princeton theological seminary. he was a tutor for four years in the college of new jersey (now princeton university), and from 1859 until his death was professor of greek language and literature in new york university. he is best known, however, as a historian of the huguenots. his work, which appeared in three parts, entitled respectively _history of the rise of the huguenots of france_ (2 vols., 1879), _the huguenots and henry of navarre_ (2 vols., 1886), and _the huguenots and the revocation of the edict of nantes_ (2 vols., 1895), is characterized by painstaking thoroughness, by a judicial temper, and by scholarship of a high order. he also published _modern greece, a narrative of a residence and travels in that country_ (1856); a biography of his father, _the life of the rev. robert baird, d.d._ (1866); and _theodore beza, the counsellor of the french reformation_ (1899). he died in new york city on the 11th of november 1906. his brother, charles washington baird (1828-1887), a graduate of new york university (1848) and of the union theological seminary (1852), and the minister in turn of a dutch reformed church at brooklyn, new york, and of a presbyterian church at rye, new york, also was deeply interested in the history of the huguenots, and published a scholarly work entitled _the history of the huguenot emigration to america_ (2 vols., 1885), left unfinished at his death.