The poinsettia is named for Joel Roberts Poinsett, a politician and statesman of the first half of the 19th century. He was a member of Congress from 1821-1825, minister (the first) to Mexico between 1825-1830, and secretary of war from 1837 to 1841. He also was an amateur botanist. Although there is more than one story as to how the poinsettia came to popularity in this country--because Poinsett either developed it or merely discovered it--there is no question that it is named for him. The flower has prospered in the United States because of the work of Albert and Paul Ecke, father and son, who in the 20th century developed the flower commercially.