Lewis C. French was born in 1893 in Naperville, Illinois. For thirty-four years he was farm editor of one of the leading daily newspapers in the agricultural state of Wisconsin, the Milwaukee Journal.
After graduating from the Janesville (Wisconsin) High School in 1912, he worked for the Janesville Gazette and later for the Duluth News-Tribune. After World War I service with the artillery in France, he returned to the Janesville Gazette, where he started one of the first daily farm pages in the country, with emphasis on 4-H Club work and marketing co-operatives. When tobacco prices hit new lows, French helped form the Wisconsin Tobacco Pool. He also developed the Rock County show herds, forerunner of the state show herds.
French joined the staff of the Milwaukee Journal as financial editor in January, 1926, and shortly after became farm editor. Until his retirement in 1960 his work was centered chiefly in agriculture and conservation, “green grass, new trees, clean water.” During these years the excellence of his work earned many awards for the newspaper as well as for himself
Lewis C. French died on December 18, 1960.
