Happy birthday, John Muir! Born on April 21, 1838, he was one of the most influential naturalists of all time and is credited for helping to create the National Park System and the Sierra Club. He was inspired by the vast beauty of the outdoors, including weeks at a time spent exploring California’s Sierra Nevadas.
“During his lengthy wanderings, Muir contemplated man’s relationship to nature,” said the National Park Service. “He concluded that all life forms have inherent significance and the right to exist. Humans, Muir decided, are no greater or lesser than other forms of life.”
Muir is considered the “Father of the National Parks,” and there’s a John Muir National Historic Site in California’s Bay Area that pays tribute to his legacy.
Muir was born in Scotland. His family emigrated to Wisconsin but he was born to travel and write. He would eventually walk from the Midwest to the Gulf of Mexico, keeping a journal along the way. His adventures would take him through California, Oregon, Nevada, Utah, Washington, Alaska and more.
Muir was fascinated by forests and glaciers. In fact, he was the first to propose the now-predominant theory that Yosemite’s spectacular cliffs and peaks were shaped by glaciers.
Muir’s political involvement in the battle to protect Yosemite led to the establishment of Yosemite National Park. In 1903, President Teddy Roosevelt spent four days in Yosemite with Muir. The president was “profoundly influenced by Muir and the conservation movement,” said the NPS.
Roosevelt went on to set aside 148 million acres of forest reserves and create 50 regions for the protection of wildlife, 16 national monuments and 5 new national parks.
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