John Muir

John Muir was born on April 21,1838 in Dunbar, Scotland. He was a naturalist,philosopher,writer,botanist, and geologist. Growing up, Muir was raised in a strict household. His father was a harsh disciplinarian and worked his family from dusk to dawn. Whenever Muir was on break from his work, he would go out into the woods near his home and explore the nature surrounding him. This is what made him become an inventor of all things wood. He created a horse feeder, a table saw, a wooden thermometer, and an alarm clock that pushed him out of bed. Muir attended the University of Wisconsin in the early 1860's and left in 1863 in order to study botany and explore the natural world by foot. In March of 1867, he had a serious injury while working in a factory. He pierced an awl into his right eye causing both eyes to go blind. Muir decided if ever did recover he would travel the world in order to see God's creation. It is presumed that while he was stuck in bed, Muir's friends would come over and read to him. This is when he most likely first heard about Yosemite. In September of 1867, Muir's eyes were healed and he set out on a thousand mile walk from Indianapolis to the Gulf of Mexico. After the walk he planned to head to South America. He eventually completed the walk however when he was in Florida, he contracted malaria and this made him travel to Yosemite instead of South America. Yosemite is a National Park located in California. It is 761,266 acres and the first people who lived in it was a group of native Americans called the Ahwahneechee. The europeans arrived in 1827 and because of their arrival it caused the Mariposa War between the Ahwahneechee and the europeans. In 1848, the California Gold Rush brought thousands of people to the area which spread the word of Yosemite's beauty. Nine years later, President Lincoln signed a bill granting Yosemite Valley and Mariposa Grove to the state of California. The ahwahneechee was a powerful tribe that was feared by Miwok tribes who called them Yosemite which means "They are killers". This is how Yosemite National Park was named. Muir wrote tons of essays and articles in order to push for the establishment of Yosemite National Park. He also co-founded the Sierra Club in order to protect Yosemite along with others of America's National Wonders. Muir also went on a three day camping trip with Theodore Roosevelt and his main focus was to convince for the need of forest preservation but also for Yosemite and Mariposa Grove be receded to the U.S for inclusion of the park. Muir was also a major figure in the creation of the Grand Canyon and Sequoia regions which gave him the nickname "John of the Mountains" and "The Father of our National Park System". Eventually their discussion ended with the signature of the president for the Yosemite Recession Bill in June 1906. John died on Christmas Eve of 1914. His legacy lives on in the species named after him like the Troglodyte Muirii also known as Muir's winter wren. His legacy also lives on in the books he wrote like The Mountains of California, Our National Parks, and My First Summer in Sierra. If it weren't for Muir we wouldn't have Yosemite National Park as we have today or other Wonders of the world like the Grand Canyon, Kings Canyon, Petrified Forest, and Mt. Rainer National Parks.