John Muir National Historic Site
Encyclopedia
The John Muir National Historic Site is located in the San Francisco Bay Area
, in Martinez
, Contra Costa County, California
. It preserves the 14-room Italianate
Victorian
mansion where the naturalist and writer John Muir
lived, as well as a nearby 325 acres (131.5 ha) tract of native oak woodland
s and grassland
s historically owned by the Muir family. The main site is on the edge of town, in the shadow of State Route 4, also known as the "John Muir Parkway".
, in the wake of his battle to prevent Yosemite National Park
's Hetch Hetchy Valley
from being dam
med, playing a prominent role in the creation of several national parks, writing hundreds of newspaper and magazine articles and several books expounding on the virtues of conservation and the natural world, and laying the foundations for the creation of the National Park Service
in 1916.
The home contains Muir’s “scribble den,” as he called his study, and his original desk, where he wrote about many of the ideas that are the bedrock of the modern conservation movement.
in 1960.
It became a National Historic Site
in 1964, is a California Historical Landmark
#312 and National Historic Landmark
, and is on the National Register of Historic Places
.
In 1992 the nearby Mt. Wanda Nature Preserve was added to the Historic Site. http://www.noehill.com/contracosta/cal0312.asp.
San Francisco Bay Area
The San Francisco Bay Area, commonly known as the Bay Area, is a populated region that surrounds the San Francisco and San Pablo estuaries in Northern California. The region encompasses metropolitan areas of San Francisco, Oakland, and San Jose, along with smaller urban and rural areas...
, in Martinez
Martinez, California
Martinez is a city and the county seat of Contra Costa County, California, United States. The population was 35,824 at the 2010 census. The downtown is notable for its large number of preserved old buildings...
, Contra Costa County, California
Contra Costa County, California
Contra Costa County is a primarily suburban county in the San Francisco Bay Area of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2010 census, it had a population of 1,049,025...
. It preserves the 14-room Italianate
Italianate architecture
The Italianate style of architecture was a distinct 19th-century phase in the history of Classical architecture. In the Italianate style, the models and architectural vocabulary of 16th-century Italian Renaissance architecture, which had served as inspiration for both Palladianism and...
Victorian
Victorian architecture
The term Victorian architecture refers collectively to several architectural styles employed predominantly during the middle and late 19th century. The period that it indicates may slightly overlap the actual reign, 20 June 1837 – 22 January 1901, of Queen Victoria. This represents the British and...
mansion where the naturalist and writer John Muir
John Muir
John Muir was a Scottish-born American naturalist, author, and early advocate of preservation of wilderness in the United States. His letters, essays, and books telling of his adventures in nature, especially in the Sierra Nevada mountains of California, have been read by millions...
lived, as well as a nearby 325 acres (131.5 ha) tract of native oak woodland
California oak woodland
California oak woodland is a plant community found throughout the California chaparral and woodlands ecoregion of California in the United States and northwestern Baja California in Mexico...
s and grassland
Grassland
Grasslands are areas where the vegetation is dominated by grasses and other herbaceous plants . However, sedge and rush families can also be found. Grasslands occur naturally on all continents except Antarctica...
s historically owned by the Muir family. The main site is on the edge of town, in the shadow of State Route 4, also known as the "John Muir Parkway".
Mansion
The mansion was built in 1883 by Dr. John Strentzel, Muir's father-in-law, with whom Muir went into partnership, managing his 2600 acres (1,052.2 ha) fruit ranch. Muir and his wife, Louisa, moved into the house in 1890, and he lived there until his death in 1914.Conservationist
While living here, Muir realized many of his greatest accomplishments, co-founding and serving as the first president the Sierra ClubSierra Club
The Sierra Club is the oldest, largest, and most influential grassroots environmental organization in the United States. It was founded on May 28, 1892, in San Francisco, California, by the conservationist and preservationist John Muir, who became its first president...
, in the wake of his battle to prevent Yosemite National Park
Yosemite National Park
Yosemite National Park is a United States National Park spanning eastern portions of Tuolumne, Mariposa and Madera counties in east central California, United States. The park covers an area of and reaches across the western slopes of the Sierra Nevada mountain chain...
's Hetch Hetchy Valley
Hetch Hetchy Valley
Hetch Hetchy Valley is a glacial valley in Yosemite National Park in California. It is currently completely flooded by O'Shaughnessy Dam, forming the Hetch Hetchy Reservoir. The Tuolumne River fills the reservoir. Upstream from the valley lies the Grand Canyon of the Tuolumne. The reservoir...
from being dam
Dam
A dam is a barrier that impounds water or underground streams. Dams generally serve the primary purpose of retaining water, while other structures such as floodgates or levees are used to manage or prevent water flow into specific land regions. Hydropower and pumped-storage hydroelectricity are...
med, playing a prominent role in the creation of several national parks, writing hundreds of newspaper and magazine articles and several books expounding on the virtues of conservation and the natural world, and laying the foundations for the creation of the National Park Service
National Park Service
The National Park Service is the U.S. federal agency that manages all national parks, many national monuments, and other conservation and historical properties with various title designations...
in 1916.
The home contains Muir’s “scribble den,” as he called his study, and his original desk, where he wrote about many of the ideas that are the bedrock of the modern conservation movement.
Archive and Landmark
The Muir house was documented by the Historic American Buildings SurveyHistoric American Buildings Survey
The Historic American Buildings Survey , Historic American Engineering Record , and Historic American Landscapes Survey are programs of the National Park Service established for the purpose of documenting historic places. Records consists of measured drawings, archival photographs, and written...
in 1960.
It became a National Historic Site
National Historic Sites (United States)
National Historic Sites are protected areas of national historic significance in the United States. A National Historic Site usually contains a single historical feature directly associated with its subject...
in 1964, is a California Historical Landmark
California Historical Landmark
California Historical Landmarks are buildings, structures, sites, or places in the state of California that have been determined to have statewide historical significance by meeting at least one of the criteria listed below:...
#312 and National Historic Landmark
National Historic Landmark
A National Historic Landmark is a building, site, structure, object, or district, that is officially recognized by the United States government for its historical significance...
, and is on the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
.
In 1992 the nearby Mt. Wanda Nature Preserve was added to the Historic Site. http://www.noehill.com/contracosta/cal0312.asp.
John Muir National Historic Site
The John Muir National Historic Site offers many historical and natural activity Things To Do for the visitor.See also
- National Register of Historic Places listings in Contra Costa County, California
- History of the Yosemite areaHistory of the Yosemite areaFor over 3,000 years Sierra Miwok, Mono, Paiute, and other Native American groups have lived in the central Sierra Nevada region of California. When European Americans first visited the area that would later become Yosemite National Park, a band of Miwok-speaking Native Americans called the...
External links
- NPS: official John Muir National Historic Site website
- National Park Service Discover Our Shared Heritage Travel Itinerary: "Early History of the California Coast"
- John Muir Association
- . L.o.C.-HABS: 1960 Report; Photographs, drawings, description and history - Historic American Buildings Survey
- official U.S. National Park Service Juan Bautista de Anza National Historic Trail website