John Muir was a Scottish-American naturalist. He is most known for being the creator of the National Parks system. Muir was born in Dunbar, Scotland in 1838 to Daniel and Ann Gilrye Muir. He was his parents’ third child and first boy. His mother and grandfather helped foster a love of nature, but his father was stern.
Muri was inspired by nature from a young age. He recorded
thoughts and pictures in a notebook to track his findings and learnings. He
enjoyed spending time exploring a castle near his childhood home. At a young
age, he moved from the beautiful nature of Scotland that he knew and loved to
California.
He studied at the University of Wisconsin and his passion
for the environment and for learning continued into adulthood. While at the
University, he took classes in botany, chemistry, and geology. However, he left
after two and a half years to study in the wilderness.
During the Civil War, Muir left Wisconsin and walked along
the Gulf of Mexico. He collected plant specimens and made sketches in his
journal. He took a ship from Panama up the west coast to California, arriving
in San Francisco on March 28, 1868.
In 1868, when he was 30, he climbed the Sierra Nevada for
the first time. There was one time when he climbed up a 100-foot-tall
Douglas fir during a storm so he could learn how the tree withstood the
storm and the wind.
Throughout his career, he wrote numerous books. These
include “The Mountains of California” (1894), “The Story of My
Boyhood and Youth” (1913), and “Steep Trails” (1918). His book,
“John of the Mountains” (1938; ed. by L. M. Wolfe), contains his journals.
Muir also wrote several articles during his career.
His biggest accomplishments include establishing Yosemite
National Park in 1890 and founding the Sierra Club in 1892. He also laid the foundation for what would
become the national forest system.
