University of the Pacific Scholarly Commons John Muir Newsletters John Muir Papers Winter 12-1-2010 The ohnJ Muir Newsletter, Winter 2010/2011 The ohnJ Muir Center Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarlycommons.pacific.edu/jmn Part of the American Studies Commons, Natural Resources and Conservation Commons, and the United States History Commons Recommended Citation The oJ hn Muir Center, "The oJ hn Muir Newsletter, Winter 2010/2011" (2010). John Muir Newsletters. 91. https://scholarlycommons.pacific.edu/jmn/91 This Newsletter is brought to you for free and open access by the John Muir Papers at Scholarly Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in John Muir Newsletters by an authorized administrator of Scholarly Commons. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Winter 2010/2011 J 0 H N M U I R CENTER SPECIAL JOHN MUIR'S POINTS OF CROSSING OF THE CUMBERLAND INTEREST: By Dan Styer John Muir - who records the intertwined feelings of ecstasy Muir encountered Oberlin College, would later ac­ ("miles and miles of beauty") and of despair ("I mountains for the Oberlin, Ohio quire the nick­ hardly dare to think of home and friends") fa­ first time in his life name John miliar to many long-distance solitary wilderness at the age of o'Mountains - encountered mountains for the travelers.6 twenty-nine years. first time in his life at the age of twenty-nine These three days also held superlative en­ years, on Muir's crossing of ~===-====:--::---==-~==---, counters with nature: On September 10, September Muir "began the ascent of the Cumber- the Cumberland provided some of 10, 11,and land Mountains, the first real mountains the best human 12, 1867, that my foot ever touched or eyes be- stories found in A when he held ... the glorious forest road of Kentucky Thousand Mile crossed the was grandly seen, stretching over hill and Walk to the Gulf Cumberland valley, adjusted to every slope and curve Plateau of by the hands of Nature -the most sub­ This three-day part Tennessee lime and comprehensive picture that ever of his walk held as part of his entered my eyes."7 Two days later, de­ superlative encoun­ thousand­ scending from the Cumberland Plateau, ters with nature mile walk Muir "Crossed a wide cool stream .. .. from Louis­ There is nothing more eloquent in Nature ville, Ken­ (( 'h, '<!Mid-..,...., aiL ~-tt..., ..Jk.,~ ~' than a mountain stream, and this is the tucky, to John Muir sketched this self-portrait only about10 first I ever saw .... Near this stream I spent Cedar Key, days before crossing the Cumberland. He wrote, some joyous time in a grand rock-dwelling INSIDE THIS Florida. "Planning my journey outside oflouisville KY. 'The fu II of mosses, birds, and flowers. Most ISSUE: Muir re­ world was all before them where to choose."' (p. 2 heavenly place 1 ever entered. "s corded the "Florida and Cuba Trip" journal. John Muir Papers, Through study of Muir's writings and of John Muir's Crossing of story of this Holt-Atherton Special Collections, University of the Civi 1 War-era and other historical maps, Pacific Library. © 1984 Muir-Hanna Trust) the Cumberland crossing in a c______ __:. ________ ..:....___J and through a visit to the area, the author notebookl , which was edited and published has been able to retrace Muir's overmountain John Muir Newsletter is 2 posthumously as A Thousand-Mile Walk to the route with relative certainty, and to speculate Back and Going Digital Gulf.2 The Crossing of the Cumberland pro­ on the location and fate of the "most heavenly From Mount Hoffman 2 vided some of the best human stories of the place." book: The "young man on horseback ... who ... Historical maps intended to rob me if he should find the job Muir's journal provides only a sketchy outline John Muir Event at 2 Pacific, April13, 2011 worth while. "3 The blacksmith and his wife, a of his geographical route. To recover that "bright, good-natured, good looking little route, one must combine hints from the journal woman, "4 with whom Muir discussed Solo­ with hints from contemporary maps. This John Muir Symposium 9 April23-24, 2010 mon's love of botany. And a harrowing encoun­ brings up the problem that the maps available ter with "the most irreclaimable of the guerrilla in 1867 had but a fraction of the accuracy and John Muir Highway bands who, long accustomed to plunder detail that we take for granted today. 10 Dedication [during the Civil War], deplored the coming of Hundreds of nineteenth-century maps were peace." 5 examined, and their quality was judged by ex­ Also interesting is Muir's September 9, 1867 amining their fidelity among themselves, by News & Notes 11 letter to Jeanne Carr. This letter eloquently questioning their reasonableness in light of (continued on page 4) PAGE 2 JOHN MUIR NEWSLETTER IS BACK AND GOING DIGITAL After a year, we are announcements and you will ing on John Muir and his back! Last year we an­ receive a PdF version of the legacy, as well as poetry and nounced that we would be­ Newsletter. Those who do photos of the Sierra and come an "occasional" news­ not have web access, please other places dear to John letter, projecting two issues send us a short note request­ Muir's heart. Articles should per year. We only released ing a hard copy of the News­ be no longer than 2,000 one issue this past year. In letter. We suggest a dona­ words; but we also seek short an age of high cost of repro­ tion of $10 per year for those pieces and announcements. duction and mailing we have who would like the older for­ decided to follow the trail of mat as a hard copy. We are Please submit to: other newsletters by going no longer reminding subscrib­ W. R. Swagerty digital. Those withe mail can ers of a pending expira- Director, John Muir Center, continue to receive at no tion. We appreciate any and WPC99 Jaiya Ellis, charge the newsletter as part all support of the Cen- University of the Pacific, Sustainability Coordinator for the of a web serve list. Simply e ter. Your donation helps with Stockton CA 95211 University's three campuses, with her mail us at many Center agendas. or bye mail to central office in Muir Center [email protected] and we We continue to welcome [email protected] will include you in our future submissions of articles focus- "26tft $~ 1869: ·~totfw_ FROM MOUNT HOFFMAN ~4~ By Terry Gifford (My first in weeks of boulder­ Smiling eerily like cats as they Your 'ramble' up from the seats) creep ~.~ Valley Left outside by the tree-stump Out from their crevices, table ~j'd To spend a night on this bare expecting to be fed. mountain, Amongst the cabins of May Disgusted by these half-tame ~.tfw_~ Lake Camp. A steep ascent of five thou­ summit pets sand feet, Breathless from the final yoovt u. fife'~ I turn and scree-slide down scramble Left me breathless before I the dusty trail ~'lljj'd turned the page. And the view, looking down on To bathe my legs in the clear Half Dome, ¥uwer And even starting from Snow May Lake. Flat Cloud's Rest, far glaciers and ~ . ''' From: Terry Gifford, Reconnecting I was pleased to pause on a Tenaya Lake, John Muir with John Muir (Athens: The Univer­ My First Summer real chair I sit quite still and meet the sity of Georgia Press, 2006), p. 131. intheSieffa marmots J 0 H N MUIR EVENT AT PACIFIC, APRIL 1 3 On April 13, 2011, a spe­ From 7:30 until 9:15p.m., uled to be broadcast on the cial John Mur event will be film maker Catherine Tatge PBS American Masters series held in the Janet Leigh Thea­ of Global Village Media will on April18, will be shown ter at University of the Pa­ give a brief introduction to after Ms. Tatge's introduc­ cific. From 7:00 to 7:30p.m. her film "John Muir in the tion. photographer Scot Miller will New World ". This is a bio­ give a presentation on his graphical documentary of the work in the illustration of the extraordinary life of John From 9:15 until 10:00 p.m. 100th anniversary edition of Muir and his influence on there will be a reception and My First Summer in the Si­ American history. The 90 book signing by Scot Miller. erra. minute film, which is sched- PAGE 3 out about what is in the materials that are not accessible via the web or microform? The online finding aid is the answer. It lists the contents to every folder in the collection. For example, researchers will find that the Papers contain most of the collected bibliography of Muir as listed in Kimes' John Muir: A Reading Bibliography. They will also find photographs that have been donated to the collection since the microform project was completed. In addi­ Mike Wurtz tion, the collection includes Muir biographer In the archives William F. Bade's transcriptions of many of 2010 Muir's Journals, as well as Bade's collected reminiscences, and personal letters. One can also find Linnie Marsh Wolfe's correspondence ONLINE INVENTORY and papers as she wrote her biography of Muir, OF MUIR PAPERS IS and her transcriptions of some of Muir journals. g~~ UPDATED Papers from the Strenzel and Muir family includ­ ~bb(L ing legal and business papers for the Muir ranch By Michael Wurtz in Martinez are also available. There is also ~4to Holt-Atherton Special Collections poetry to and about Muir; John Muir's clipping University of the Pacific Library files that he kept on many different topics and ~~ memorabilia that includes Muir's odds and ends Recently, the staff of the Holt-Atherton Special such as passenger lists, maps and botanical tk~ .