Legendary Locals Of Yosemite National Park And Mariposa County

In 1846, Thomas Larkin, American council general to the Mexican government in California, purchased a Mexican land grant, Las Mariposas, for Col. John C. Fremont. The grant consisted of 10 square leagues of grazing land located near the Merced River and west of the Sierra. In 1848, when California became the possession of the United States, the treaty called for the recognition of preexisting grants. Gold was discovered in the foothills of the Sierra that same year. Fremont floated his questionable Mexican grant into the gold discovery region. With the formation of the State of California in 1850, one of the original counties was named Mariposa, Spanish for "butterflies." Located within the county was the Fremont grant and much of the yet undiscovered Yosemite region of the Sierra. Encounters with Native Americans near the mining camps lead to the formation of the Mariposa Battalion, and a search for the natives led to the American discovery of Yosemite Valley. Thus, it was custodians and photographers such as Charles Leander Weed, Carlton E Watkins, J.J. Riley, George Fiske, Ansel Adams, and many others that interpreted and introduced Yosemite to the world.

In 1878, Charles Erskine Scott Wood, builder of the Cats Estate, wrote Good citizens are the riches of a city. From its beginning, Los Gatos has suffered no shortage of hardworking, inventive, entrepreneurial, and gifted people. Early orchardists found the land unbelievably productive, but their crops were threatened with disease and pesky infestations of gophers. John Bean and Zephyr Macabee provided solutions. Louise Van Meter was an unconventional teacher who championed the new concept of kindergarten. Neta Snook Southern defied traditional female roles to become a pilot. She taught Amelia Earhart to fly before retiring to Los Gatos, where she raised prunes, apricots, and miniature horses. John Steinbeck wrote The Grapes of Wrath during one long, hot summer in town. Steve Wozniak settled in Los Gatos and donated computers to schools. The lives presented here have contributed to the sparkling legacy of the Gem City of the Foothills.

Galen Clark (1814-1910) is known for his discovery of the Mariposa Grove of Giant Sequoia trees and for his role as Guardian of Yosemite National Park for 21 years. Upon his discovery of the Mariposa Grove of Giant Sequoias, he spent the majority of his time exploring the area and teaching others about the mysteries of the giant, cinnamon-colored trees. This passion led to him writing letters to friends and congress, eventually leading to the passing of the Yosemite Grant. This grant was the first of its kind, stating that it would protect Yosemite Valley and the Mariposa Grove of Giant Sequoias for, "public use, resort, and recreation... to be left inalienable for all time... " Galen then became the first "guardian of the grant." Toward the end of his life he was desperately poor. His works include: Indians of the Yosemite Valley and Vicinity (1904), The Big Trees of California (1907) and The Yosemite Valley (1910).

Red Dirt is the story of one man's quest for personal knowledge. It is a journey to discover the influences of his homeland on his upbringing, values, and relationships. But it is much, much more. Red Dirt is also the chronicle of an expedition along California's Landscape of Imagination. It is the story of a trip down Highway 49, the fabled roadway that slices through the heart of the Gold Country the Mother Lode, home of the 49ers, the land of dreams. It is the true story of the past, present, and future of one of the most important regions in American Western history. Red Dirt is about who we are and to what we aspire. Red Dirt is about us.

A natural wonder hewn by glaciers from the granite slopes of the western Sierra Nevada, Yosemite Valley reveals the power and beauty of nature's hand. Here, in the sublime "Incomparable Valley" of naturalist John Muir, alpine forests frame the legendary sites of Half Dome, El Capitan, Bridalveil Falls, Yosemite Falls, and other massive stone clefts. These marvels of rock and water have inspired writers, artists, and photographers ever since the American discovery of the valley by gold miners of the Mariposa Battalion acting as militia in l850. Within four years, Americans who realized the commercial value of Yosemite Valley began developing lodging facilities and promoting it as a tourist destination. Concerned Californians encouraged President Lincoln to grant the valley and the Mariposa Grove of Big Trees to the State of California for the formation of a state park. This led to the creation of Yosemite National Park in l890.