Mark David Spence
- Published in print:
- 2000
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780195142433
- eISBN:
- 9780199848812
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195142433.001.0001
- Subject:
- History, American History: 20th Century
This book examines the ideal of wilderness preservation in the United States from the antebellum era to the first half of the twentieth century, showing how the early conception of the wilderness as ...
More
This book examines the ideal of wilderness preservation in the United States from the antebellum era to the first half of the twentieth century, showing how the early conception of the wilderness as the place where Indians lived (or should live) gave way to the idealization of uninhabited wilderness. It focuses on specific policies of Indian removal developed at Yosemite, Yellowstone, and Glacier national parks from the early 1870s to the 1930s.Less
This book examines the ideal of wilderness preservation in the United States from the antebellum era to the first half of the twentieth century, showing how the early conception of the wilderness as the place where Indians lived (or should live) gave way to the idealization of uninhabited wilderness. It focuses on specific policies of Indian removal developed at Yosemite, Yellowstone, and Glacier national parks from the early 1870s to the 1930s.
John Gatta
- Published in print:
- 2004
- Published Online:
- January 2005
- ISBN:
- 9780195165050
- eISBN:
- 9780199835140
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0195165055.003.0008
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion and Literature
Beginning in the latter half of the nineteenth century, Darwinism had a varied impact on American sensibilities. John Muir, for example, studied science and accepted the transmutative premise of ...
More
Beginning in the latter half of the nineteenth century, Darwinism had a varied impact on American sensibilities. John Muir, for example, studied science and accepted the transmutative premise of evolutionary theory--but retained a biblically colored piety that saw God’s presence inscribed “in magnificent capitals” at places like Yosemite. During this extended period, writings by Mary Austin and Black Elk reflect their encounters with versions of naturalistic piety lying outside Euro-American ethnic traditions. Still, the written form in which Black Elk expressed his ecological vision of holiness, as imaged in the great hoop of the Lakota nation, was decidedly influenced by his contact with non-Indian culture. Although Rachel Carson was a committed scientist whose work presupposed belief in organic evolution, her writing also reflects a robust spirituality founded upon reverence for life and for the mystery of things unseen.Less
Beginning in the latter half of the nineteenth century, Darwinism had a varied impact on American sensibilities. John Muir, for example, studied science and accepted the transmutative premise of evolutionary theory--but retained a biblically colored piety that saw God’s presence inscribed “in magnificent capitals” at places like Yosemite. During this extended period, writings by Mary Austin and Black Elk reflect their encounters with versions of naturalistic piety lying outside Euro-American ethnic traditions. Still, the written form in which Black Elk expressed his ecological vision of holiness, as imaged in the great hoop of the Lakota nation, was decidedly influenced by his contact with non-Indian culture. Although Rachel Carson was a committed scientist whose work presupposed belief in organic evolution, her writing also reflects a robust spirituality founded upon reverence for life and for the mystery of things unseen.
Mark David Spence
- Published in print:
- 2000
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780195142433
- eISBN:
- 9780199848812
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195142433.003.0009
- Subject:
- History, American History: 20th Century
This chapter discusses the creation of the National Park Service in 1916, which fulfilled preservationists' long-held dreams for a strong federal commitment to the preservation and enhancement of all ...
More
This chapter discusses the creation of the National Park Service in 1916, which fulfilled preservationists' long-held dreams for a strong federal commitment to the preservation and enhancement of all national parks. However, the creation of the National Park Service only perpetuated the same struggle between preservationists and development interests that plagued the management of Yosemite in the 1880s. Like those earlier debates before the California State Assembly, this struggle would also carry over to the new agency's relationship with the Yosemite Indians. In the same year that the park service was established, Yosemite officials and concessionaires inaugurated the Indian Field Days, a festivity designed to “revive and maintain the interest of Indians in their own games and industries, particularly basketry and bead work.”Less
This chapter discusses the creation of the National Park Service in 1916, which fulfilled preservationists' long-held dreams for a strong federal commitment to the preservation and enhancement of all national parks. However, the creation of the National Park Service only perpetuated the same struggle between preservationists and development interests that plagued the management of Yosemite in the 1880s. Like those earlier debates before the California State Assembly, this struggle would also carry over to the new agency's relationship with the Yosemite Indians. In the same year that the park service was established, Yosemite officials and concessionaires inaugurated the Indian Field Days, a festivity designed to “revive and maintain the interest of Indians in their own games and industries, particularly basketry and bead work.”
Robert W. Righter
- Published in print:
- 2005
- Published Online:
- September 2007
- ISBN:
- 9780195149470
- eISBN:
- 9780199788934
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195149470.001.0001
- Subject:
- History, American History: 20th Century
This is the story of water, a valley, and a city. The city was San Francisco, the valley was Hetch Hetchy, and the waters were from the Tuolumne River watershed, located within Yosemite National ...
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This is the story of water, a valley, and a city. The city was San Francisco, the valley was Hetch Hetchy, and the waters were from the Tuolumne River watershed, located within Yosemite National Park. In 1905, for the first time in American history, a significant national opposition led by John Muir and the Sierra Club sought to protect the valley from a dam, believing that its beauty should be enjoyed by the American people. On the other side, San Franciso mayor James Phelan believed it was his civic responsibility to provide his 750,000 constituents with a pure, abundant source of water. From 1905 until 1913, the two sides fought over the destiny of the Hetch Hetchy: Would the glacier-carved valley become a reservoir or remain an inviolate part of Yosemite National Park? Finally, Congress decided the issue by passage of the Raker Act, granting the valley to San Francisco's use. By 1923, San Francisco engineers completed the huge O'Shaughnessy Dam, submerging the valley under over 200 feet of water. However, the battle did not end. Who would control the vast watershed of the Tuolumne River: The City of San Francisco or the National Park Service? And would the hydro electric power provide for a city-owned system or would it be sold to a private company? For the first time, the full story of this epic battle is told in an evenhanded way. It is a story without end, however, and the final chapter discusses the idea of removing the dam and restoring the valley, an idea which is gaining currency throughout the US.Less
This is the story of water, a valley, and a city. The city was San Francisco, the valley was Hetch Hetchy, and the waters were from the Tuolumne River watershed, located within Yosemite National Park. In 1905, for the first time in American history, a significant national opposition led by John Muir and the Sierra Club sought to protect the valley from a dam, believing that its beauty should be enjoyed by the American people. On the other side, San Franciso mayor James Phelan believed it was his civic responsibility to provide his 750,000 constituents with a pure, abundant source of water. From 1905 until 1913, the two sides fought over the destiny of the Hetch Hetchy: Would the glacier-carved valley become a reservoir or remain an inviolate part of Yosemite National Park? Finally, Congress decided the issue by passage of the Raker Act, granting the valley to San Francisco's use. By 1923, San Francisco engineers completed the huge O'Shaughnessy Dam, submerging the valley under over 200 feet of water. However, the battle did not end. Who would control the vast watershed of the Tuolumne River: The City of San Francisco or the National Park Service? And would the hydro electric power provide for a city-owned system or would it be sold to a private company? For the first time, the full story of this epic battle is told in an evenhanded way. It is a story without end, however, and the final chapter discusses the idea of removing the dam and restoring the valley, an idea which is gaining currency throughout the US.
Robert W. Righter
- Published in print:
- 2005
- Published Online:
- September 2007
- ISBN:
- 9780195149470
- eISBN:
- 9780199788934
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195149470.003.0002
- Subject:
- History, American History: 20th Century
Miwok Indians from the Central Valley and Piute Indians from east of the Sierra Nevada were the first peoples to inhabit the Hetch Hetchy Valley. They were transient inhabitants, spending the summer ...
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Miwok Indians from the Central Valley and Piute Indians from east of the Sierra Nevada were the first peoples to inhabit the Hetch Hetchy Valley. They were transient inhabitants, spending the summer and fall hunting and fishing, and harvesting acorns and grasses. The first Euro-Americans to see the valley were associated with the California Gold Rush. They found no gold, but a rather lush, long meadow useful for sheep grazing. But the beauty of the valley attracted naturalists such as John Muir, painters, and explorers. However, compared to its sister valley, Yosemite, in 1900 Hetch Hetchy was virtually unknown.Less
Miwok Indians from the Central Valley and Piute Indians from east of the Sierra Nevada were the first peoples to inhabit the Hetch Hetchy Valley. They were transient inhabitants, spending the summer and fall hunting and fishing, and harvesting acorns and grasses. The first Euro-Americans to see the valley were associated with the California Gold Rush. They found no gold, but a rather lush, long meadow useful for sheep grazing. But the beauty of the valley attracted naturalists such as John Muir, painters, and explorers. However, compared to its sister valley, Yosemite, in 1900 Hetch Hetchy was virtually unknown.
Robert W. Righter
- Published in print:
- 2005
- Published Online:
- September 2007
- ISBN:
- 9780195149470
- eISBN:
- 9780199788934
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195149470.003.0003
- Subject:
- History, American History: 20th Century
During the second half of the 19th century, San Francisco grew from a village to a major city. Located on a peninsula, the city faced a perpetual water problem. Mayor James Phelan realized that if ...
More
During the second half of the 19th century, San Francisco grew from a village to a major city. Located on a peninsula, the city faced a perpetual water problem. Mayor James Phelan realized that if the city was ever to reach its full potential, it needed an abundant and pure water supply from the Sierra Nevada. After studying a number of different sites, the Tuolumne River and the Hetch Hetchy Valley emerged as the preferred location. But the valley lay within the newly-established (1890) Yosemite National Park. Yet San Francisco continued its quest, purchasing land within the valley and seeking legislation to allow reservoir development.Less
During the second half of the 19th century, San Francisco grew from a village to a major city. Located on a peninsula, the city faced a perpetual water problem. Mayor James Phelan realized that if the city was ever to reach its full potential, it needed an abundant and pure water supply from the Sierra Nevada. After studying a number of different sites, the Tuolumne River and the Hetch Hetchy Valley emerged as the preferred location. But the valley lay within the newly-established (1890) Yosemite National Park. Yet San Francisco continued its quest, purchasing land within the valley and seeking legislation to allow reservoir development.
Bernard Debarbieux, Gilles Rudaz, and Martin F. Price
- Published in print:
- 2015
- Published Online:
- May 2016
- ISBN:
- 9780226031118
- eISBN:
- 9780226031255
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University of Chicago Press
- DOI:
- 10.7208/chicago/9780226031255.003.0005
- Subject:
- Earth Sciences and Geography, Cultural and Historical Geography
The shift in scale, from local to national, which accompagnied the building of modern nation-state and the triumph of governmentality conditioned the adoption of new conceptions of the mountain and ...
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The shift in scale, from local to national, which accompagnied the building of modern nation-state and the triumph of governmentality conditioned the adoption of new conceptions of the mountain and new modes of intervention. Within a few decades, Western nation-states readily made the mountain a major natural resource, a remarkable scenic landscape, a wild component of their territory, an ecological asset, even a preserve for unusual species. A special focus is made on the aggressive policies conducted by the modern state in forest management from France to the other countries of Western and Southern Europe and to the US. A symmetric movement is followed for nature protection, from the US to other former British colonies and Western Europe. Through these policies, mountain communities experienced a dramatic disqualification of their knowledge and modes of environmental management.Less
The shift in scale, from local to national, which accompagnied the building of modern nation-state and the triumph of governmentality conditioned the adoption of new conceptions of the mountain and new modes of intervention. Within a few decades, Western nation-states readily made the mountain a major natural resource, a remarkable scenic landscape, a wild component of their territory, an ecological asset, even a preserve for unusual species. A special focus is made on the aggressive policies conducted by the modern state in forest management from France to the other countries of Western and Southern Europe and to the US. A symmetric movement is followed for nature protection, from the US to other former British colonies and Western Europe. Through these policies, mountain communities experienced a dramatic disqualification of their knowledge and modes of environmental management.
John P. Herron
- Published in print:
- 2009
- Published Online:
- February 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780195383546
- eISBN:
- 9780199870523
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195383546.003.0003
- Subject:
- History, American History: 19th Century, American History: 20th Century
This chapter continues the discussion of the life of Clarence King. King's search for natural truths bore the imprint of John Ruskin, but his obsession with masculine science and adventure as a means ...
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This chapter continues the discussion of the life of Clarence King. King's search for natural truths bore the imprint of John Ruskin, but his obsession with masculine science and adventure as a means of social integration and improvement originated with John Tyndall. He embraced nature as a microcosm of American society. As one of the many geologists who moved through the physical world, he was supposed to uncover mineral resources. Yet he saw his science as one way to impose a grid of order on contemporary America.Less
This chapter continues the discussion of the life of Clarence King. King's search for natural truths bore the imprint of John Ruskin, but his obsession with masculine science and adventure as a means of social integration and improvement originated with John Tyndall. He embraced nature as a microcosm of American society. As one of the many geologists who moved through the physical world, he was supposed to uncover mineral resources. Yet he saw his science as one way to impose a grid of order on contemporary America.
Mark David Spence
- Published in print:
- 2000
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780195142433
- eISBN:
- 9780199848812
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195142433.003.0001
- Subject:
- History, American History: 20th Century
The idealization of uninhabited landscapes and establishment of the first national parks reflect important developments in late-nineteenth-century Indian policy. Although the creation of the first ...
More
The idealization of uninhabited landscapes and establishment of the first national parks reflect important developments in late-nineteenth-century Indian policy. Although the creation of the first national parks coincided with efforts to restrict Indians to reservations and assimilate them into American society, native use and occupancy of park lands often continued unabated. This book argues that uninhabited wilderness had to be created before it could be preserved, and this type of landscape became reified in the first national parks. It also focuses on the policies of Indian removal developed at Yosemite, Yellowstone, and Glacier national parks from the 1870s to the 1930s.Less
The idealization of uninhabited landscapes and establishment of the first national parks reflect important developments in late-nineteenth-century Indian policy. Although the creation of the first national parks coincided with efforts to restrict Indians to reservations and assimilate them into American society, native use and occupancy of park lands often continued unabated. This book argues that uninhabited wilderness had to be created before it could be preserved, and this type of landscape became reified in the first national parks. It also focuses on the policies of Indian removal developed at Yosemite, Yellowstone, and Glacier national parks from the 1870s to the 1930s.
Mark David Spence
- Published in print:
- 2000
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780195142433
- eISBN:
- 9780199848812
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195142433.003.0003
- Subject:
- History, American History: 20th Century
This chapter examines the movement that lead to the creation of the first national parks. President Lincoln's 1864 signing of the Yosemite Park Act, which set aside fifteen square miles of the public ...
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This chapter examines the movement that lead to the creation of the first national parks. President Lincoln's 1864 signing of the Yosemite Park Act, which set aside fifteen square miles of the public domain and placed it under the protection and management of the state of California, created an important precedent for the preservation of larger areas in the coming decades. Congress also drew up legislation that provided for the “preservation” of Yellowstone in its “natural condition.” Passed into law on March 1, 1972, the Yellowstone Park Act removed two million acres of public domain from “settlement, occupancy, or sale.”Less
This chapter examines the movement that lead to the creation of the first national parks. President Lincoln's 1864 signing of the Yosemite Park Act, which set aside fifteen square miles of the public domain and placed it under the protection and management of the state of California, created an important precedent for the preservation of larger areas in the coming decades. Congress also drew up legislation that provided for the “preservation” of Yellowstone in its “natural condition.” Passed into law on March 1, 1972, the Yellowstone Park Act removed two million acres of public domain from “settlement, occupancy, or sale.”
Mark David Spence
- Published in print:
- 2000
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780195142433
- eISBN:
- 9780199848812
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195142433.003.0008
- Subject:
- History, American History: 20th Century
This chapter demonstrates that Yosemite Valley remained home to a permanent, relatively autonomous Indian village. While native residence in the valley stands in the marked contrast to other early ...
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This chapter demonstrates that Yosemite Valley remained home to a permanent, relatively autonomous Indian village. While native residence in the valley stands in the marked contrast to other early parks, it also presents an important comparison with the experiences of Indian peoples at Yellowstone and Glacier. Such differences shed important light on Yosemite's unique history and reveal the processes by which this park was eventually made to fit the standards of the national park ideal.Less
This chapter demonstrates that Yosemite Valley remained home to a permanent, relatively autonomous Indian village. While native residence in the valley stands in the marked contrast to other early parks, it also presents an important comparison with the experiences of Indian peoples at Yellowstone and Glacier. Such differences shed important light on Yosemite's unique history and reveal the processes by which this park was eventually made to fit the standards of the national park ideal.
Mark I. Wallace
- Published in print:
- 2018
- Published Online:
- May 2019
- ISBN:
- 9780823281329
- eISBN:
- 9780823284955
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Fordham University Press
- DOI:
- 10.5422/fordham/9780823281329.003.0005
- Subject:
- Religion, Theology
Chapter 4 keys on John Muir’s ecstatic wilderness religion as a paradigm of the dialectic between Christianity and animism at the center of this book, namely, Christianimism. Muir’s nature evangelism ...
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Chapter 4 keys on John Muir’s ecstatic wilderness religion as a paradigm of the dialectic between Christianity and animism at the center of this book, namely, Christianimism. Muir’s nature evangelism came at the price of rhetorically abetting the forced removal of Native Americans from their homes within the fledgling national parks movement. Notwithstanding this stain on Muir’s legacy, his thought is notable for rethinking the full arc of Jesus’ life—John the Baptist, departure into wilderness, temple money-changers, and crucifixion—in deeply personal terms that are environmental and biblically sonorous. Muir advocates a two bookstheology in which the Bible and the Earth are equally compelling revelatory “texts.” His Yosemite spirituality reaches its apogee in his 1870 “woody gospel letter,” a paean to a homophilic, orgasmic religion of sensual delight: “Come suck Sequoia and be saved.” In Muir’s spirit, the chapter concludes that Christianity is still not Christianity because of its erstwhile hostility to embodied existence.Less
Chapter 4 keys on John Muir’s ecstatic wilderness religion as a paradigm of the dialectic between Christianity and animism at the center of this book, namely, Christianimism. Muir’s nature evangelism came at the price of rhetorically abetting the forced removal of Native Americans from their homes within the fledgling national parks movement. Notwithstanding this stain on Muir’s legacy, his thought is notable for rethinking the full arc of Jesus’ life—John the Baptist, departure into wilderness, temple money-changers, and crucifixion—in deeply personal terms that are environmental and biblically sonorous. Muir advocates a two bookstheology in which the Bible and the Earth are equally compelling revelatory “texts.” His Yosemite spirituality reaches its apogee in his 1870 “woody gospel letter,” a paean to a homophilic, orgasmic religion of sensual delight: “Come suck Sequoia and be saved.” In Muir’s spirit, the chapter concludes that Christianity is still not Christianity because of its erstwhile hostility to embodied existence.
Richard J. Orsi
- Published in print:
- 2005
- Published Online:
- March 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780520200197
- eISBN:
- 9780520940864
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University of California Press
- DOI:
- 10.1525/california/9780520200197.003.0013
- Subject:
- History, American History: 20th Century
This chapter discusses the Southern Pacific's interest in conservation, particularly the preservation of the wilderness. It examines the effect of the construction and operation of these rail lines ...
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This chapter discusses the Southern Pacific's interest in conservation, particularly the preservation of the wilderness. It examines the effect of the construction and operation of these rail lines on the natural ecological systems present in California and the western regions. The chapter shows the participation of Southern Pacific leaders in resource conservation programs and the environmental policies of the Southern Pacific. It then moves on to examine the partnership of the Southern Pacific with John Muir, in order to build the Yosemite National Park. The discussion considers the various obstacles they faced, as well as the other national parks that they built, such as the Sequoia National Park.Less
This chapter discusses the Southern Pacific's interest in conservation, particularly the preservation of the wilderness. It examines the effect of the construction and operation of these rail lines on the natural ecological systems present in California and the western regions. The chapter shows the participation of Southern Pacific leaders in resource conservation programs and the environmental policies of the Southern Pacific. It then moves on to examine the partnership of the Southern Pacific with John Muir, in order to build the Yosemite National Park. The discussion considers the various obstacles they faced, as well as the other national parks that they built, such as the Sequoia National Park.
Joel Sachs
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- May 2015
- ISBN:
- 9780195108958
- eISBN:
- 9780190268015
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:osobl/9780195108958.003.0045
- Subject:
- Music, History, American
This chapter focuses on Henry Cowell's life and career in the late 1940s. In April 1945, Henry completed the periodic follow-up form for Lewis M. Terman's gifted program. That spring his wife Sidney ...
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This chapter focuses on Henry Cowell's life and career in the late 1940s. In April 1945, Henry completed the periodic follow-up form for Lewis M. Terman's gifted program. That spring his wife Sidney went to California to care for her stepmother. After spending the rest of the semester teaching and composing, Henry went west, where he and Sidney planned to spend most of their time. Life in the ranch was hardly idyllic, but Henry had no complaints, telling Lou Harrison that he was being creative while raising a million figs a year. Meanwhile, he remained in touch with the world of music. In November, he wrote Richard Franko Goldman that he was testing figs and writing band pieces. The Cowells stayed at the ranch until the middle of January 1946, when Henry was committed to teach at The New School for Social Research. They returned to Fresno in April, remaining through the fall. In October 1947, Henry and Sidney spent their sixth wedding anniversary in Yosemite.Less
This chapter focuses on Henry Cowell's life and career in the late 1940s. In April 1945, Henry completed the periodic follow-up form for Lewis M. Terman's gifted program. That spring his wife Sidney went to California to care for her stepmother. After spending the rest of the semester teaching and composing, Henry went west, where he and Sidney planned to spend most of their time. Life in the ranch was hardly idyllic, but Henry had no complaints, telling Lou Harrison that he was being creative while raising a million figs a year. Meanwhile, he remained in touch with the world of music. In November, he wrote Richard Franko Goldman that he was testing figs and writing band pieces. The Cowells stayed at the ranch until the middle of January 1946, when Henry was committed to teach at The New School for Social Research. They returned to Fresno in April, remaining through the fall. In October 1947, Henry and Sidney spent their sixth wedding anniversary in Yosemite.
Kerry Mitchell
- Published in print:
- 2016
- Published Online:
- January 2017
- ISBN:
- 9781479886418
- eISBN:
- 9781479865260
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- NYU Press
- DOI:
- 10.18574/nyu/9781479886418.003.0004
- Subject:
- Religion, Philosophy of Religion
This chapter examines the visitors, volunteers, and rangers in Yosemite National Park. It discusses how the environment is managed to create the impression of harmony between nature and culture. It ...
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This chapter examines the visitors, volunteers, and rangers in Yosemite National Park. It discusses how the environment is managed to create the impression of harmony between nature and culture. It explores the historical roots of this trend, as well as its persistence in park management in the present. Through interviews with park visitors, the chapter demonstrates that their attitudes towards nature shape their understanding of the spiritual and/or religious significance of their experience. Contrary to the hikers who were interviewed in Chapter 2, visitors to Yosemite demonstrate a different religious aspect of recreation, one in which “nature” is both more civilized and more consistently ascribed with religious value. This chapter demonstrates how park rangers appreciate this diversity within the visitor population, and how the trope of spirituality allows them to cater to a wide range of visitors.Less
This chapter examines the visitors, volunteers, and rangers in Yosemite National Park. It discusses how the environment is managed to create the impression of harmony between nature and culture. It explores the historical roots of this trend, as well as its persistence in park management in the present. Through interviews with park visitors, the chapter demonstrates that their attitudes towards nature shape their understanding of the spiritual and/or religious significance of their experience. Contrary to the hikers who were interviewed in Chapter 2, visitors to Yosemite demonstrate a different religious aspect of recreation, one in which “nature” is both more civilized and more consistently ascribed with religious value. This chapter demonstrates how park rangers appreciate this diversity within the visitor population, and how the trope of spirituality allows them to cater to a wide range of visitors.
Robert Wyss
- Published in print:
- 2016
- Published Online:
- January 2017
- ISBN:
- 9780231164467
- eISBN:
- 9780231541312
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Columbia University Press
- DOI:
- 10.7312/columbia/9780231164467.003.0003
- Subject:
- History, Environmental History
Brower’s childhood is difficult, in his twenties he becomes a world class mountain climber, establishes friendships that will last a lifetime but that will be sorely tested.
Brower’s childhood is difficult, in his twenties he becomes a world class mountain climber, establishes friendships that will last a lifetime but that will be sorely tested.
Ben A. Minteer
- Published in print:
- 2018
- Published Online:
- September 2018
- ISBN:
- 9780226538327
- eISBN:
- 9780226538631
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University of Chicago Press
- DOI:
- 10.7208/chicago/9780226538631.003.0031
- Subject:
- Biology, Biodiversity / Conservation Biology
The relationship between zoos and the wild is complex and often contradictory. The controlled and curated character of their existence means that zoo animals are not fully “wild,” at least compared ...
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The relationship between zoos and the wild is complex and often contradictory. The controlled and curated character of their existence means that zoo animals are not fully “wild,” at least compared to their counterparts in nature. Emerging trends in zoo design emphasizing greater exhibit naturalism, however, have reduced (at least aesthetically) some of the distance between the zoo and the wild. This chapter reflects on the search for wildness and naturalism in zoological parks by examining the plan for “Zootopia,” an expansion of Denmark’s Givskud Zoo. Zootopia’s innovative “cage-free” design promises to minimize the separation between people and zoo animals, offering a heightened sense of environmental immersion and wildness in the contrived setting of a zoological park. Yet as zoos seek to become significantly more naturalistic and more park-like they will confront a number of thorny questions, including whether the attempt to get closer to wild conditions only underscores the biological and philosophical gulf between zoos and "real" nature. Past examples of failed attempts to meld the wild and the zoo, such as the largely forgotten animal menagerie at Yosemite National Park in the early twentieth century, remind us of the difficulty of this challenge.Less
The relationship between zoos and the wild is complex and often contradictory. The controlled and curated character of their existence means that zoo animals are not fully “wild,” at least compared to their counterparts in nature. Emerging trends in zoo design emphasizing greater exhibit naturalism, however, have reduced (at least aesthetically) some of the distance between the zoo and the wild. This chapter reflects on the search for wildness and naturalism in zoological parks by examining the plan for “Zootopia,” an expansion of Denmark’s Givskud Zoo. Zootopia’s innovative “cage-free” design promises to minimize the separation between people and zoo animals, offering a heightened sense of environmental immersion and wildness in the contrived setting of a zoological park. Yet as zoos seek to become significantly more naturalistic and more park-like they will confront a number of thorny questions, including whether the attempt to get closer to wild conditions only underscores the biological and philosophical gulf between zoos and "real" nature. Past examples of failed attempts to meld the wild and the zoo, such as the largely forgotten animal menagerie at Yosemite National Park in the early twentieth century, remind us of the difficulty of this challenge.
Terence Young
- Published in print:
- 2017
- Published Online:
- January 2018
- ISBN:
- 9780801454028
- eISBN:
- 9781501712838
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Cornell University Press
- DOI:
- 10.7591/cornell/9780801454028.003.0005
- Subject:
- History, American History: 20th Century
This chapter examines how the millions of campers who swarmed public facilities around the country led to their rapid deterioration. Lakes, woods, seashores, and deserts within a few hours' drive ...
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This chapter examines how the millions of campers who swarmed public facilities around the country led to their rapid deterioration. Lakes, woods, seashores, and deserts within a few hours' drive generally satisfied these campers' desire to escape their everyday world, but some found these sites' ability to renew and transform to be limited. Moreover, when a camper sought greater restoration, he had to travel to spaces more sacred, but to do so was geographically challenging, because most Americans lived in the East, and the most sacred and desirable destinations—Yellowstone, Yosemite, and the other national parks—were in the distant West. Into this breach stepped E. P. Meinecke, who developed the auto campground plan that was quickly adopted by public agencies around the country and dominates car campgrounds to this day.Less
This chapter examines how the millions of campers who swarmed public facilities around the country led to their rapid deterioration. Lakes, woods, seashores, and deserts within a few hours' drive generally satisfied these campers' desire to escape their everyday world, but some found these sites' ability to renew and transform to be limited. Moreover, when a camper sought greater restoration, he had to travel to spaces more sacred, but to do so was geographically challenging, because most Americans lived in the East, and the most sacred and desirable destinations—Yellowstone, Yosemite, and the other national parks—were in the distant West. Into this breach stepped E. P. Meinecke, who developed the auto campground plan that was quickly adopted by public agencies around the country and dominates car campgrounds to this day.
John G. T. Anderson
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- January 2014
- ISBN:
- 9780520273764
- eISBN:
- 9780520954458
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University of California Press
- DOI:
- 10.1525/california/9780520273764.003.0016
- Subject:
- Biology, Natural History and Field Guides
In which we make the transition from the nineteenth to the twentieth centuries as issues of conservation and preservation become entwined with natural history. John Muir’s travels both within the ...
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In which we make the transition from the nineteenth to the twentieth centuries as issues of conservation and preservation become entwined with natural history. John Muir’s travels both within the United States and globally echo some of the early natural historians, but the emphasis has shifted from one of discovery to one of concern. The founding of the Museum of Vertebrate Zoology at Berkeley and the founding of the School of Forestry at Yale mark two axes of future direction to what comes to be called ecology.Less
In which we make the transition from the nineteenth to the twentieth centuries as issues of conservation and preservation become entwined with natural history. John Muir’s travels both within the United States and globally echo some of the early natural historians, but the emphasis has shifted from one of discovery to one of concern. The founding of the Museum of Vertebrate Zoology at Berkeley and the founding of the School of Forestry at Yale mark two axes of future direction to what comes to be called ecology.
Shelley Alden Brooks
- Published in print:
- 2017
- Published Online:
- May 2018
- ISBN:
- 9780520294417
- eISBN:
- 9780520967540
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University of California Press
- DOI:
- 10.1525/california/9780520294417.003.0007
- Subject:
- History, American History: 20th Century
At the end of the 1970s, Carmel resident Ansel Adams turned his considerable influence toward securing federal protection for the Big Sur coastline. Adams endeavored to secure the designation of a ...
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At the end of the 1970s, Carmel resident Ansel Adams turned his considerable influence toward securing federal protection for the Big Sur coastline. Adams endeavored to secure the designation of a Big Sur National Seashore while Democrats still controlled Congress and the White House, but he had an uphill battle during the conservative ascendancy that brought Ronald Reagan into the White House at a time when the nation’s faltering economy challenged bipartisan support for environmental protection. Adams also misread the vehemence with which locals guarded their right to steward the land and live without a federal landlord. Chapter 6 examines the battle over Big Sur as Adams, U.S. congressmen and senators, the Wilderness Society, Monterey County officials, and Big Sur residents debated the cultural, political, and environmental borders of this prized landscape. The chapter argues that like other debates of the era, the question of management authority for Big Sur became value-laden as issues of constitutional rights, privilege, and spirituality played key roles in shaping opinions on the appropriate relationship between people and nature. A place as popular as Yosemite could not escape such national attention, but remarkably, Big Sur’s small number of residents could harness the conservative turn to argue successfully for local management of a national treasure.Less
At the end of the 1970s, Carmel resident Ansel Adams turned his considerable influence toward securing federal protection for the Big Sur coastline. Adams endeavored to secure the designation of a Big Sur National Seashore while Democrats still controlled Congress and the White House, but he had an uphill battle during the conservative ascendancy that brought Ronald Reagan into the White House at a time when the nation’s faltering economy challenged bipartisan support for environmental protection. Adams also misread the vehemence with which locals guarded their right to steward the land and live without a federal landlord. Chapter 6 examines the battle over Big Sur as Adams, U.S. congressmen and senators, the Wilderness Society, Monterey County officials, and Big Sur residents debated the cultural, political, and environmental borders of this prized landscape. The chapter argues that like other debates of the era, the question of management authority for Big Sur became value-laden as issues of constitutional rights, privilege, and spirituality played key roles in shaping opinions on the appropriate relationship between people and nature. A place as popular as Yosemite could not escape such national attention, but remarkably, Big Sur’s small number of residents could harness the conservative turn to argue successfully for local management of a national treasure.
