Museum of Riverside

John Muir & the Personal Experience with Nature

NOW CLOSED (Exhibit Open December 2, 2012 - October 26, 2014)

About the Exhibit
John Muir was a California conservationist, naturalist, and wilderness explorer during an important time in US history. As American expansionism neared completion and industry and agriculture flourished during the19th century, the land’s natural resources were exploited and wildlife populations dwindled. Like Emerson and Thoreau of his time, Muir sought out nature for insight and inspiration.

As John Muir traveled places such as the Sierras, Alaska, and American west, he passionately studied the nature around him. Carefully documenting his travels, Muir collected specimens and wrote and sketched about his personal experiences in journals, and from these wrote letters, books, and articles sharing his passion for nature and the importance of protecting it.

The “John Muir and the Personal Experience of Nature” exhibit focuses on Muir’s contributions as a scientist –mainly as a botanist—but, also examines nature’s role in the lives of individuals and the history of the United States. Explore the life of John Muir as well as the human need to “experience” nature through images of Muir’s botanical specimens, hands-on activities, photographs, Native American material culture, and other natural history objects.