In the past year I have been building a pretty good collection of books about California History. The local library book sale has been one of my best sources.
I have been thinking about Yosemite today because of the big Rim Fire. The first book below caught my eye as I walked past one of my stacks of California History books and I decided that I would share a few of them with you tonight.
I have not yet read any of the books I am sharing tonight, but I have at least flipped through them to see what they are about. They are there for when I am ready for them.
This first book, The Yosemite by John Muir, is part of The Natural History Library series from The American Museum of Natural History. The book is a guide to the Yosemite Valley written by John Muir. Does he need an introduction? He is considered on of the greatest naturalists of all time and is largely responsible for the creation of several of our National Parks.
I am praying that the big Rim Fire will be brought under control before it does too much damage to the area near or in Yosemite. Today the fire did cross the border into some of the more remote regions of the park.
Eye Witnesses to Wagon Trains West is edited by James Hewitt and brings together five firsthand accounts about wagon trains. The book details three journeys to California, one to Oregon and one to Utah. All of them take place in the 1840’s culminating with the rush for gold.
One of the accounts is about the subject of the next book.
History of the Donner Party: A Tragedy of the Sierra is by C. F. McGlashan. This copy is a reprint from the 1940’s of the original that was written in 1880. Since this was only about 35 years after the tragedy, I am looking forward to reading this and then reading a more recent book for comparison. It will be interesting to see what new information has been found out about the tragedy and how the perception of it has changed over the years.
We then jump forward almost one hundred years to the Great Depression. In California and the Dust Bowl Migration, Walter J. Stein focuses on the migration of the Okies to California and how that affected California. This will be an interesting read as I have several friends whose families came to California in this migration. Of course, many of you know about this migration because it is the setting for The Grapes of Wrath.
California History intrigues me as my family has had a part in it since the early days. A second cousin of one of my third great-grandfathers claimed California for the US in the 1840’s. A first cousin of another third great-grandfather was a 49’er. I also have many other family members who moved to California in the mid 1900’s, including one set of grandparents. Some have moved back to the Midwest and others have moved here more recently. We are a mobile family 🙂
Which of these four books should I read first?
Do you have a California History book to recommend?
Steven
Braman's Wanderings 
I grew up in Oregon, the granddaughter of Utah pioneers and Idaho homesteaders. Now I live in Idaho, on the Snake River plane, and the land is dotted with Oregon Trail markers. I can’t help but imagine, as I drive by Massacre Rock or Sheep Rock what these landmarks must have meant to the travelers. I’d love to read the Eye Witnesses to Wagon Trains West, personally.
I’m always interested in stories about the Depression because that’s when my Dad was little. And man, they looked real poor. So I’d read that first. I’ve seen some great History show’s about the Dirty Thirties too. Talk about hardship. Your family sure did get around and you seem to have that Gypsy blood too, look at all the traveling you do.
I was pleasantly surprised when I saw that the first book was by John Muir. Many of his books were written about a hundred years ago–and one of the things on my “to do” list is to ready a book by Muir.
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