People's Names in Yosemite

Part One

with date of first visit

Ayres, Thomas--1855, was in the first tourist group.  He sketched the first drawings of the valley, which Hutchings used in his magazine.

Bunnell, Lafayette – 1851, a doctor was with the Mariposa Battalion when it entered the valley in pursuit of the Ahwahnechee.  He was overcome with awe and thought the valley was called "Yosemite."

Cleenewerck, Henry--1880s, landscape painter.

Conness, John--the U.S. Senator from California who put the Yosemite park bill before Congress in 1864.  Abraham Lincoln signed the release.

Conway, John--In 1871 he built the Four Mile Trail; in 1873 he built the Upper Yosemite Falls Trail.

Curry, David & Jennie--1899, they started a new concept in tourist travel by setting up seven tents for summer travelers at Camp Curry.

Hill, Thomas--1862, early realist painter.

Hutchings, James--Organized the first tourist group in 1855, set up a hotel in the valley, and extolled its wonders through his magazine, Hutchings' Illustrated California Magazine.  He owned the sawmill where Muir worked. 

Johnson, Robert Underwood--1880s, working with Muir through his Century Magazine, he helped get the areas around Yosemite Valley made a National Park in 1890.

Keith, William--1868, after a trip with Muir, he began painting in the grand realism style.

King, Clarence--1860s, wrote Mountaineering in the Sierra Nevada, 1872, a great example of early frontier literature.

King, Thomas Starr, Rev.--1860, a Unitarian pastor, he was the first person with a national audience to push to make Yosemite a public park.                                                                                                                                         

Lamon, JC--1859, first settler to live in the valley year round, planted apple trees that can still be seen in the area of the Curry parking lot.

Lebrado, Maria--20th century, often referred to as the last of the Ahwahnechee.

LeConte, Joseph--1870, early geologist, contemporary of Muir who also saw a need to preserve the wilderness, although for utilitarian reasons.