A dedication ceremony in central Wisconsin on Saturday will mark the protection of more property once owned by the family of conservationist John Muir.
Marquette County already has a Muir Memorial Park, which was established on some former Muir family land. But recently, the Natural Heritage Land Trust brought together federal, state and private dollars to buy and protect an adjacent 200 acres known as the Eggleston-McGwin Farm. The land includes 40 acres owned by John Muir’s father in the mid-1800s.
The Land Trust’s Jim Welsh said it’s important to protect more of Muir’s boyhood home.
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“John is known for his work in California and Yosemite Valley,” said Welsh. “He’s not that known for his role here in Wisconsin, and how formative that was to him. So I think it’s very important we help educate and get people out to enjoy the landscape that John fell in love with.”
Some of the land will become part of the Ice Age National Scenic Trail, while the remainder will become part of the Fox River National Wildlife Refuge.
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