New Photos of Teddy Roosevelt with John Muir at Yosemite in 1903 Uncovered at Southern California Flea Market

A Berkeley, California resident got close enough to snap a photo of Theodore Roosevelt in 1903 as the President crossed a bridge on horseback to Yosemite’s long lost Sentinel Hotel.  Who was it?  The answer may never be known.  The picture was recently discovered in a family photo album at a Southern California flea market.  The book has 400 carefully framed images, with about 175 of Yosemite.

The Bull Moose was in Yosemite to meet with John Muir.  Significantly, one of the album photos is of the two walking together with a park ranger.  There are some well-known photos of the President’s trip, but these candid pictures have not been seen before.  Representatives at the Roosevelt archives (there is no presidential library) at Harvard and Dickinson State have never seen similar photographs.

Roosevelt’s trip became a legendary part of the expansion and preservation of Yosemite.  The rugged president, who studied natural science at Harvard, was both a prolific hunter and conservationist.  He would later stalk dangerous game in Africa and nearly die on a river expedition in South America.

John Muir, the most accomplished conservationist in California history, once lived in Yosemite Valley.  Muir was the area’s earliest advocate, and helped to create the National Park that is now visited annually by 4 million tourists.   

Roosevelt camped with Muir for three days in May of 1903.  Muir had an agenda.  He hoped to move more land from California control into federal holdings for permanent conservation.

 The men slept under the giant trees in the Mariposa Groves, not yet in the National Park, on the first night of the trip.  Roosevelt was a receptive audience.  Muir’s goal was accomplished in 1906 with the Yosemite Recession Bill, forever preserving the Mariposas through the National Park Service.  (There are several pages of photos of these timeless trees in the photo album.)

According to information in the pictures, all of which are meticulously labeled in white ink (common at the time), the photographer lived in Berkeley, California.  The trip was by rail.   Almost all of the park visitors at the time arrived by train.  There are stunning images of stops along the way, including Shasta, Mill Creek, Berkeley, and San Francisco.  Other trips in the album are to Boston, Maine and finally Yellowstone.    Roosevelt had a hand in that park as well.  He was part of the efforts to create Yellowstone and the National Park system before his presidency.

The person who took these pictures likely had some special access.  There are few people in the photos with the President.  As Roosevelt crosses the bridge on horseback, a figure is backing up in the foreground-possibly a member of the Secret Service detail.   

How important is the find?   While there are other photos of this historic trip, these are yet unseen.  Roosevelt remains among the most popular U.S. Presidents and unpublished photos are always of interest.  The presence of John Muir makes the photos especially important to scholars.  Copies of the relevant images will be provided to the Roosevelt archives.