326: Short Life, Long Legacy. The Vision of George Meléndez Wright.

Interactive Transcript

spk_0 30 years ago, a team of scientists were trying to understand why mammals have such different

spk_0 lifespans.

spk_0 Mice live for around two years, and dogs for 12.

spk_0 Elephants can pass 60 years, and some whales live up to 90.

spk_0 Boiling down all of the details of their studies, they discovered that no matter how many

spk_0 years each animal lived, each lived for about 1 billion heartbeats.

spk_0 Humans, thanks to modern medicine, have managed to extend our life expectancy to around 2 billion

spk_0 heartbeats, and have continued our quest to lengthen it further through various diets,

spk_0 exercise routines, and fostering healthy relationships.

spk_0 And yet, despite the never-ending odyssey to tack years onto our existence here on Earth,

spk_0 the meaning of life is not measured in years or in heartbeats.

spk_0 We remember people not for the number of candles they blow out on their final birthday

spk_0 cake, but rather for the difference they made, the people they helped, the joy that

spk_0 followed them, and the ideas they leave behind.

spk_0 None of us know how much time we'll get here.

spk_0 A life while lived can certainly be long, but all too often, it can be cut short.

spk_0 Regardless, one thing is for certain.

spk_0 You sure as hell don't need a billion heartbeats to make a difference that people will remember,

spk_0 and honor long after your heart goes still.

spk_0 Welcome to National Park After Dark.

spk_0 I really like that intro.

spk_0 I never knew that.

spk_0 One billion heartbeats.

spk_0 I know.

spk_0 It kind of feels like it's programmed to stop around then.

spk_0 Maybe slow down.

spk_0 Slow down.

spk_0 Take it easy.

spk_0 That's why you need a low resting heart rate.

spk_0 Yeah.

spk_0 I know.

spk_0 Well, it's so funny because I've been trying to use my order ring a little bit more.

spk_0 I got it just to track my cycles, like natural cycles and stuff, and it does a bunch of other

spk_0 stuff, like with stress and steps and all that other stuff.

spk_0 And I've been trying to keep track of my heart, like my resting heart rate and stuff.

spk_0 And I used to do it at work.

spk_0 I used to put the SBO2 monitor on my finger and be like, what's my heart rate at?

spk_0 Oh, yeah.

spk_0 I used to do that too.

spk_0 And then be like, calm down.

spk_0 It's okay.

spk_0 You're just stressed.

spk_0 All as well.

spk_0 What's your resting heart rate?

spk_0 Yeah, it hovers around 60.

spk_0 Okay.

spk_0 That's very good.

spk_0 Yeah.

spk_0 I'm trying to get my cardio better, get on the Peloton a little more, but it's a struggle.

spk_0 Yeah.

spk_0 So welcome, everyone, to National Park After Dark.

spk_0 I'm going to be telling you a story today and my name is Danielle.

spk_0 I'm Cassie.

spk_0 I'm going to be listening to the story.

spk_0 Yeah.

spk_0 Getting comfy.

spk_0 It's so funny the other day.

spk_0 I looked at one of the comments on Patreon because we posted a video version of the episode

spk_0 on there.

spk_0 Yeah.

spk_0 And somebody was like, I love how just throughout this episode, Cassie is getting

spk_0 come fear and come fear.

spk_0 Like your blanket just kept rising up to your chin by the, I start off like normal, just

spk_0 hanging out and by the end of it.

spk_0 I'm like, you're a cocoon.

spk_0 Yeah.

spk_0 You're not even here.

spk_0 Yeah.

spk_0 Well, today I have a really interesting story about somebody that I first learned about

spk_0 when we were in Rocky Mountain National Park actually earlier this year.

spk_0 But before we get into all of that, this is the top of October to the first October

spk_0 release.

spk_0 So happy fall season officially, everybody.

spk_0 And I know it's like we just started spooky season and fall and autumn.

spk_0 And I'm about to talk to you about the holidays.

spk_0 But it's for a good reason.

spk_0 It comes up quick.

spk_0 It does.

spk_0 It sneaks up on you.

spk_0 And I'm trying to get ahead of it this year because last year we did this, but it

spk_0 was kind of late and it wasn't as good as it could have been.

spk_0 So this year we're going to try and do something different.

spk_0 We're putting together an outsider's gift guide.

spk_0 And that means we want to put together, it's nothing fancy.

spk_0 It's just going to be kind of a condensed list of small businesses that are owned and

spk_0 operated by National Park after Dark Listeners.

spk_0 And we're going to send it out to our email subscribers as a way of supporting our community

spk_0 as the holidays approach.

spk_0 And we just have so many listeners that are not only so talented with creating tangible

spk_0 physical things, whether it be art or, I don't know, just unique pieces, but also that

spk_0 have really cool companies because we all know you don't have to give a physical gift.

spk_0 You can give an experience or a service.

spk_0 And we have so many listeners who just are so talented and offer so many awesome things

spk_0 that we get to hear about because they'll email us about it.

spk_0 And we want to make sure that everybody else has the opportunity to not only know about

spk_0 those cool things, but also support them during the holiday season if you so choose.

spk_0 Yeah.

spk_0 And I feel like our outsider and PAD community has supported us so much throughout the

spk_0 years that it's a fun way to kind of give back to you guys to help support your businesses

spk_0 and to connect our community altogether.

spk_0 So it's a fun, more local way to shop and also probably a lot more unique because we're

spk_0 hoping to highlight some of you that have things that maybe people don't even know exist

spk_0 yet.

spk_0 Right.

spk_0 So if you want to be two things, if you want to be considered to be included in the

spk_0 gift guide and we say considered not because like we're judging you or anything, but because

spk_0 we expect the response to be if it's anything like last year, really overwhelming, we just

spk_0 were only two girls.

spk_0 Okay.

spk_0 And we don't get so much.

spk_0 But we'll try to include as much as we can.

spk_0 Yeah.

spk_0 And we'll put it through into like sections kind of to make it a little more easy to read

spk_0 and things like that.

spk_0 But either way, yeah, if you want to be considered to be included, please write to

spk_0 assist in at npadpodcast.com.

spk_0 That's kind of our side email we use for things like this.

spk_0 Yeah.

spk_0 And we'll put a link.

spk_0 We'll put that in our show description too.

spk_0 Yeah.

spk_0 You can just click it.

spk_0 Yep.

spk_0 And then put gift guide in the subject line.

spk_0 And on the reverse of that, if you want to receive this gift guide, sign up for our email.

spk_0 If you go onto our website, there's a pop up right away that asks if you want to subscribe.

spk_0 We literally don't spam because we don't have the time.

spk_0 We're just two girls.

spk_0 We do a newsletter once a month that we put together.

spk_0 And with the exception of this gift guide, this will come out if all goes well at the very

spk_0 beginning of November so that you have time to go through it and place orders and things

spk_0 like that for December.

spk_0 So yeah, that's what we're cooking up on the side.

spk_0 So if you're interested in that, now's the time.

spk_0 And we're accepting submissions until like the third week of October.

spk_0 So you have a couple weeks.

spk_0 Yeah.

spk_0 So if you're hearing this late, it might not be too late for you.

spk_0 Right.

spk_0 But if you're hearing it in November, sorry, sorry, there's always next year.

spk_0 Okay.

spk_0 Well, moving on.

spk_0 Again, we mentioned spooky season.

spk_0 And I think especially with the tone of a lot of our episodes and kind of what we're

spk_0 all about, people are like so amped to hear spooky and scary and haunted things for

spk_0 the entire month of October.

spk_0 But we're, I'm not going to give that to you today.

spk_0 And I apologize.

spk_0 However, there's a good reason for it.

spk_0 It is kind of the tail end of Hispanic Heritage Month.

spk_0 And because of that, I wanted to highlight a story about a Hispanic man in the National

spk_0 Park Service that did so much like after this episode, you're going to feel really bad

spk_0 about yourself, I think, because you're going to be like, how did this person do so

spk_0 much in such little time?

spk_0 It's so impressive.

spk_0 Yeah.

spk_0 Because I certainly haven't done this much.

spk_0 And learning about his story made me kind of inspired to do a little more.

spk_0 So I'm like, I'm going to put together a gift guide.

spk_0 So there's that.

spk_0 And yeah, I did hear, I learned about this originally when we went to God.

spk_0 Why can't I think of it?

spk_0 When we went to Rocky Mountain National Park, it was a book in the visitor center and

spk_0 I took a picture of it and I'm like, I'm coming back for you.

spk_0 Oh, cool.

spk_0 I love finding stories like that.

spk_0 Yeah.

spk_0 All right.

spk_0 So let's get going.

spk_0 In February of 1936, four cars found themselves stuck in the Rio Grande River.

spk_0 There is no bridge between West Texas and Bucquia and Mexico.

spk_0 So the cars had tried and ultimately failed to drive through a shallow section of the

spk_0 waterway.

spk_0 Around 20 men, representatives from both the United States and Mexico climbed out of the

spk_0 trap to vehicles.

spk_0 They had convened to discuss the creation of parks along and across the shared international

spk_0 boundary.

spk_0 The catalyst for this trip had come the year before when President Franklin Roosevelt authorized

spk_0 the creation of Big Bend National Park in Texas, just north of the river crossing that they

spk_0 were stranded in.

spk_0 While the designation was still a formality, it entrusted the National Park Service with

spk_0 a vast landscape from the towering Chisos Mountains to the sprawling Chihuahua Desert

spk_0 and dramatic canyons carved by the Rio Grande.

spk_0 But unlike many of the earliest national parks, Big Bend was not granted the status for scenic

spk_0 qualities alone.

spk_0 The park service first sent a biologist to survey the area in part to document the wildlife

spk_0 that lived there, which was pretty standard, which included mountain lions, ringtails,

spk_0 and hovelinas known as picaries for those who, they're like the, they look like wild pigs

spk_0 kind of.

spk_0 Oh, okay.

spk_0 Okay.

spk_0 Yeah.

spk_0 But also to judge if the proposed park boundaries could provide enough habitat for those same animals

spk_0 to thrive in.

spk_0 And it was with that biologist findings and endorsement that Big Bend State Park became

spk_0 a national park.

spk_0 The International Commission, who was eventually towed out of the river by Mexican ranchers

spk_0 on horseback, was meeting to discuss taking the designation up a notch.

spk_0 How international parks might extend those protections already in place even further.

spk_0 So it's like started as a protected space at the State Park.

spk_0 It got bumped up to a national park.

spk_0 And now they're like, let's see if we can make this international because it, they wanted

spk_0 to expand across borders.

spk_0 Okay.

spk_0 So for clarification, you found this book in Rocky Mountain National Park, but the story

spk_0 is about Big Bend National Park.

spk_0 No, it's right.

spk_0 Yes, we're talking about Big Bend right now in this particular circumstance.

spk_0 Okay.

spk_0 The story is actually, I know we usually centered this around a particular public land specifically

spk_0 whether it be a national park or national forest.

spk_0 This is actually about a individual that did a lot for the National Park Service in general.

spk_0

spk_0 So we're going to be like hopping around to the national parks.

spk_0 Gotcha.

spk_0 For the National Park Service, this was a radically new way of doing business and a dramatic

spk_0 departure from how they used to do things.

spk_0 It was the start of a shift towards science driven management and towards the agency that

spk_0 we all know and love and respect today.

spk_0 Since it's founding in 1916, park rangers have killed coyotes, mountain lions, and even pelicans

spk_0 to protect game animals.

spk_0 Now, it seemed like all animals were being considered at the very least fairly.

spk_0 And if you asked leaders in the park service at the time, the people with power and the people

spk_0 with influence, who we have to thank for this change, they'd all answer with one name,

spk_0 George Melendez, right.

spk_0 So that is who we are going to be speaking about today.

spk_0 Interesting.

spk_0 I think it's safe to say we're all feeling the squeeze recently with prices on what feels

spk_0 like pretty much everything going right on up.

spk_0 So now more than ever, we're paying attention to our finances.

spk_0 And that includes becoming more and more aware and cognizant of our personal spending habits.

spk_0 Trying to manage subscriptions, track spending, and cut costs can feel a bit overwhelming.

spk_0 Luckily, rocket money can relieve some of that stress and help you feel confident in the

spk_0 financial decisions you make.

spk_0 Rocket money is a personal finance app that finds and cancels your unwanted subscriptions,

spk_0 monitors your spending, and helps lower your bills so you can grow your savings.

spk_0 You'd be surprised by how many subscriptions go unnoticed or unaccounted for, and most

spk_0 Americans, including this one right here talking to you, weigh under estimate the amount

spk_0 of money they spend on subscriptions.

spk_0 With rocket money, their dashboard shows me my monthly spending patterns and habits,

spk_0 and even helps create custom budgets.

spk_0 And I have some things in mind for my future that I really need to start budgeting for,

spk_0 so I started using rocket money to analyze my accounts to find the best time each month

spk_0 to put extra money aside, and automatically create budgets based on my spending.

spk_0 Rocket money's 5 million members have saved a total of 500 million in cancelled subscriptions,

spk_0 with members saving up to $740 a year when they use all of the app's premium features.

spk_0 Cancel your unwanted subscriptions and reach your financial goals faster with rocket money.

spk_0 Go to rocketmoney.com slash NPAD today.

spk_0 That's rocketmoney.com slash NPAD.

spk_0 Rocket money.com slash NPAD.

spk_0 By just 31 years old, George Wright was the director of the National Park Services Wildlife Division,

spk_0 and the first Hispanic man to hold a professional role in the entire agency.

spk_0 He had conducted the first ever comprehensive wildlife survey in National Parks,

spk_0 and his skill as a field biologist was surpassed only by his personality.

spk_0 When asked to describe him, his friend said he was always quickly welcomed anywhere he went,

spk_0 and that his personality was unforgettable.

spk_0 He was considered to win people over easily, even those who at first were a little wary about him,

spk_0 or didn't really know what he was all about either as an individual or his stance in the wildlife

spk_0 division, but with his knowledge and his intellect and his charisma, it got him places with people,

spk_0 and one people over at least to consider having a conversation at the very least.

spk_0 And it also got him sent on many different trips for the park service,

spk_0 including the International Commission trip to Big Bend.

spk_0 In each photo taken of the group, George, often sporting a wide smile, was the shortest.

spk_0 At just five foot four, he earned the nickname Chapo, or Shorty, in Spanish.

spk_0 And it is true. It's always like, you know, when you're looking at black and white photos, especially,

spk_0 it just a lot of features kind of blend in, and especially the style and the way people

spk_0 not only dressed, but had their hair, their facial hair, and things like that.

spk_0 It's like, you kind of all look the same immediately. You're like, they're okay, well, that's George,

spk_0 because he's small. We love a short king. Yes, we do.

spk_0 These trips to which he referred to as wilderness elixirs were much needed,

spk_0 literal breaths of fresh air from his busy schedule in his Washington office.

spk_0 And this was not the only trip of its kind for him that year.

spk_0 He made several to the Everglades, surveying proposed park boundaries by Blimp,

spk_0 and serving as the personal guide to the secretary of the interior, who immediately became a fan of

spk_0 George's. He seemed right at home with diplomats and dignitaries just as much as he was with

spk_0 ranchers and old timers in rural America. One of the many, many reasons some believed he was well

spk_0 on his way to climbing the ladder all the way to the top to someday become the director of the

spk_0 National Park Service. But Big Bend was not the only stop for the group on their group.

spk_0 After touring the region for a week, George hopped into a car with a few colleagues and headed

spk_0 west towards Tucson, some 500-ish miles away. As George's car passed into New Mexico,

spk_0 heading west on highway 10, they reached the northern edge of the Chihuahua desert. Suddenly,

spk_0 an oncoming car veered into their lane. Its tire had blown out, causing it to jerk violently

spk_0 and without warning to the left, directly into George's vehicle. The crash was sudden and deadly.

spk_0 The teenage driver of the oncoming car died instantly, and so did the driver of George's car.

spk_0 George sustained massive injuries and despite being pulled from the wreckage by his surviving friends,

spk_0 it was too late. George Wright was dead at 31 years old. But as we've said before,

spk_0 it isn't about how one dies, but how they live. So let's rewind the tape. 20 years,

spk_0 in 1915, a world fair was opening in San Francisco. Hosted to celebrate the completion of the

spk_0 Panama Canal, it attracted displays of technological achievement, like a transcontinental phone call

spk_0 and automobile races. It hosted presentations of sports, music, and art, and it featured two

spk_0 enormous replicas of national parks. There was an old faithful display, which erupted every 20

spk_0 minutes, and a scale model of the Grand Canyon, complete with a 30,000 square foot painting of the

spk_0 canyon itself, more than half the size of a football field. That's insane. That's huge.

spk_0 This is like a science fair on steroids. And I wonder, we've talked about world's fairs before,

spk_0 especially with your episode. What was it on the tree? Yeah, the centennial tree in Sequoia.

spk_0 Do you think it was at this one? Where is this again? San Francisco? No, because they

spk_0 shipped this to the centennial tree to the east coast to prove that they existed.

spk_0 Because people in the east didn't believe them. Okay, right. Yes. That was kind of a long time ago

spk_0 that episode, but it was really good. And we talked at length about world's fairs and how cool

spk_0 they were in one aspect, but also how problematic they were. They used to put people on display.

spk_0 Yeah, people on display, indigenous people, people of color, they did a lot of really

spk_0 fucked up things as amusement at world fairs, but they were also really interesting. They did have

spk_0 some interesting things. I don't think we should bring them back, but it is an interesting point of

spk_0 history. Yeah. This event was of great interest to George, who lived only eight blocks away from

spk_0 the fair. He was just 11 years old at the time, and he was already an avid naturalist.

spk_0 He'd been carefully observing the birds who visited a bird bath behind his home and kept a list

spk_0 of the species that he had seen. His great aunt Cordelia had encouraged him to pursue his passion

spk_0 for biology, sending him out to explore nearby Lake Merced and the Golden Gate Parks with a bird book

spk_0 in hand. By this time on Cordelia, who he called Auntie, it was actually his great aunt,

spk_0 was George's only family and his primary caretaker as both his parents had already passed away

spk_0 when he was a child. His father, John Wright, came from a successful family of steamship captains in

spk_0 San Francisco. His mother, Mercedes Melendez Ramirez, came from a prominent family in El Salvador.

spk_0 How the couple met is kind of a mystery. It's been a little bit lost to time. There's a couple

spk_0 of different theories, maybe because Wright's shipping company brought coffee from El Salvador,

spk_0 or because Mercedes was sent to school in San Francisco, and that's maybe where they met.

spk_0 But regardless, by 1905, the two of them were married, had purchased a home in San Francisco and

spk_0 had three sons, with George being the middle child. It was by all accounts a wonderful home,

spk_0 full of both conversations and customs in both English and Spanish, with the whole family

spk_0 traveling between San Francisco and El Salvador often. But in 1906, George's mother passed away

spk_0 suddenly from a cute appendicitis. And within a few years, his father was diagnosed with cancer.

spk_0 His father did what he could for his three boys, including enlisting the help of his widowed

spk_0 stepmother Cordelia. He left his youngest son Charles and the care of family in El Salvador,

spk_0 dividing up his estate between his children and passed away a few months later at the age of 56.

spk_0 That's heartbreaking. I mean, it's a lot. It's a lot of death. Yep. One after the other.

spk_0 George's oldest brother moved to El Salvador, leaving George and Auntie alone in their San Francisco

spk_0 home. Despite their large age gap, so at this point in time, George is a child. I mean, he's barely

spk_0 nine years old. And Cordelia was 72. So different ends of the spectrum here in life. Despite that,

spk_0 the two shared a really special bond and became constant companions. Beyond encouraging his

spk_0 passion for wildlife, Auntie taught him daily lessons until he started officially at school,

spk_0 which served as an early chance for his personality to really shine through. In high school,

spk_0 he founded the Audubon Society Club and served as its president at the age of 13. And by this time,

spk_0 he was already corresponding with the local University of California offices to organize field trips.

spk_0 For his club, the Audubon Society. Yeah. Yep. He was active in the Boy Scouts where he was tasked

spk_0 with teaching his fellow scouts about plants and animals. And he excelled academically, which I don't

spk_0 think there's a surprise in that. At 16 years old, he was accepted to the Forestry program at UC

spk_0 Berkeley. At 16. Yeah. So I don't know if that's standard for the time or if he was like today,

spk_0 that would, I know it's possible, but it's uncommon. I don't know if at the time that was more

spk_0 standard or not. Yeah. To leave school early and go to college or something. Yeah. But regardless,

spk_0 it's a huge accomplishment. And Auntie thrilled for him, bought a house near campus and moved with him.

spk_0 At Berkeley, he joined a front Delta Upsilon, which would become the center of his social life.

spk_0 And this is just, it's not very important to the story, but I just thought it was really

spk_0 funny. So he and Auntie would host regular frat parties. And she was beloved by his friends.

spk_0 Oh, I bet. Like a great, like a 70 something year old. It's almost like your grandma who's sitting

spk_0 on the couch like drinking and smoking weed with all your friends. She is going to be accepted by

spk_0 everyone at that party. She's the house bunny. Yeah. Mom. Yeah. House. Yes. Yes. The house

spk_0 bunny is the movie I'm thinking. But now I'm pretty sure Auntie and house bunny attire.

spk_0 As Anna Ferris. Yes. Yeah. So she was like, kind of when you have a cool, I remember my

spk_0 senior year of college, our landlord, he had bought the house on water street in Keen, New Hampshire.

spk_0 It was an old like Victorian era house that had been a family home for generations and decades.

spk_0 And then he happened to buy the year we moved in. He had happened to buy it. And he's like,

spk_0 I'm actually going to renovate this and rent this out to college kids because it was just a couple

spk_0 blocks off campus. And I remember because he had never been a landlord before. And he was just

spk_0 some guy that was like, I just want to make some money. Like he was the coolest he would come over.

spk_0 I have pictures of Niteia giving him an apple pie shot. And he was just so chill and fun to be

spk_0 around. He was just like this older guy, just like not in a creepy way or anything. He was just like a

spk_0 cool dude. And I just imagine Cordelia filling that same role. And she was just always around for

spk_0 house parties and just like hanging out with everyone. And one of the his friends, one of

spk_0 Georgia's friends wrote about her once saying, the old lady was charming and her philosophy on youth

spk_0 so much broader than the average parent. It was amazing. When I left to go dance, her remark was,

spk_0 I think you better let the butler get you a high ball. I can see you haven't had any and the girls

spk_0 don't want a stupid slow one to dance with. She's like, you got to loosen out. Get a drink.

spk_0 Get a drink party. You're being a stick in the mud. Yeah, she surely had the right idea

spk_0 is how he ended it. But it wasn't all cocktails and house parties. George was also developing as a student.

spk_0 As a forestry major, his coursework emphasized field observation and note taking. One of his professors,

spk_0 Joseph Grinnell, developed a methodical style of field notes that is still widely used today.

spk_0 I had to look it up because I just got a book when we were in Galatia about.

spk_0 What's he going to say is he after Grinnell. Not of the same.

spk_0 But kind of like this was Joseph Grinnell was right before the other Grinnell that we're thinking of.

spk_0 Okay. But still in like the wildlife conservation space and that's kind of why it confused me.

spk_0 But George who had been taking notes on the species he'd seen all of his life was very quick to

spk_0 make a good impression with his professor and other mentors. During his summers, George set his

spk_0 sights beyond California and began to explore more and more of the American West. In the summer of

spk_0 1922, he participated in a Sierra Club trip to the high sea areas. The largest trip the club

spk_0 had ever put on up until that point. He was one of 200 hikers that made the 270 mile track

spk_0 summoning Mount Whitney along the way. The enormous group was supplied by a train of 90 mules

spk_0 carrying among many other things 450 pounds of cheese and 2000 pounds of ham. It's like

spk_0 she was living off. She was like, you're living off.

spk_0 Shorcutary boards.

spk_0 You know, they're no wrong.

spk_0 In the summer of 1924, he and some of his frapp brothers set out on a 2000 mile road trip

spk_0 in Georgia's beat up Model T, which he nicknamed Peter. In just two months, they visited what is

spk_0 now Joshua Tree Rocky Mountain Yellowstone Glacier and Crater Lake National Parks in an incredible

spk_0 road trip summer VK. And along the way, they suffered 72 blown out tires. Why? Well, okay, so how do

spk_0 you go through 72 tires? Okay, this is the 20s. And Model T's have these tiny tires. Honestly,

spk_0 when you look back on pictures, some of them look like they have smaller tires than a lot of the

spk_0 bicycles we have now. And the roads were awful. I mean, you're talking about dirt roads.

spk_0 Then to replace if you had to replace 72 of them, he just got really good at changing tires.

spk_0 Imagine like 2000 miles. No, I guess.

spk_0 I'm like, can we get more than 50 miles without blowing a tire?

spk_0 But the trebles only fueled his sense of adventure and invigorated his love of the parks.

spk_0 In the summer of 1926, his growing knowledge of the outdoors presented him with an opportunity.

spk_0 His professor Joseph Grinnell recommended he join a scientific expedition to Alaska.

spk_0 One of the professor's former students, Joseph Dixon, was headed to what is now Denali National Park

spk_0 to search for an elusive bird nest. Surfbirds, a small shore bird, often seen along the Pacific

spk_0 coast, fly inland to lay their eggs, which they knew about at the time, but no one had ever seen one

spk_0 of their nests in the wild. So they know they're exhibiting this behavior, but they can't track down

spk_0 where they're actually nesting. Grinnell believed that George would be well suited for this

spk_0 particular search. So together, Dixon and George were to spend three months together in Denali,

spk_0 based out of a rustic patrol cabin in search of a surf bird nest.

spk_0 George's detailed field notes recorded sightings of many different species he'd had never seen before,

spk_0 including mermaids, caribou, and canada jays. And they also recorded that early on,

spk_0 Dixon suffered a strained ankle leaving George out to set out on his own in search for these birds

spk_0 pretty much right off the bat. And while surveying by himself, just 10 days into their trip,

spk_0 George's report reads, quote, a quick movement, some five or 600 feet away, attracted my attention

spk_0 to a grayish bird that was sneaking hurriedly along. He was a surf bird in the nesting season.

spk_0 Better luck yet, when I looked down, there were the eggs lying in a little depression.

spk_0 There were four of them, and they certainly looked too good to be true. So he rushes back to tell

spk_0 his partner, Dixon, about his find, and his first immediate thought was he's kidding, like he's joking,

spk_0 like you couldn't have found that. Yeah, it's like no one in the history of naturalists looking

spk_0 for this bird have ever found this nest. Like I just looked down. I just spent a

spk_0 look. They were at my full upon it. No ornithologist had ever found a surf bird nest in decades

spk_0 of searching. And he found it in 10 days. And sure enough, I mean at first, he was like,

spk_0 there's no way. I have to see this for myself. So he like hobbles out there to take a look for

spk_0 himself. He hikes out and confirms. Indeed, it was a surf bird nest. And in his writing and his

spk_0 own notebook, he says, to Mr. George M. Wright then belongs the credit of finding the first nest

spk_0 of the species on May 28th, 1926 at 4 p.m. And when I read that, the first thing I thought of was

spk_0 L. Woods being like, what like it's hard? Like it's hard.

spk_0 Getting it to Harvard, like what like it's hard? Yeah.

spk_0 This episode of National Park After Dark is brought to you by Wildgrain. Wildgrain is the first

spk_0 bake from frozen subscription box for artisanal breads, seasonal pastries, and fresh pastas.

spk_0 And for every impatient baker like myself, all items conveniently bake in 25 minutes or less.

spk_0 And for sensitive tummy people, unlike store bought, wildgrain uses a slow fermentation process

spk_0 that's easier on your belly, richer in nutrients and antioxidants, and made with simple

spk_0 ingredients you can actually pronounce. Their boxes are fully customizable and they're constantly

spk_0 adding seasonal and limited time products for you to enjoy. And they have three options of boxes,

spk_0 classic, gluten free, and plant based. I just finished up decorating my yard for Halloween. It is

spk_0 October 1st as I'm recording this after all. And as I did it, I had their pumpkin cinnamon biscuits

spk_0 baking in the oven. So when I was done, I walked into my kitchen and that sweet yummy smell of fall

spk_0 was just wafting throughout my kitchen. And I rewarded myself with the sweetest of treats that

spk_0 was so easy and quick to make. This fall treat yourself and your loved ones to warm sourdough

spk_0 breads and seasonal baked goods from Wildgrain. Rumor has it. They have apple cider donuts and

spk_0 pumpkin cinnamon biscuits. So get them before the seasonal item sell out. For a limited time,

spk_0 Wildgrain is offering our listeners $30 off the first box. Plus, free croissants in every box

spk_0 when you go to wildgrain.com slash NPAED to start your subscription. You heard me.

spk_0 Cresoncin every box and $30 off your first box when you go to wildgrain.com slash NPAED.

spk_0 That's wildgrain.com slash NPAED or you can use our promo code NPAED at checkout. Don't miss

spk_0 their seasonal products. After Alaska, George wrapped up his time in school and worked for a short

spk_0 time for Dixon and Grinnell at Berkeley Zoology Museum. And it was great. He loved it. But his passion

spk_0 really lied with being out in the field and being outdoors. And more specifically, to live and work

spk_0 in the national parks that he had spent his summers going to and exploring. So on October 17th,

spk_0 1927, he cashed in when he got a chance to do exactly that. He received a letter in the mail

spk_0 informing him his application for a job with the National Park Service had been accepted.

spk_0 And he was to become a national park ranger in Yosemite moving with Auntie.

spk_0 Because Auntie is right there still. She's like, all right, we're going to Yosemite. We're going to

spk_0 Yosemite Valley. George marveled at his new office. On his first day, he wrote in his journal,

spk_0 The Valley is sparkling, cool and clear with an abundance of autumn coloring. About the room,

spk_0 there is 10 inches of snow ever so white against the blue sky. And I can just imagine, I mean,

spk_0 my first experience in Yosemite Valley was with you. And I remember you saying before we got there,

spk_0 just kind of hyping it up and being like, it's so magical and beautiful. And I had the advantage of

spk_0 at least seeing pictures of it before and kind of mentally prepping of what I was about to experience.

spk_0 And for him, at this time in the 20s, you know, there's descriptions and paintings and maybe

spk_0 a few photos, but nothing could have prepared, I'm sure, an experience of getting into that valley

spk_0 for the first time and seeing that and being like, this is my life. And I don't know what you're

spk_0 going into. I remember the first time I saw Yosemite on just pictures because I think it was on

spk_0 Instagram and someone had tagged it. And I was like, because I didn't grow up learning about

spk_0 national parks or anything like that. And I remember seeing it being like, where is that? What is that?

spk_0 I've never, I have to go there. Yeah, I have to go there. And it became a bucket list placed for me.

spk_0 And actually, when we were working at Banfield, I went there for the first time. Oh, I don't recall.

spk_0 It was my Cassie's on one of her trips. Yeah, I did travel a lot when we were at Banfield. But that was

spk_0 one of my, I was out in California and we, and we went. Well, despite being just 23 years old, George

spk_0 brought a huge amount of experience to his role, which really excited his supervisors.

spk_0 The year before the park had completed its first year round road into Yosemite Valley and had just

spk_0 opened the Awani hotel where guess who is now living Auntie, Auntie's like, oh, she rode and lived there

spk_0 year round. She's like, the Awani would work great. Thank you. It just opened its brand new. It's

spk_0 beautiful. It's like this old do. From Frat House to the Awani. Look at her go. She's live in large.

spk_0 She, yeah, I wrote in my notes. But sometimes I'm like, when I'm first doing this, putting this

spk_0 together, I put my initial thoughts in here in case I don't have them in real time. I wrote,

spk_0 this lady is just livi and she is the increase in tourism that the Awani generated and that

spk_0 this year round road is now providing actually helped create George's position and he quickly

spk_0 started giving talks for visitors at the Yosemite Museum where he was based. And yet almost as quickly

spk_0 as his dream had been realized, it nearly came undone. An administrative worker reviewing his

spk_0 hiring paperwork determined that George was too short to be a park ranger. But, okay, how tall is he?

spk_0 5'4". 5'4". He's taller than us. He is taller than us. I'm 5'2.5". You're not 2.5. You're 5'2 for sure.

spk_0 Yes, for sure. You're 5'2 and 3'4 sometimes. I'm 5'3 and in pictures I look a lot taller than you.

spk_0 That is not true. That's a fact. It's okay to be small. I don't mind being small, but that's how

spk_0 tall I am. Unless I grew, it's your hair. It is my hair. It's full of secrets.

spk_0 Well, at the time, all rangers were required to serve as law enforcement as well and to carry a gun.

spk_0 And while it was never stated on the application, this came with a height requirement and one that

spk_0 George failed to clear at just 5'4". What's the height requirement? I don't know. I don't know. I

spk_0 couldn't find that. But they're like, you're just like, you're too short to ride this ride.

spk_0 Fortunately, his supervisors fought the decision. They even enlisted Horus Albright, the assistant

spk_0 director of the National Park Service, to petition for an exception for him. In a persistent

spk_0 series of letters, Albright cited George's lengthy list of accomplishments and stated plainly,

spk_0 we must take no chances of losing this valuable man. And ultimately, he was permitted to stay.

spk_0 Good. That's a ridiculous requirement. I hope that, I mean, I know for a fact that is no longer

spk_0 in existence, but I hope that this situation with George was the catalyst for that. Kind of squashed

spk_0 that. Yeah. If this hiccup had bothered George, he didn't seem to show it. He was making the most

spk_0 of his new life in Yosemite Valley. Each morning, he'd bring coffee to Auntie in her room at the

spk_0 Awani before getting out to work. He and his fellow naturalist gave talks to the thousands of

spk_0 visitors that came every year. And he also began to write articles for Yosemite nature notes,

spk_0 the official publication of the park's education division. These articles on natural history

spk_0 included the songs and calls of the mountain quail, a fungus that was killing the park's choke

spk_0 cherry plants, and the diet and decline of golden eagles in the park. He also made a ton of friends

spk_0 in the Valley's tight-knit community. He joined regular hikes with Enid Michaels, one of the first

spk_0 women naturalists in the park service, and her husband Charles. He befriended local artists,

spk_0 including Norwegian landscape painter Christian August Jörgensen, and a young, up-and-coming photographer

spk_0 named Ansel Adams. But despite having all the success and kind of riding this high, that is now

spk_0 his professional and personal life. By late 1928, his biggest supporter, Auntie, was in

spk_0 ailing health. At the age of 88, she had grown weak and suffered some health setbacks.

spk_0 Jorge wrote of this time that he was always prepared for an emergency move, but on December 19th,

spk_0 Auntie passed away in the Awani hotel. The impact that she had on Jorge's life was immeasurable.

spk_0 The independence that she fostered in him had helped him succeed everywhere he applied himself,

spk_0 and she was a fiercely independent woman for the time. The matriarch holding court at DU parties,

spk_0 which no doubt shaped Jorge's rather progressive views of women in the National Park Service.

spk_0 But most of all, she was family. As he returned to work, his perspectives on wildlife

spk_0 management in the National Parks began to take shape. He wrote about his dislike for several

spk_0 practices common in the National Park Service at the time. Many parks in the West advertised

spk_0 bear shows, which we've talked about, I mean, at length in several different episodes.

spk_0 But TLDR version, they were essentially piles of trash dumped to attract bears for visitor viewing

spk_0 purposes, the catorism type of show, served as entertainment, which was, as we know, extremely

spk_0 problematic. Several other parks, including Yosemite, constructed, make-shift zoos as well,

spk_0 corralling local wildlife for guaranteed displays, which we haven't talked about a lot.

spk_0 But was a thing, it's just crazy. Welcome to the National Parks,

spk_0 C.R. Caged Wildlife. And it's kind of like we make fun of people, especially historic accounts

spk_0 of people being like, when do you release the animals or when do you put them back? And we're like,

spk_0 who are the wild animals? You stupid idiot. But then it's like, okay, with a history like this,

spk_0 where there's actual zoos within the National Parks that employees have taken wild animals

spk_0 and put them in cages for it's like, I can understand how that kind of gets a little confusing

spk_0 back in the day. So there's that. I'm not saying, I mean, still use your critical thinking skills,

spk_0 but you know, I'm trying to give some credit. Additionally, all parks were practicing predator control,

spk_0 using guns, traps, and poison to indiscriminately kill mountain lions, wolves, coyotes, and bears.

spk_0 And George viewed these practices not only as distasteful, but counter to the very mission

spk_0 of National Parks, moves that were actively harmful to the landscape. The views were no doubt

spk_0 fostered by his mentors. For example, Joseph Grinnell was staunchly opposed to Park Zoo's,

spk_0 but they were also likely shaped by a woman named Maria Labrato. Also known as Tottoya or Foming Waters,

spk_0 Labrato visited Yosemite in July of 1929, the first time she had visited the valley in 80 years,

spk_0 a valley that she had once called home. During the Gold Rush, a state militia known as the Mariposa

spk_0 Battalion was sent to Yosemite Valley to evict its native population. They burned villages and food

spk_0 supplies to force the relocation of indigenous people in order to allow minors to access the area.

spk_0 Chief Tenea of the Awaneichi tribe mounted a resistance, but by 1851 they were defeated.

spk_0 Tottoya, who was the granddaughter to Chief Tenea, was one of the last people to flee Yosemite Valley

spk_0 during the 1851 attacks. She returned in 1929 to see her former home, collect acorns,

spk_0 and to tell her story. And because she spoke Spanish, George was asked to be her interpreter.

spk_0 Photos of their meeting depict an in-depth conversation, shared smiles, and show George

spk_0 listening closely. Her life and stories affirmed to him what had been ignored in park management

spk_0 up until that time. People had been living in and actively managing the so-called

spk_0 untouched wilderness spaces for thousands of years. Up until that time, the National Park Service

spk_0 practiced what some historians have called facade management, protecting scenery and prioritizing

spk_0 visitor enjoyment without any interest in or understanding of the consequences that those choices

spk_0 had. George had been wrestling with the consequences of actions like predator control and bare feeding,

spk_0 and believed that successful park management would involve active efforts to undo those practices.

spk_0 He's like, how can we? I'm recognizing all the problems that these practices are having,

spk_0 how do we write these wrongs? And how do we stop doing this? I don't know. I don't know.

spk_0 And it's obviously what they're doing is harmful, even though that wasn't the intent.

spk_0 Yeah. And starting to incorporate and integrate and acknowledge Indigenous voices and knowledge,

spk_0 and just kind of like this all-encompassing revamp and pivoting how things are done at a larger level.

spk_0 And not just in Yosemite, but of course, he's based there. So it's kind of like that's where his

spk_0 focus was at first, but he had larger plans. He believed that in an ideal world, parks should be

spk_0 to maintain the landscape in a primeval condition free of harmful human influence. He wrote in his

spk_0 journal, quote, recognition that there are wildlife programs is admission that unnatural man-made

spk_0 conditions exist. Therefore, there can be no logical objection to further inference by man to

spk_0 correct those conditions and restore the natural state. He started to formulate an idea. A multi-year

spk_0 survey of wildlife problems across national parks in the West. He argued this would allow the

spk_0 National Park Service for the very first time to understand the issues wildlife are facing and

spk_0 do something about them. He wrote about this idea to his friend Joseph Dixon, the one who's like,

spk_0 how did you just find these birds in one hour? Years after their search for the surf bird,

spk_0 Dixon was now the head field naturalist for the park service. George laid out his plan for the

spk_0 survey, which Dixon eagerly supported and the two began to slowly discuss the plan with more

spk_0 and more people. And it just goes to show it's not always what you know, but who you know,

spk_0 that really propel things. Because if he didn't have these connections, this may not have gone

spk_0 anywhere. Even if it was a brilliant idea and something that was going to change everything for

spk_0 the park service, some expressed out that George could lead such an ambitious effort. Because

spk_0 number one, it has never been done before. So it's unprecedented in that way, but he's just he's

spk_0 25 years old. And he's only five four. And he's five four, he's short. So how could he possibly?

spk_0 How could short people do anything? Well, in response to those concerns, the pair agreed that Dixon,

spk_0 with his additional years of experience, should be the face of the operation. And others worried

spk_0 that the National Park Service lacked the funds to finance the survey, just point blank. But George

spk_0 in response said, okay, I'll pay for it then. So he funded the entire operation, pulling money

spk_0 from his inheritance to create a private trust. Like a town with big pockets. Yeah. And such a passion

spk_0 for like what he believed in. It's like he works for the federal government. And you would think

spk_0 that they would fund something like this. And he's like, well, if you can't, I think it should

spk_0 be done. So I'll pay for it. If you don't have the money, then I will use my own inheritance that

spk_0 was supposed to be for my livelihood for the cause. Yeah. It's like explaining to me what a teacher

spk_0 cases every single day. Yeah.

spk_0 This episode is brought to you by IQ bar, our exclusive snack and hydration sponsor. IQ bar is

spk_0 the better for you plant protein based snack made with brain boosting nutrients to refuel,

spk_0 nourish and satisfy hunger without the sugar crash. If you're a tried and true NPAD fan, you know

spk_0 I always have IQ bar products on hand. The bars in my car for a quick and nourishing snack,

spk_0 the hydration sticks in my Pilates bag for after heated Pilates sessions for hydration. And the IQ

spk_0 Joe instant coffee in my backpack for hot coffee at camp. All IQ bar products are entirely free from

spk_0 gluten, dairy, soy, GMOs and artificial sweethears. Their ultimate sampler pack is a great way to

spk_0 try all of their products and flavors. You get nine IQ bars, eight IQ mix sticks and four IQ Joe

spk_0 sticks. Their bars are full of plant protein in tons of delicious flavors. Their hydration sticks

spk_0 have no sugar in our full of electrolytes and their IQ Joe have 200 milligrams of jitter-free

spk_0 natural caffeine. With over 20,000 five star reviews and counting, more people than ever are

spk_0 fueling their busy lifestyles with IQ bars, brain and body boosting bars, hydration mixes and

spk_0 mushroom coffees. And as I mentioned, the ultimate sampler pack is the perfect way to get all three.

spk_0 And right now IQ bar is offering our special podcast listeners 20% off all IQ bar products,

spk_0 including the sampler pack plus free shipping. To get your 20% off, text park to 64,000, text

spk_0 P-A-R-K to 64,000. That's park to 64,000. Message and data rates may apply, see terms for details.

spk_0 Well, with all of these provisions in place, the Wildlife Survey was officially greenlit by Horace

spk_0 Albright, who is now the director of the National Park Service. Remember two years earlier,

spk_0 he was the one who advocated for him when that other guy was like, you're too short. So he had

spk_0 advocated for him. Like, we can't lose this guy. He's going to do big things and here it is

spk_0 paying off. So now here he was signing off on his plan to launch the most ambitious research project

spk_0 the National Park Service had ever seen and probably smiling to himself, knowing he advocated for

spk_0 the right guy. You know, like, we made the right guy famous. Like, told you. Yeah. The Wildlife

spk_0 Survey team was composed of three people. George, Dixon and Ben Thompson. Thompson had been working

spk_0 as a waiter at the Awani Hotel in Yosemite when he initially met George. And over the years that he

spk_0 met him, those two or so years that they became friends, George actually convinced Thompson to pursue

spk_0 a zoology master's at Berkeley. He's like, I see great things in you and you can do, you can like

spk_0 really make it. And he encouraged him to pursue his higher education. As the three men prepared for

spk_0 a summer full of field work, George remembered the 72 blown out tires that he suffered on his previous

spk_0 road trip and probably dreading changing another tire. He spent top dollar on a field car. And in May

spk_0 of 1930, they set out on a journey that would last three whole years. And, you know, I love a road

spk_0 trip with you. We were just talking about doing one. We've been on so many trips together. But

spk_0 I don't know if I could do three straight years. Why? What's wrong with me?

spk_0 You just need so many snacks all the time. You know, you're not hung. You're not hung.

spk_0 Yeah. And you lose your phone like every 15 to 20 minutes, somehow in the car. You're like,

spk_0 hold on, I have to check for my phone. Can you check my location? That happened for one time for

spk_0 a duration of 30 minutes. It happens a lot. And also, I just three years away from home is just too far

spk_0 too long. I think. Right. Nothing. It's not you. It's not you as a person. It's me. It's not you,

spk_0 it's me. Right. That's what they keep telling me. And I just don't get it.

spk_0 So the Wildlife Survey would eventually visit 14 national parks. And in each park, they sought

spk_0 together a broad perspective on the issues facing wildlife. They met with park superintendents to

spk_0 evaluate different park management actions and interviewed what they refer to as old timers

spk_0 in the area to understand how things used to be in whatever park they were at and what changes

spk_0 they've noticed on the landscape. It was through these conversations that George and the team would

spk_0 identify issues in each park and begin to collect data, which is just so like something that we see

spk_0 also we just saw. So we didn't mention, but we just returned from a trip to Voyager's National Park

spk_0 where we did a weekend with the Voyager's Wolf project. And a lot of what we learned that weekend

spk_0 was just this collaborative approach that the project has with the residents that live in and around

spk_0 to the park and are living and working and recreating with and trying to branch among wolves.

spk_0 And how different coexistence measures either do or don't work or they just listen to the locals

spk_0 about their frustrations or their worries or whatever. And that is integrated into how they operate

spk_0 and how the project is run. And we see that over and over not only with different like wildlife

spk_0 things, but even the park itself, we were talking to some people who work at the headquarters

spk_0 at Voyager's and they were showing us some archival footage and materials about how when the park

spk_0 was established in 1975, like some of the frustrations that the locals had with either selling their

spk_0 property or having different parcels of land dedicated to the park that now is no longer available

spk_0 for private use and public and just kind of the conversations that we kind of take for granted.

spk_0 Like well, of course you talk to the locals. Why wouldn't you? It's like back heat back then.

spk_0 That was not something that was ever considered. Yeah. And I mean, even still today is a struggle

spk_0 throughout. So seeing it incorporated is actually big, huge steps that are being made to talk

spk_0 because I mean, especially when you are, of course, were huge advocates for preserving land

spk_0 in national parks, but you have to, if it's impeding on someone's livelihood and it's taking

spk_0 way their land and it's interrupting where they live, they need to be at a bare minimum a part of

spk_0 the conversation. Yeah. Exactly. Well, his biggest thing, I mean, of course, this is kind of

spk_0 centered on wildlife management, this whole project. So he's going into the records at different

spk_0 park headquarters throughout their trip to kind of get a better understanding of what they're doing

spk_0 in regards to wildlife management and predator control specifically. And at the Grand Canyon,

spk_0 he discovered records in the park headquarters that tracked the number of animals killed by the

spk_0 national park staff in that park since 1922 and it read 293 coyotes 75 wild cats 19 fox two mountain

spk_0 lions and one wolf and he knew immediately off the bat that this number was almost certainly

spk_0 an understatement since the creation of parks in 1916, Rangers had been allowed to supplement their

spk_0 income by trapping and selling animal peltz and the park service wasn't the only agency involved

spk_0 in predator control. The US Biological Survey, a predecessor to the Fish and Wildlife Service,

spk_0 had spent the previous 20 years targeting predators across public lands throughout the West,

spk_0 pioneering in particular the widespread use of poison bait traps. And this was kind of to George

spk_0 he viewed this as not only like it probably upset him at a fundamental level, but also he recognized

spk_0 that the absence of predators revealed that the parks were incomplete. He believed and rightfully so

spk_0 that these predators were indicators of a healthy environment and should be afforded the same

spk_0 protections the National Park Service gave to other species. Yet no matter how much George

spk_0 disagreed with a practice, he never reprimanded or chastised those he spoke to, like the Rangers

spk_0 who would hop out of their car while driving him around to shoot a coyote running across the road.

spk_0 The wildlife team would eventually make recommendations on how to address these problems,

spk_0 but while in the field George was simply there to observe and to listen. That would be so hard for me,

spk_0 and I feel like that's so hypocritical to be employed in a park to protect the area. And I know

spk_0 that there's a different view at this point in time, but you're there to protect these species in

spk_0 the land that lives here. And you are also privy to a lot of information that other people are,

spk_0 or say just an average hunter who is out. You're privy to a lot of information of where these animals are,

spk_0 and you're just allowed to like go off in your own time and go exactly where you know that they are

spk_0 and wait for them and hunt them. And not only allowed them to be encouraged. Yeah. It's like,

spk_0 we'll pay you. The government is not only employing you, but they're going to pay you for every

spk_0 predator pelt that you bring back. Yeah, but there's incentive as well. And especially in a time

spk_0 where you have to provide for your families and stuff, you're like, oh, this is great. I'm in the

spk_0 place I love. These animals are at my, like, they're right here. They're right here. And at this time,

spk_0 they're also viewed as more of nuisance animals. And I mean, there's a lot of different reasons

spk_0 that kind of play into the larger picture here. But George immediately was kind of like, okay,

spk_0 this isn't right. We need to fix this a little bit. But the whole purpose of this trip, this

spk_0 multi-year trip was to just gather the information and observe the practices for what they were. And

spk_0 how to better operate and change practices and stuff. But in the moment, he was simply just there

spk_0 to hear people out and see what was going on. And it takes a lot of restraint, especially with

spk_0 somebody who disagrees with what you're doing. Right. Exactly. Yeah. And it's moments like these

spk_0 and stories like these and these. I just think if people had taken the time to actually talk to

spk_0 Indigenous people way back when not even that far. And even now, there's so much we could have known

spk_0 and learned about our land, or our land, their land and and not made so many mistakes to eradicate

spk_0 species and ruin landscapes. And it's just, it's interesting now having these conversations where

spk_0 they're like, they were, they were thought of these nuisance species where if you had, I guarantee if

spk_0 you had spoken to any Indigenous people before that, you would have learned that they're not a nuisance

spk_0 that they have a real, a real meaning to being here. And I just think of that when you're talking

spk_0 about it like, HUD. It's a real missed opportunity to say it very plainly. You know, it's just,

spk_0 it's just, you could have avoided so much death and ruining and and even just come, I mean,

spk_0 even just being here in first place. We obviously did a lot of stuff. But if there had just been

spk_0 open conversations that were happening, all of this could have been avoided. So then when you're

spk_0 talking about how George is just, he's just listening and hearing and then later has these

spk_0 conversations, it's kind of bringing you back to like, oh, someone who knows how to have a conversation.

spk_0 Right. Yeah.

spk_0 Recently, I've been getting texts about failed delivery attempts from allegedly UPS. And because

spk_0 I always have my ears and eyes open for scams, I knew this was one right off the bat,

spk_0 especially because they requested I verify my identity by giving them over financial information.

spk_0 And I know this is the age of electronically sending and receiving money, but come on now.

spk_0 Your security deserves to be a priority and cash app treats it that way. With security lock,

spk_0 cash app requires a successful face ID or biometric authentication to access your account.

spk_0 It's like your money is protected by your own personal bodyguard, even if your phone is lost or

spk_0 stolen. Plus, if you're about to send money to someone new and cash app notices something looks

spk_0 a bit off or you might be falling for a scam, it will send you a warning before the money is sent

spk_0 to confirm that everything looks right. Turn on security lock in your cash app settings today and

spk_0 pay attention to scam warnings to keep your money safe. Learn more at cash.app slash security.

spk_0 For a limited time, new cash app customers can earn $10 if they use code secure 10 in their profile

spk_0 at signup and send $5 to a friend within 14 days. Terms apply. Cash app is a financial services

spk_0 platform, not a bank. Banking services provided by Cash Apps bank partners. Prepaid debit cards

spk_0 issued by Sutton Bank member FDIC. Discounts provided by Cash app, a block ink brand.

spk_0 Visit cash.app slash legal slash podcast for full disclosures.

spk_0 One mystery that the group hoped to understand was the shockingly low survival rate of swan chicks,

spk_0 which was a serious obstacle to their recovery. One day, Dixon spotted one possible explanation,

spk_0 and that was Ravens. Ravens would constantly harass the swans swooping into their nest while the

spk_0 adults were away, leading them to fly back and chase the Ravens off. George and Thompson spent a

spk_0 few nights at another lake nearby and observed a Raven cracking into an egg without alerting the

spk_0 nearby adults, flying off with its contents. To see the aftermath, the two biologists stripped to

spk_0 their underwear and carefully waited up to the nest itself, a large mound of dried plants,

spk_0 three feet tall, and six feet around. Five eggs remained, all safe and sound as they should be.

spk_0 They took measurements and went back ashore unnoticed by the parents. Through work like this,

spk_0 they hoped to lay out a foundation for a recovery plan for trumpeter swans. Understanding their

spk_0 habitat needs and the threats they face would allow parks to better protect them going forward.

spk_0 And sprinkled in with their detailed notes of wildlife surveys were glimpses into the lives of

spk_0 the biologists themselves during their three-year long trip. Their work was often challenging,

spk_0 getting up at four or five in the morning and hiking at far distances, but it also had its rewards.

spk_0 Spending months outdoors, camped out in some of the most spectacular landscapes this country has

spk_0 to offer. While on a trip through Mesa Verde, George's journal reads,

spk_0 these four days were spent as happily as any I have ever known. The desert scenery,

spk_0 for color and fantastic formations surely must be as fine as any in the world. Even Dixon,

spk_0 whose notes were usually pretty dry and direct and very clinical almost, lean towards some flowery

spk_0 descriptions and bordering on poetry when in awe of the natural world. For example, he said,

spk_0 turning their tremendous spread of white wings against the blue waters of the lake,

spk_0 it made a picture never to be forgotten. In each park they visited, George encountered problems

spk_0 that we still see in certain locations today. And specifically, I want to hone in on one in particular,

spk_0 and that is park boundaries. There was no relationship between the park boundaries and the natural

spk_0 boundaries of habitats. In Mount Rainier, for example, deer elk and mountain goats flourished in

spk_0 the high elevation park throughout the summer, but come winter, they moved down to lower elevations,

spk_0 down into the forest service lands, which didn't afford the same protections as within the park,

spk_0 and many were immediately shot once they stepped out of the park boundary protections.

spk_0 These species had been long targeted with landowners aiming to keep them off their grazing lands

spk_0 for nearby cattle. But by the 1930s, people displaced by the Great Depression and the Dust Bowl

spk_0 had also set up camp nearby, depending on the game animals for income and substance. As a result,

spk_0 the protections that Mount Rainier provided were limited, if not useless, to these animals,

spk_0 especially year-round. I mean, they only spend part of their time within the protections of the park.

spk_0 The problem, George described, is that the park boundaries were drawn for political reasons,

spk_0 with no considerations for natural habitat boundaries. And this problem was not limited to that

spk_0 specific park. It reared its head in other places too, like Mesa Verde in Yellowstone. George

spk_0 probably, sighing in exasperation, wrote of the problem in his report, referring to Mesa Verde,

spk_0 in particular, saying, quote, on the south and west side to the park, there are no present natural

spk_0 boundaries. It is like a house with two sides left open. The wildlife team began to argue that

spk_0 park should be biographically self-sufficient units, containing enough habitat for their wildlife

spk_0 to survive year-round. When necessary, park should acquire additional lands, and new park should

spk_0 only be created with this particular goal in mind. For all of these reasons, George and Thompson

spk_0 were sent to South Florida in the fall of 1930 to survive the region's wildlife as part of an

spk_0 evaluation of a newly proposed national park, which happened to be the Everglades. George's

spk_0 notes from this trip are surprisingly sparse, likely because on this particular trip to the

spk_0 Everglades, he contracted malaria. And for somebody who I didn't have malaria, but I had dengue,

spk_0 and it was not fun. I would not be writing in my journal. Let me just tell you that. And for him,

spk_0 it proved to be quite debilitating, and it was so bad, in fact, that he couldn't make it back to

spk_0 California as planned, and their road trip stopped at a hospital in Phoenix. But, while laid

spk_0 up in the hospital, he made a surprising choice. He decided to get married in the hospital. Yep.

spk_0 George had met Bernice Ray, whom everyone called B, when they were both students at UC Berkeley.

spk_0 Two years younger than George, the two were engaged in July of 1930 and had planned to get married

spk_0 months down the road. However, after a phone call, they moved it up, B and her family rushed to Phoenix,

spk_0 and they were married right there in the hospital. Did they think he was going to die? Yeah. I don't know

spk_0 if they were like, and I've heard of that before, you know, people getting married when somebody

spk_0 has a terminal illness, or they know that the other person doesn't have long. So whether they were

spk_0 just impatient, were concerned for his, you know, his welfare's fate, or especially because he had

spk_0 family inheritance, and he wanted to make, he wanted to make sure that B was set legally. Yeah.

spk_0 If he, if something happened to him, it feels like an emergency marriage, not that they didn't want

spk_0 to be married, but to do it in that way. It feels like it's an emergency, like they're worried.

spk_0 They're really worried. Yeah, exactly. So he just wanted to make sure that she was set, and he did.

spk_0 That's really nice. After three summers of constant field work, he and the team turned to publishing

spk_0 their findings in 1932. While their work would continue for another year, they compiled their findings

spk_0 and recommendations into a publication titled Fauna 1. In it, they addressed predator control,

spk_0 trumpeter swans, and park boundaries. They discussed overgrazing, a common problem caused by

spk_0 alchandier populations left unchecked by native predators, and they investigated the ever-popular

spk_0 bear feeding shows. Thompson would even explore the creation of bear-proof food boxes, likely the

spk_0 earliest iteration of this idea. Like something we are so, we come to expect to be provided for us

spk_0 when we recreate in places in bear country, whether it be black bear, grizzly bear, whatever.

spk_0 Like that's common practice now, but here he's like, hey, maybe we should perhaps try this crazy

spk_0 new idea. Crazy idea. You know, all ideas are crazy at first, right? They're recommendations

spk_0 keeping wildlife wild and limiting human impacts, impacts presented an entirely new future for the

spk_0 national park service. On paper, Joseph Dixon was the leader of the wildlife survey, because remember

spk_0 they're like, you should be the face of this because people don't like me because I'm short and

spk_0 inexperienced. But everyone knew that George was always recognized as its driving force. George,

spk_0 through his boots on the ground, conversations with the public, specifically those who were most

spk_0 connected to the spaces he was studying, recognized that research would not be enough to affect

spk_0 change. They needed to get people on their side as their ideas about wildlife management were not

spk_0 always popular. Ben Thompson would later say of this time, quote, there were a number of longtime

spk_0 employees, superintendents, chief rangers, and others who liked the good old days of predatory

spk_0 animal control and corralling the ungulates so the public could see them, feeding the bears at

spk_0 feeding stations and making a big show of it. There was all of that to overcome and to make

spk_0 progress with that and have them still like you was quite an accomplishment. Joe and I didn't

spk_0 have the kind of personality for it and we knew it, but George did have it. It was a gift of his

spk_0 character. Thanks to George and his team's efforts, national park leadership would formally adopt

spk_0 Bonna Wons recommendations as official policy, transforming the agency itself. It was sent by mail

spk_0 to every park superintendent with custom recommendations for each park, including an endorsement from

spk_0 27 prominent scholars, which is just such a huge accomplishment. Yeah. To affect change not only in

spk_0 one specific area, but throughout the agency. Yeah. It's like this is standard now. This is standard

spk_0 protocol for what we do as an agency nationwide. Yeah, he standardized the protocol. For any one of us,

spk_0 that publication and the changes it served as a catalyst for would probably would have been just

spk_0 like more than enough. Like I did it. We did a joke and just hang up your hat and just get started.

spk_0 Yeah. For him, the work was just beginning. The success of the Wildlife Survey helped win the

spk_0 support for his next goal, the creation of a wildlife division within the National Park Service.

spk_0 This division would oversee the continued and expanded efforts of wildlife research within

spk_0 national parks. And there was no doubt in anyone's mind who should be the leader of that department.

spk_0 In March of 1933, President Herbert Hoover signed off on George's appointment as the head of the

spk_0 new National Park Service Wildlife Division. He, B, and their two daughters, Charmaine and Pamela,

spk_0 packed up their Berkeley home and moved to DC. Once there, he was able to hire a small staff,

spk_0 including his friends, Dixon and Thompson, to continue research around the country. For the very

spk_0 first time, the Wildlife staff were paid directly by the park service. Could remember he had been

spk_0 being, he had been doing everything from the get go out of his own pocket. Which is crazy.

spk_0 In this new administrative role, he oversaw a period of significant change in the National Park

spk_0 Service and not just in wildlife policy. FDR was elected and his new deal brought money and

spk_0 manpower to the National Parks. The CCC sent thousands of unemployed young men out to build campgrounds,

spk_0 facilities and roads. And while the National Park Service welcomed this influx of funds, the resulting

spk_0 development projects often ran in opposition of George's position as a wildlife director. And

spk_0 just because he now led a wildlife division didn't mean he had a seat at every table when it was

spk_0 coming to making these decisions. But sure enough, he made his way into the room.

spk_0 In one example, he heard about a project that was going to essentially pave a certain portion

spk_0 of the road near the southroom of the Grand Canyon. And he had been there quite a number of times

spk_0 doing different surveys and gathering different data. So he knew that area and that dirt road in

spk_0 particular that they were trying to pave. And he knew that it spanned across a largely intact

spk_0 remote habitat between the Canyon Village and have a soup by point. An area that had been overgrazed

spk_0 and was in need of restoration. Yet he only heard about this road project after it had been approved.

spk_0 Seeking to limit the impact of park planning efforts, he wrote a letter of protest to the director

spk_0 making the case that the road should be kept as a wilderness trail for automobiles. Unpaved,

spk_0 argued it would both preserve habitat and provide a fantastic experience for any tourist who

spk_0 quote would like to do a little exploring on their own as a real wildlife trip. The engineers

spk_0 and architects push back on him right away. George sent Thompson to the area to collect detailed

spk_0 data on the impacts that the road would have. And after considerable back and forth, it was

spk_0 agreed that the road would be modestly improved but kept as a dirt one. And from then on,

spk_0 the wildlife division had to see at every planning meeting. And this was just one of the many

spk_0 ways that George steadily shaped the National Park Service culture. It's just like he's right there

spk_0 in the mid he's like, okay, I hear you and I understand your concerns and your wants and needs

spk_0 and desires. But also like this is a problem. And it's not like my way or the highway and I think

spk_0 that's when we see so many budding of heads when it's like no, we have to do everything my way.

spk_0 And there's no room for consideration of the other person or perspective. And he was just so good

spk_0 at coming to compromise that it made people more open to considering a collaborative effort and

spk_0 maybe a new option. It doesn't have to be A or B. It could be C totally. And he's also coming at it

spk_0 from it feels like and you've talked about this already, but that nobody's really looking at this

spk_0 from the wildlife perspective. So he's coming in and he's like, I see what you want. But what about

spk_0 the wildlife that's here? How can we how can we fix this? So we're actually doing something that's

spk_0 beneficial to them as well. And when you're talking about the roads and driving them and stuff, you see

spk_0 those dirt roads in a lot of National Parks now. And I wonder if this was like kind of a well,

spk_0 he was like, yeah, I understand you want a road here to get tourism to these places and to

spk_0 pride access to people, which brings in dollars to the park because people need to access the park.

spk_0 Yeah. However, like, can we just keep it as a dirt road and not pave it? You know, it's just like

spk_0 and that's just one example. I mean, there's so many. But that's just one that points to kind of his

spk_0 approach to coming into conversations and getting somewhere with them instead of just arguing around

spk_0 around the bad idea. And then we're going to actually close this whole area because the wildlife needs

spk_0 it. It's like to the other side, they're like, okay, that's all well and good, but that doesn't

spk_0 provide opportunity for tourism. And yeah, which is paying for their protections. Right. Right.

spk_0 The scope of his work had grown while he continued to sport on the ground research, he began to make

spk_0 his case for wildlife conservation to larger and larger audiences. In 1934, he gave a heartfelt

spk_0 national radio address about the concerning decline of wild game across the country, published

spk_0 Fona 2, a follow up to Fona 1 and spoke at prominent conferences. Often, likely in a strategic move to

spk_0 make important connections, he prioritized relationships with the heads of other agencies like Bob Marshall,

spk_0 a Forest Service employee, and prominent advocate for the growing wilderness movement. It was through

spk_0 relationships like these that he facilitated change, like his connection with Ding Darling,

spk_0 Chief of the US Biological Survey, a collaboration which helped create the Red Rock Lakes Waterfowl

spk_0 refuge in Montana, significantly expanding protected Trumpeter Swan Habitat. For California

spk_0 National Park fans, you can thank George, like, pour out, pour one out for him here, because he

spk_0 spearheaded the effort to create Kings Canyon National Park by working with the Sierra Club to

spk_0 coordinate an advocacy campaign and, with photographer Ansel Adams, whom he'd met in Yosemite Valley

spk_0 years before. The pair organized an exhibition of Ansel's High Sierra Photography, which was

spk_0 displayed for Washington lawmakers, which inspired its preservation. And I think we hear about that a

spk_0 lot with Ansel Adams and how his photos really spoke to people who had never seen the area, or,

spk_0 you know, just really was like, look at how beautiful this is, this should be protected. But I've

spk_0 I've heard of that. I've never heard of George's part in it. And now it's very clear that it was

spk_0 an equal effort. And all of this by just 31 years old. Many who witnessed his rise, like former

spk_0 director Horace Albright believed he would become director of the park service someday, and yet

spk_0 tragically, we know what happens next. On Tuesday, February 25th, 1936, George Wright was killed in a

spk_0 crash accident, midway through the International Commission on the Southern border, the National Park

spk_0 Service had lost one of its brightest rising stars. His loss sent reverberations felt by many.

spk_0 His former supervisor in Yosemite, Carl Russell, said, George was at once my greatest inspiration

spk_0 and best sustaining friend in the office. I feel we have lost the conservationists in our official

spk_0 ranks who really combined understanding with action. I can think of no one who can replace George.

spk_0 And Bob Marshall said, probably more than any one person, George Wright was responsible for

spk_0 bringing about the healthy change in the general attitude towards the wildlife problem, which has

spk_0 recently developed. He did not think merely in terms of keeping outroads or preventing lumbering

spk_0 or stopping hunting. He thought in terms of the primitive whole, just as he thought in terms of

spk_0 wildlife as a whole, no one could ever ask for a better friend. The Sunday after his death,

spk_0 B invited close friends over to the house where they put on George's favorite music and celebrated

spk_0 his life, then later went to Cyprus Lawn Memorial Park and spread his ashes at Auntie's grave.

spk_0 Despite his short life, George Wright is widely known as the father of scientific research

spk_0 in the National Park Service. His view of wildlife and wilderness as a vast interconnected system,

spk_0 rather than separate units, shifted how national parks operated, and changed what we believe parks

spk_0 can and should be. His friendly approach, building relationships wherever he went,

spk_0 sped up the adoption of ideas that were to many at the time and even now considered radical.

spk_0 However, his absence in the wildlife division was felt in the years to come. Park saw continued

spk_0 emphasis on the development through CCC projects and without George present, the emphasis on wildlife

spk_0 declined in the years to come. Lowell Sumner, a biologist that worked under him and continued on

spk_0 after his passing described the following years in the wildlife division, saying no one else had

spk_0 George Wright's ability to placate and win over the opposing school of thought, which increasingly

spk_0 was coming to feel that the biologists were impractical, were unaware that parks are for people,

spk_0 and were a hindrance to large-scale plans for park development.

spk_0 Considered one of George's most significant contributions, the book Fauna 1 remained somewhat

spk_0 of a working Bible for park staff biologists, but with the arrival of World War II, it went out of

spk_0 print and its lessons for a time seemed to go with it. But George's influence and legacy survived,

spk_0 and if you know where to look, his name is honored in the very things that he loved the most.

spk_0 After the war, several mountains were named in his honor, one in Denali, where he once discovered

spk_0 the surf bird nest, and one in Big Bend. And in the 1960s, the park service began to think critically

spk_0 about the issues George had first raised during his time, forming committees to kickstart scientific

spk_0 research within parks. Lowel Sumner still working for the park service repeatedly insisted that

spk_0 George Wright had all this figured out years ago, someone totally ahead of his time. By the 1980s,

spk_0 two park service biologists who recognized how much they owed to George created the George

spk_0 Wright Society. A non-profit whose mission is to quote, promote research, the synthesis of

spk_0 information, and the useful dissemination of results to management policy makers and the public,

spk_0 in whose hands the ultimate fate of parks, historic sites, and reserves will rest.

spk_0 Fonno One still exists today, and you can access it for free online. And if you are more of a visual

spk_0 person, photos taken by him, Dixon and Thompson during that three-year wildlife survey have been

spk_0 digitized for the first time and are available for all to see on the National Park Service History

spk_0 Collection website. George Wright's legacy as a boundary breaking and pioneering wildlife biologist

spk_0 is something we can all admire. Yet an enduring part of his story is wondering how things might

spk_0 have gone differently had he lived longer. What would be different today if his vision, his passion,

spk_0 and his personality were not cut short? We will never know, but one thing is for certain, we owe a lot

spk_0 to George Wright and all that he did to protect our parks. And that is the story of George Melinda's

spk_0 right. It's so interesting because I feel like you don't really see his name very often in

spk_0 comparison to a lot of other people. So it's been really interesting to learn about him and all

spk_0 of his contributions. And it is a question, I mean, how you ended that, if what else might

spk_0 he have implemented during his life if he had the opportunity? Mm-hmm. Yeah, I mean, he certainly

spk_0 served as a catalyst for change that we see in our experiences in parks today. And the questions

spk_0 that he had are still being contemplated and mold over and thought out today on a larger scale.

spk_0 But yeah, I mean, going through the research for this and just the friends and connections that

spk_0 he had, you're right, their names I've heard of before, Bob Marshall, Ansel Adams,

spk_0 even Grinnell, even though it was the wrong Grinnell, but still. I kind of count because when I

spk_0 did, when I looked at him, I did, I was thinking of somebody else, but the work that this guy did,

spk_0 I had heard of before. I just didn't know his name. So just either their work or who they were,

spk_0 I had heard of before, but never, never George. So now people know about him. And if you want to

spk_0 read more about him and his life and all the things that he did, I mean, it goes on and on.

spk_0 The book, George Melendez, right, The Fight for Wildlife and Wilderness in the National Parks by

spk_0 Jerry Emory is a fan. That's the book I found in Rocky Mountain National Park. Gotcha. That gave me

spk_0 the idea for this episode. And it's so interesting because not only is the book great, I mean,

spk_0 it's very interesting and it highlights just all the amazing things that he did. But the author

spk_0 has a personal connection to George. So he, he was a graduate student at UC Berkeley, same

spk_0 school that George went to all those years ago. But when he was there and he was a student, he met and

spk_0 fell in love with one of George's granddaughters of Norway. And he got married to her. And like, he had

spk_0 because he was, I think he was a geologist or studying geology. So he was in the natural sciences and

spk_0 had known about George, right? Like, in passing, but it's through his partner and his wife

spk_0 that he was like, wait a second. Who is, who was this guy? And he has all this, I mean, beat. So

spk_0 beat who is George's wife. I mean, she obviously became widowed in her 30s. She was very young. And she

spk_0 did eventually get remarried. However, she kept all of George's field notes and books and notes

spk_0 and everything. So Jerry, the author of this book had access to all of that. And clearly testimonial from

spk_0 his family, his descendants. And of course, he did a bunch of other research and went to head court.

spk_0 I mean, he worked on this book for like almost a decade, rather than so close. And he deved into it,

spk_0 though. That's right. But yeah, like such a cool personal connection. And yeah, that's how he was

spk_0 really introduced to George, right? And yeah, so it's a, it's a cool way to find interest in

spk_0 wanting to research somebody, not just because they were, they did so much and accomplished a lot,

spk_0 but because you now have this like familial connection to them. Yeah. So yeah. Anyway, so yeah,

spk_0 that's George's story. And again, I was saving it for a time like this to celebrate Hispanic heritage

spk_0 month and just recognize just the contributions that people threw out, you know, diversity is a

spk_0 strength. And we want to recognize just everybody that has contributed amazing things to the National

spk_0 Park Service. And George Wright was certainly one of them. So I will link the book in the

spk_0 episode description and post some fun pictures of him on his adventures. And thank you for listening.

spk_0 Yeah. Thanks everyone for hanging out. Thanks for telling that story. We will see you next time

spk_0 in the meantime. Enjoy the view. But watch your back. Bye everyone. Bye. Thank you for joining us again

spk_0 this week. If you love National Park After Dark and want to hear exclusive bonus stories,

spk_0 join us on Patreon or Apple subscriptions. Patreon subscribers have access to our National Park

spk_0 After Dark book club, live streams, discord and much more. If you prefer to watch our episodes,

spk_0 video episodes are now available on YouTube. If you're enjoying the show, please take a moment to

spk_0 rate, review and subscribe on your favorite listening platform. And to follow along with all our

spk_0 adventures, you can find us on Instagram, Facebook, TikTok and X at National Park After Dark.

326: Short Life, Long Legacy. The Vision of George Meléndez Wright.

Interactive Transcript

Topics Covered

Related Episodes

If you're here to raise consciousness on this planet... (Akashic Records Workshop coming up!)

Ep. 309 – Love Binds All Things: What We Can Do to Help the World with Prof. Rajiv S. Joshi

People on TikTok BEGGING for Money is Unhinged (Sad Fishing for Money)

Justin Martin Wrestles with Phil's Advice on Fatherhood

Share Episode