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FRESH OFF THE PRESS!
Docent Donn Smith has been busy poking around the attic of the Mather Homestead and he's found treasures abound! Check out his blogs which document his findings including artifacts from 250 years of American life - a bible from 1743, a girl's dress from the 1860's, Stephen Mather's camera, a love letter written by Stephen Mather to his wife ❤️ and more. Oh the stories they tell!
Shining A Light on the Mather Homestead Mourning Picture
In the southeast corner bedroom of the Homestead is a mourning picture remembering Deacon Joseph Mather and his wife Sarah. The...
Mather Homestead Foundation
Apr 22, 20241 min read
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Summa cum Laude…Educators honor Stephen Mather Archived correspondence from Eight American College Leaders
The Mather Homestead archives hold Stephen Mather’s honorary degrees and academic hoods worn for ceremonies at the University of...
Mather Homestead Foundation
Apr 12, 20242 min read
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Change of Plans: Bertha and the Architect Bertha Mather critiques the work of Thomas Harlan Ellett
In 1926, Stephen Mather commissioned Thomas Harlan Ellett for a major renovation and expansion of the Homestead. We have a letter that...
Mather Homestead Foundation
Apr 11, 20241 min read
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Two Military Salutes to Stephen Tyng Mather Correspondence from Generals Hugh Scott and John Pershing
The archived letters at the Bancroft Library reveal not only the depth of respect and admiration felt for Stephen Mather, but its breadth...
Mather Homestead Foundation
Mar 26, 20242 min read
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Stephen Mather Letters from Friends in High Places Excerpts of correspondence from American religious leaders
Among the letters archived in the Bancroft Library are several from leading clergy who knew Stephen and shared their respect and...
Mather Homestead Foundation
Mar 25, 20242 min read
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Save me a seat…Bear Mountain, May 27, 1933 The Unveiling of the Stephen T. Mather Tablet
An earlier blog (Saturday in the Park with Eleanor), looked at Eleanor Roosevelt’s participation in the dedication of the Mather plaque...
Mather Homestead Foundation
Mar 25, 20241 min read
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“…our rail business…has increased about 100 percent…” From the rails to the trails…National Parks and western railroads.
In a July 1929 letter to Stephen Mather, William Basinger, Passenger Traffic Manager of the Union Pacific System wrote in part: “The...
Mather Homestead Foundation
Mar 25, 20242 min read
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“Civilizing the Wild West” one restaurant at a time Stephen Mather and the Concessionaire Extraordinaire
Before there were HoJos, or Holiday Inns, there was Fred Harvey. In his 1926 Annual Report of the National Park Service, Stephen Mather...
Mather Homestead Foundation
Mar 11, 20242 min read
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Sympathy and the “Shoshone” A letter from Thomas Moran’s daughter to Stephen Mather
In a February 1929 letter from Monte Carlo, Ruth Moran wrote to Stephen Mather… “I was so sorry to hear of your illness last autumn, and...
Mather Homestead Foundation
Mar 7, 20241 min read
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“…we are very grateful that he was our friend…” A condolence note from the “world’s greatest woman explorer.”
Among the materials archived at the Bancroft Library is a two page note to “Dearest Jane and Betty” from Harriet Chalmers Adams, whom the...
Mather Homestead Foundation
Mar 7, 20242 min read
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A holiday greeting…and an emphatic RSVP “Yes!” Correspondence from two of America’s leading journalists
From his days at the New York Sun to inviting Gilbert Grosvenor of National Geographic to join the 1915 Mather Mountain Pary, Stephen...
Mather Homestead Foundation
Feb 25, 20242 min read
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“…Everywhere there is quality and a willingness to serve…” A January 1929 letter from W.T. Grant to Stephen T. Mather
Fifty-six years before there was Walmart, there was W.T. Grant Department Stores. From its founding in Lynn MA in 1906, W.T. Grant...
Mather Homestead Foundation
Feb 25, 20241 min read
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“…wintriest winter even in the experience of Judge Fry…” An appreciation of NPS Superintendent Judge Walter Fry
In a letter to Stephen Mather, John Roberts White mentions Judge Fry, his predecessor, mentor, and moving force behind the development of...
Mather Homestead Foundation
Feb 25, 20241 min read
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And don’t forget to send me a postcard… A remembrance of the Haynes’ National Park photo shops.
In a letter to Stephen Mather NPS Superintendent John Roberts White writes, ”… It was good to see you even in the movies which were shown...
Mather Homestead Foundation
Feb 25, 20242 min read
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“…It is a tropic sunset done in stone…” John Roberts White’s letter to Stephen Mather from Bryce Canyon
Yes, there was a time, before texting and TikTok, when an indelibly evocative picture could be found in a written line…when a letter...
Mather Homestead Foundation
Feb 25, 20243 min read
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The Cleveland Connection... Three notes to Stephen Mather from two of his fifth cousins
On the Homestead site, under the “Mather Family Tree,” you will find that Stephen’s lineage traces back to Timothy, the “Farmer Mather,”...
Mather Homestead Foundation
Feb 25, 20242 min read
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Not often you get a lake named for you! Elwood Mead’s “Mather’s children” letter to Stephen T. Mather
Among the letters archived at the Bancroft Library, is a four-page hand-written note from Elwood Mead, the Commissioner of the Bureau of...
Mather Homestead Foundation
Feb 18, 20242 min read
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Warm words from a northern neighbor ... A letter to Jane Floy Mather from Mrs. Vincent Massey
In 1926, Canada’s Governor-General appointed Vincent Massey to be Canadian envoy to the United States, making Massey Canada’s first ever...
Mather Homestead Foundation
Feb 18, 20242 min read
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A guano bucket, gasoline lanterns, and more. Stephen Mather at Carlsbad Caverns and a remembrance.
The National Park Service’s history of Carlsbad Caverns includes these two entries… 1924 – March 20 to September 15, Dr. Willis T. Lee,...
Mather Homestead Foundation
Feb 18, 20241 min read
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“…I have learned to look upon you as a real friend… ”A letter from a Presidential grandson to Stephen Mather
At the Homestead, we are in the process of scanning and cataloging letters sent to Stephen Mather. The original letters are archived in...
Mather Homestead Foundation
Feb 18, 20242 min read
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