Louisa "Louie" Muir

Louisa "Louie" Wanda Strentzel, wife of John Muir, a talented musician, dedicated mother, and capable manager of the Strentzel family ranch. Colorized image. Edited from the original.

JOMU

John Muir's Wife

Early Life

Louisa Wanda Strentzel was born in Texas in 1847. She came to California in 1849, the same year John Muir moved to Wisconsin from Scotland. So much has been made of Muir's life that Louie's life and contributions are hardly known. This brief paper is a tribute to Louie and to the help and support she gave her husband in his work. Louie was a wonderful musician, wife, mother, ranch manager, and helpmate. Muir did not relegate Louie to an anonymous life in the background—this is what she herself preferred. She stayed close to home because she wanted to, preferring not to be away more than a day or two. Certainly, she was not inclined to camp out on an Alaskan glacier or even take a walk in the hills near their Alhambra Valley home.

Journey to California

In 1849, the Strentzel family came to San Diego, California, by covered wagon and then settled along the Merced River. The family operated an inn and then a farm, where Louie's father, John Strentzel, began horticultural experiments. After three years in that area, they moved to Arroyo el Hambre (Valley of Hunger)* in 1853 and camped out until their first house could be built. Louie's mother, Louisiana Strentzel, disliked the name of the valley (named by Spanish soldiers who nearly starved there) and renamed it Alhambra Valley after the popular story by Washington Irving about the Alhambra palace in Spain.

Education and Musical Talent

In 1859, Louie's formal education began as a day student at Miss Atkins' Young Ladies Seminary across the Bay in Benicia. The school, founded in 1852, attracted students from the U.S. and abroad. At the seminary, Louie studied a wide range of subjects, from English to Entomology, and became an accomplished pianist. Louie's March 12, 1860, report card by Mary Atkins survives, showing that she was graded on 22 different subjects and scored a perfect 10 in almost all of them. Miss Atkins remarked that Louie passed her examination "very creditably."

Among the classical piano pieces Louie mastered was Beethoven's Sonata Pathétique, which demonstrates her considerable musical talent. If she hadn’t married Muir, Louie might have pursued a career in music had she wished. Evidence of her skill comes from her mother's diary and sheet music returned to the John Muir National Historic Site by granddaughter Jean Hanna Clark. Louie graduated in May 1864, and a copy of the Strentzel family's invitation to the Annual Examination of the Pupils survives.

Life Before Marriage

After graduating, Louie spent the next fifteen years at home with her parents, learning about fruit ranching, hybridizing, and flowers. She also continued her piano studies.

Louie first met John Muir on September 15, 1874, at the home of Dr. and Mrs. Carr in Oakland. Mrs. Carr, a longtime friend of Muir’s, frequently visited the Strentzels and subtly worked to bring Louie and Muir together. In 1879, after persistent encouragement from Mrs. Carr, Louie and John became engaged the day before Muir’s first trip to Alaska. They were married on April 14, 1880, in the Strentzel family’s white house, decorated with white Astrakhan apple blossoms.

Marriage and Family Life

The Muirs' daughter Wanda was born on March 25, 1881, and their daughter Helen on January 23, 1886. Helen's room overlooked the train tracks and trestle on the side of Mt. Wanda. Fascinated by trains, she learned timetables, collected posters, and watched for trains rounding the mountain. Both girls often joined their father on walks in the nearby hills, and Muir named two peaks after them: Mt. Wanda and Mt. Helen.

Music remained a part of family life, but Muir, easily distracted while working in his "Scribble Den," found the girls' practicing disruptive. To solve the issue, he relegated their practicing to a soundproof brick room supporting the water tank at the back of the house, which became known as the "Music Room." Louie likely played piano most often while Muir was away, as she also managed the ranch, handled finances, and even sent checks to cover Muir's hotel bills during his travels.

A Rare Trip to Yosemite

In 1884, Louie accompanied Muir on her first and only trip to Yosemite. Unfortunately, it was a mistake from the start. She mistook trout for catfish, disliked hiking, and imagined bears lurking behind every tree. Muir also grumbled about the cost of transporting her many trunks of clothes.

Encouraging Muir's Legacy

As the 1880s progressed, Muir's literary output waned, and he grew restless, missing the mountains. Recognizing this, Louie unselfishly encouraged him to follow his heart. In a letter from August 9, 1888, she wrote:

"Dear John, A ranch that needs and takes the sacrifice of a noble life, or work, ought to be flung away beyond all reach... The Alaska book and the Yosemite book, dear John, must be written, and you need to be your own self, well and strong to make them worthy of you. Ever your wife, Louie."

To support him, Louie began selling ranch property to reduce the burden.

Final Years

Louie Muir passed away on August 6, 1905, and is buried alongside John, her parents, a brother, a sister, and Uncle Henry in the Strentzel/Muir cemetery, about a mile from the John Muir National Historic Site.

"Mexican soldiers, disappointed by the lack of game, had dubbed this valley the Arroyo el Hambre, or Valley of Hunger... In April 1853, the Strentzels began acquiring lands of the deceased Don Martinez, until they owned a main ranch covering 856 acres in the valley and surrounding hills and an extended estate of 2,665 acres, including rangelands in the nearby Briones Hills. Louisiana Strentzel renamed the Arroyo el Hambre the Alhambra Valley, after the sumptuous citadel of the Moorish kings of Spain..." (Worster 279).