The Strentzel Muir House is the Best Place to Learn About the Real John Muir

As I walked up the incline to the Strentzel Muir House, it reminded me of the Bates House in the Hitchcock movie, Psycho. Well, maybe that's a bit of an exaggeration, but it did cross my mind. And then one of the people touring the home remarked that he felt that there were ghosts in the house. He said it in all seriousness to the docent as I overheard their conversation, and it gave me shivers down my spine!  And if you were wondering, no, I saw no ghosts in the Muir House, but that doesn't mean that they aren't there! 

Ok, regardless, the Strentzel Muir House is a great find that impressed me deeply. I knew of John Muir at a superficial level before this visit. I knew he was an environmentalist, a naturalist and conservation advocate who was largely responsible for the creation of Sequoia and Yosemite national parks.

But I never knew that Muir lived in Martinez, and had a lucrative fruit tree farm to subsidize his travels and activities. Of course there's a backstory on how this came to be, so let me fill you in...

Some Family History

The estate now known as Strentzel Muir House was originally built in 1882 by Dr. John Strentzel.  Dr. Strentzel was born in Poland, and came to the United States in 1840, settling in Texas. There, he married Louisiana Erwin in 1843, and together they moved to a few locations in California. Most notably during the gold rush years, they lived along the Tuolumne river, and in 1849 ran a ferry, general store and hotel. 

In 1846 Louisiana gave birth to a daughter, Louisa, who was nicknamed "Louie." A few years later she bore a son, John, and a few years after that bore another daughter, Carlotta.  Unfortunately Carlotta would only live 4 months.

Louisiana was experiencing health issues during this period and so I believe they attempted to find a place to live that would be conducive to Louisiana's recovery. After a couple of other stops near the Merced River and Benicia, they were advised by a friend to move to the Alhambra Valley, where the weather is mild year-round. This was before Martinez became a city in 1876, though there was a ferry already running between Benicia and the Martinez Trading Post.

So in 1853, the family relocated to the Alhambra Valley near Martinez, where Dr. Strentzel purchased 20 acres of land. He had decided to plant fruit trees on this property, and experiment with fruit-growing techniques. Louisiana's health had been restored just prior to moving here, and so she was able to play an important role in running the family’s operations, including managing the Chinese workers that tended the orchards. The Strentzels' son John passed away at age 9. This left only Louie and her parents living in the house.  Louisiana made sure that Louie received an extensive education and pursued her talent as a pianist. Louie attended college at Miss Atkins Young Ladies Seminary in Benecia in 1859.  Today the school is known as Mills College; it moved to Oakland in 1871 as Mills Seminary. John Muir and Louisa first met in Oakland, at the home of Dr. and Mrs. Carr, a mutual friend, on September 15, 1874. 

In 1879, Louie became formally engaged to John Muir. They were married on April 14, 1880, in the Strentzel family's ranch house. The next day, Muir left for his first trip to Alaska. That must have been awkward!

By that time, Dr. Strentzel's ranch covered 2,600 acres, and he was growing over 1,000 varieties of fruit trees. For the subsequent 10 years John Muir worked with Dr. Strentzel to manage the orchards.

On March 25, 1881, Louie gave birth to their first child, a daughter they named Wanda.  In 1886 the Muirs had another daughter, Helen. Now a family of four, they enjoyed their life in the Alhambra valley, working and playing at the Strentzel ranch.

Dr. Strentzel eventually left the Muir family the entire ranch. John Muir used the income to support his writing and passion for nature. Dr. Strentzel died in 1890, at which time the Muir family moved into the home.

Louie was considered a very good pianist, so her father bought her a Steinway for her to play. The docent mentioned to me that the piano on display in the parlor is not the original piano, but it is of a similar type and era.

Eventually John Muir became disenchanted with his life, in particular his duties managing the ranch he inherited. With Louie's blessing, he went on extended trips to locations all over the United States, including Alaska, Arizona, and the Sierras, to fulfill his future legacy. Louie and John communicated regularly by mail, exchanging descriptions of his adventures with stories of the ranch and their children.

Louie died relatively young of lung cancer in 1905. John was by her side when she passed. Devastated, John owed Louie a lot for allowing him to become a nationally recognized conservationist while she maintained the Muir household singlehandedly.

Louie was buried in the Strentzel-Muir Cemetery a mile from the family’s ranch home.  John died on December 24, 1914, of pneumonia. His body was laid to rest next to Louie’s. I did not make it to the cemetery for this lesson - it will be included in my next trip up to Martinez.

More About the House

I've included some pictures of some of the rooms below. The furniture in the home is not the original except for two bookcases—the one on the first floor and the other in Muir's upstairs study.

The East Parlor was renovated after it was damaged during the 1906 earthquake. He wanted to simplify it from its original design, and added a brick fireplace to the room.

Finally, there is an attic that you can visit on the third floor.

There is a display there of Muir mementos, and a staircase up to the bell tower. From there you can see a nice panorama of the orchards and surrounding area.  Don't miss it!