Friends of John Muir's Birthplace

April 18, 2011
9:00 pm	to	10:30 pm

Although the following documentary film is only showing in the US on the PBS channel – so the time stated is for a US timezone – Friends… thought this news to be worthy of wider publicity. Perhaps we could arrange a showing of the video in conjunction with Dunbar Film?

John Muir in the New World

National Broadcast on PBS
April 18, 9:00 PM
Preservationist, naturalist, author, explorer, activist, scientist, farmer, John Muir (4/21/1838 – 12/24/1914) was all these things and more. Nearly a century after his death, this Scottish American is remembered and revered as the father of the environmental movement and the founder of the Sierra Club, the oldest and largest grassroots environmental organization in the United States. This 90 minute documentary John Muir in the New World delves into Muir’s life and influences with reenactments filmed in high definition throughout the majestic landscapes he visited: Wisconsin, Yosemite and the Sierra Nevada, the Alhambra Valley of California, and the glaciers of Alaska.

There’s also a trailer – YouTube – AMERICAN MASTERS | John Muir in the New World – Trailer | PBS and a Facebook page – with almost 12000 fans – dedicated to this documentary: Continue reading →

April 16, 2011

An exhibition marking the 30th anniversary of our twinning with Martinez, California, opened at John Muir’s Birthplace on 16th April and will run until 29th May. Local resident Steven Boyle, who was one of the first Rotary Club ‘ambassadors’ to visit Martinez in 1997, will display some of his own nature photographs, alongside a selection of historical photographs of both towns, produced by Dunbar and District History Society and Martinez Historical Society, commemorative objects, and messages from our sister city.

April 18, 2011

Dunbar-Martinez is East Lothian’s third oldest twinning link, dating from 1981 – but the connection between the ‘sister cities’, to use the American terminology, goes back another hundred years.  Needless to say the association is due to Dunbar’s most famous son, John Muir.

Continue reading →

April 20, 2011
7:30 pm	to	9:00 pm

A longstanding member of Friends, Steve Tossell, is organising a series of events under the heading of Dunbar Conversations. The first of these ‘conversations’ will be titled John Muir’s Way of Thinking and the panel and audience will discuss Muir’s words and deeds with a view to gaining a deeper insight into the man. This event will take place on Wednesday 20^th April at 19:30 in the Gibb Room, Dunbar Library. Tickets (free) from Dunbar Library.

April 27, 2011
7:30 pm	to	9:00 pm

Friends’ secretary Susan Panton will lead a readers’ group who will look at ‘My First Summer in the Sierra’.  It is aimed at both those who have read the book and those who are looking for an introduction. All are welcome, Friends or not.  [To book a place contact the Birthplace.] The book can be bought at John Muir’s Birthplace at £6.99 (less 10% Friends discount), borrowed from Dunbar library or available online from the Project Gutenburg Archive of books by John Muir or from www.sierraclub.org/john_muir_exhibit/writings/ or
www.yosemite.ca.us/john_muir_writings/my_first_summer_in_the_sierra/