The Awesomeness of Yosemite

Just back from a stay in Yosemite Valley. Just awesome…as it always has been.

So of course I came back and had to check on some of the history and other interesting information about the valley at the Archive. There’s a wealth of stuff found by simply searching “yosemite“.

This one from 1905 is one of the earliest with photos.  Lots of changes in the man-made aspects of the valley but not to the natural landforms that are so familiar and, well, awesome in the real sense of the word.

http://www.archive.org/details/discoveryofyosem01bunn
This 3rd edition from 1897 gives an account of the The Indian Wars that led to the discovery of Yo-Semite.

http://www.archive.org/details/yosemiteitshisto00lest
This one from 1873 might be the oldest book we have on Yosemite.

http://www.archive.org/details/yosemite00unkngoog
And of course there is “The Yosemite” by John Muir from 1912.

A great trip as always. The valley may be more crowded than a century ago but the experience is still inspiring and …awesome.

-Jeff Kaplan

Originally posted on The Internet Archive Blog by internetarchive.