Eustace Robinson Conway IV (born September 15, 1961) is an American

naturalist Natural history is a domain of inquiry involving organisms, including animals, fungi, and plants, in their natural environment, leaning more towards observational than experimental methods of study. A person who studies natural history is cal ...

and the subject of the book ''The Last American Man'' by

Elizabeth Gilbert Elizabeth Gilbert (born July 18, 1969) is an American journalist and author. She is best known for her 2006 memoir '' Eat, Pray, Love'', which has sold over 30 million copies and has been translated into over 30 languages. The book was also mad ...

. He has also been the subject of ''Adventures in the Simple Life'' by Sarah Vowell on the weekly radio show ''

This American Life ''This American Life'' is a weekly hour-long American radio program produced in collaboration with Chicago Public Media and hosted by Ira Glass. It is broadcast on numerous public radio stations in the United States and internationally, and is ...

'' with Ira Glass. He is the owner of the Turtle Island Preserve in

Boone, North Carolina Boone is a town in and the county seat of Watauga County, North Carolina, United States. Located in the Blue Ridge Mountains of western North Carolina, Boone is the home of Appalachian State University and the headquarters of the disaster and me ...

. He was a featured personality on the

History channel History (formerly and commonly known as the History Channel) is an American pay television television broadcaster, network and the flagship channel of A&E Networks, a joint venture between Hearst Communications and the Disney General Entertainme ...

show '' Mountain Men''.

Biography

Conway was born in

Columbia, South Carolina Columbia is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of South Carolina. With a population of 136,632 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is List of municipalities in South Carolina, the second-mo ...

. He has three siblings. At age 17, Conway left home so that he could live in a

tipi A tipi or tepee ( ) is a conical lodge tent that is distinguished from other conical tents by the smoke flaps at the top of the structure, and historically made of animal hides or pelts or, in more recent generations, of canvas stretched on ...

in the woods. He has hiked the entire

Appalachian Trail The Appalachian Trail, also called the A.T., is a hiking trail in the Eastern United States, extending almost between Springer Mountain in Georgia and Mount Katahdin in Maine, and passing through 14 states.Gailey, Chris (2006)"Appalachian Tra ...

and claims to have set the world record of 103 days for crossing the United States on horseback from the

Atlantic The Atlantic Ocean is the second largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, with an area of about . It covers approximately 17% of Earth's surface and about 24% of its water surface area. During the Age of Discovery, it was known for se ...

to the

Pacific The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean, or, depending on the definition, to Antarctica in the south, and is bounded by the cont ...

. However, according to ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'' and ''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' is an American Newspaper#Daily, daily newspaper that began publishing in Los Angeles, California, in 1881. Based in the Greater Los Angeles city of El Segundo, California, El Segundo since 2018, it is the List of new ...

'' of the day, as well as the book ''Bud & Me'', the record for crossing the North American continent on horseback was actually 62 days. This journey was made by Bud and Temple Abernathy, aged 11 and 7, who rode from New York City to San Francisco on an equestrian journey, which started in August 1911. The weekly radio show ''

'' reported on Conway's cross-country journey in the episode "Adventures in the Simple Life", which aired on September 11, 1998. The show uses recordings that were taped on a hand-held recorder by Conway and his party. A 2003 documentary film on Conway's life, ''Full Circle: A Life Story of Eustace Conway'', was directed by Jack Bibbo. Conway is also one of four featured characters in the 2012 documentary film '' Reconvergence'', which was directed by Edward Tyndall. Conway appeared in '' Mountain Men'', a reality television series on the

. The series focused on his daily life of performing his chores and preparing food for the coming winter. Threatened by a lien against his land, Conway fights to maintain ownership. In November 2012, Turtle Island was forced to shut down public access because its traditional buildings violated building codes. In mid-December 2012 Conway appeared to make progress toward reaching a resolution with the North Carolina Building Code Council. However, immediately following this apparent progress with the code council, Conway was arrested for trespassing on a neighbor's property in a dispute over the property border, continuing the legal challenges to Turtle Island. Conway's problems with the North Carolina Building Code Council quickly gained notice of state officials. The North Carolina General Assembly stepped in, proposing an exemption to building-code requirements for primitive structures. Both the state's House and Senate voted unanimously to pass H774. The bill was signed into law by Governor

Pat McCrory Patrick Lloyd McCrory (born October 17, 1956) is an American politician and businessman who served as the 74th governor of North Carolina from 2013 to 2017. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as the 53rd mayor of Charlotte ...

on June 12, 2013. This ordeal was described in the Fox News special ''War on the Little Guy'', hosted by

John Stossel John Frank Stossel (born March 6, 1947) is an American libertarian television presenter, author, consumer journalist, political activist, and pundit. He is known for his career as a host on ABC News, Fox Business Network, and Reason TV. Stos ...

References

External links

Official Biography via Turtle Island Preserve

from ''The Last American Man'' on

Penguin Group Penguin Group is a British trade book publisher and part of Penguin Random House, which is owned by the German media company, media Conglomerate (company), conglomerate Bertelsmann. The new company was created by a Mergers and acquisitions, mer ...

's web site.
The Last American Man
by Elizabeth Gilbert. GQ Magazine, February 1998. {{DEFAULTSORT:Conway, Eustace 1961 births American environmentalists American naturalists Appalachian State University alumni Living people People from Columbia, South Carolina

Biography

References

Further reading

External links