Mary Hunter Austin (September 9, 1868 – August 13, 1934) was an American writer. One of the early nature writers of the

American Southwest The Southwestern United States, also known as the American Southwest or simply the Southwest, is a geographic and cultural list of regions of the United States, region of the United States that includes Arizona and New Mexico, along with adjacen ...

, her classic '' The Land of Little Rain'' (1903) describes the fauna, flora, and people of the region between the High Sierra and the

Mojave Desert The Mojave Desert (; ; ) is a desert in the rain shadow of the southern Sierra Nevada mountains and Transverse Ranges in the Southwestern United States. Named for the Indigenous peoples of the Americas, indigenous Mohave people, it is located pr ...

southern California Southern California (commonly shortened to SoCal) is a geographic and Cultural area, cultural List of regions of California, region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Its densely populated coastal reg ...

Early years and education

Mary Hunter Austin was born on September 9, 1868, in

Carlinville, Illinois Carlinville is a city in and the county seat of Macoupin County, Illinois, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 5,710. It is the home of Blackburn College, a small college affiliated with the Presbyterian church. The city ...

(the fourth of six children) to Susannah (née Graham) and George Hunter. She graduated from Blackburn College in 1888. Her family moved to California in the same year and established a homestead in the

San Joaquin Valley The San Joaquin Valley ( ; Spanish language in California, Spanish: ''Valle de San Joaquín'') is the southern half of California's Central Valley (California), Central Valley. Famed as a major breadbasket, the San Joaquin Valley is an importa ...

Marriage

She married Stafford Wallace Austin on May 18, 1891, in

Bakersfield, California Bakersfield is a city in and the county seat of Kern County, California, United States. The city covers about near the southern end of the San Joaquin Valley, which is located in the Central Valley region. Bakersfield's population as of th ...

. He was from Hawaii, a graduate of the

University of California, Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California), is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Berkeley, California, United States. Founded in 1868 and named after t ...

, a

United States General Land Office The General Land Office (GLO) was an Independent agencies of the United States government, independent agency of the United States government responsible for Public domain (land), public domain lands in the United States. It was created in 1812 ...

employee, and, later, a Potash War lawyer.

Career

For 17 years, Austin made a special study of the lives of the

indigenous peoples There is no generally accepted definition of Indigenous peoples, although in the 21st century the focus has been on self-identification, cultural difference from other groups in a state, a special relationship with their traditional territ ...

of the

. Her publications set forth the intimate knowledge she thus acquired. She was a prolific novelist, poet, critic, and playwright, as well as an early

feminist Feminism is a range of socio-political movements and ideology, ideologies that aim to define and establish the political, economic, personal, and social gender equality, equality of the sexes. Feminism holds the position that modern soci ...

and defender of Native American and Spanish-American rights. Austin is best known for her tribute to the deserts of California, ''The Land of Little Rain'' (1903). Her play '' The Arrow Maker'', dealing with Indian life, was produced at the New Theatre (

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

) in 1911, the same year she published a rhapsodic tribute to her acquaintance

H. G. Wells Herbert George Wells (21 September 1866 – 13 August 1946) was an English writer, prolific in many genres. He wrote more than fifty novels and dozens of short stories. His non-fiction output included works of social commentary, politics, hist ...

as a producer of "informing, vitalizing, indispensable books" in the ''

American Magazine ''The American Magazine'' was a periodical publication founded in June 1906, a continuation of failed publications purchased a few years earlier from publishing mogul Miriam Leslie. It succeeded ''Frank Leslie's Popular Monthly'' (1876–1904), ...

''. Austin and her husband were involved in the local

California Water Wars The California water wars were a series of political conflicts between the city of Los Angeles and farmers and ranchers in the Owens Valley of Eastern California over water rights. As Los Angeles expanded during the late 19th century, it beg ...

, after which the water of

Owens Valley Owens Valley (Mono language (California), Mono: ''Payahǖǖnadǖ'', meaning "place of flowing water") is an arid valley of the Owens River in eastern California in the United States. It is located to the east of the Sierra Nevada (U.S.), Sierra ...

eventually was drained to supply Los Angeles. When the battle was lost, after the

1906 San Francisco earthquake At 05:12 AM Pacific Time Zone, Pacific Standard Time on Wednesday, April 18, 1906, the coast of Northern California was struck by a major earthquake with an estimated Moment magnitude scale, moment magnitude of 7.9 and a maximum Mercalli inte ...

, Stafford moved to Death Valley, California and Mary relocated to the art colony at

Carmel-by-the-Sea, California Carmel-by-the-Sea (), commonly known simply as Carmel, is a city in Monterey County, California, located on the Central Coast of California. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the city had a population of 3,220, down from 3,722 a ...

. There Austin was part of the cultural circle that included

Jack London John Griffith London (; January 12, 1876 – November 22, 1916), better known as Jack London, was an American novelist, journalist and activist. A pioneer of commercial fiction and American magazines, he was one of the first American authors t ...

Ambrose Bierce Ambrose Gwinnett Bierce (June 24, 1842 – ) was an American short story writer, journalist, poet, and American Civil War veteran. His book '' The Devil's Dictionary'' was named one of "The 100 Greatest Masterpieces of American Literature" by the ...

Harry Leon Wilson Harry Leon Wilson (May 1, 1867 – June 28, 1939) was an American novelist and dramatist best known for his novels ''Ruggles of Red Gap'' and ''Merton of the Movies (novel), Merton of the Movies''. Another of his works, ''Bunker Bean'', helped p ...

George Sterling George Sterling (December 1, 1869 – November 17, 1926) was an American writer based in the San Francisco, California Bay Area and Carmel-by-the-Sea. He was considered a prominent poet and playwright and proponent of Bohemianism during the fir ...

, Nora May French,

Arnold Genthe Arnold Genthe (8 January 1869 – 9 August 1942) was a German-American photographer, best known for his photographs of San Francisco's Chinatown, the 1906 San Francisco earthquake, and his portraits of noted people, from politicians and socialite ...

, James Hopper, Alice MacGowan,

Joaquin Miller Cincinnatus Heine Miller ( ; September 8, 1837 – February 17, 1913), better known by his pen name Joaquin Miller ( ), was an American poet, author, and frontiersman. He became known as the "Poet of the Sierras" after the Sierra Nevada, about wh ...

Gelett Burgess Frank Gelett Burgess (January 30, 1866 – September 18, 1951) was an American artist, art critic, poet, author and humorist. He was an important figure in the San Francisco Bay Area literary renaissance of the 1890s, particularly through his ico ...

Sinclair Lewis Harry Sinclair Lewis (February 7, 1885 – January 10, 1951) was an American novelist, short-story writer, and playwright. In 1930 Nobel Prize in Literature, 1930, he became the first author from the United States (and the first from the America ...

, and Xavier Martinez. Two years after developing a friendship with Austin in 1904, Sterling enticed her to join him in Carmel. In 1906, she had a tree house constructed, that she called “ Wick-i-up”, built by M.J. Murphy, based on a design by San Francisco architect Louis Christian Mullgardt. She wrote much of her writings from this tree house. Austin hired Murphy in 1907 to create a Craftsman-style cottage she called "Rose Cottage." The property is located at the intersection of 4th Avenue and Monte Verde Street. The cottage has gardens and two gates with paths leading to it. At this cottage, she entertained her friends, including London, Sterling, and Lewis. Today, the cottage is listed as the ''Mary Austin House'' with the Carmel Inventory Of Historic Resources, and was recorded with the Department of Parks and Recreation as significant under California register criterion as the home of one of the bohemian founders of the artist colony at Carmel. Austin was one of the founders of the local Forest Theater, where in 1913 she premiered and directed her three-act play ''Fire.'' In July 1914, she joined

William Merritt Chase William Merritt Chase (November 1, 1849October 25, 1916) was an American painter, known as an exponent of Impressionism and as a teacher. He is also responsible for establishing the Chase School, which later became the Parsons School of Design. ...

, the distinguished New York painter who was teaching his last summer class in Carmel, at several society "teas" and privately in his studio, where he finished her portrait. The well-known artist Jennie V. Cannon reported that he began the painting as a class demonstration after Austin claimed that two of her portraits, which were executed by famous artists in the Latin Quarter of Paris, had already been accepted to the Salon. Apparently, Chase was not deterred by Austin's "pushiness and claims to extra-sensory perceptions", but was more interested in her appointment as director of East Coast publicity for San Francisco's

Panama–Pacific International Exposition The Panama–Pacific International Exposition was a world's fair held in San Francisco, California, United States, from February 20 to December 4, 1915. Its stated purpose was to celebrate the completion of the Panama Canal, but it was widely s ...

. On July 25, 1914, Chase attended her Indian melodrama in the Forest Theater, ''The Arrow Maker'', and confessed to Cannon that he found the play dreary. Apparently, Dr. Daniel MacDougal, head of the local Carnegie Institute, paid for most of her production costs, because of his not-so-secret love affair with the writer. In August 1914, one of Chase's students, Helena Wood Smith, was strangled and buried on the beach by her lover, art-photographer George Kodani, Austin joined the mob who disparaged local authorities for their alleged incompetence. After 1914 her visits to Carmel were relatively brief. After visiting Santa Fe in 1918, Austin helped establish The Santa Fe Little Theatre (still operating today as The Santa Fe Playhouse) and directed the group's first production held February 14, 1919, at the art museum's

St. Francis Auditorium The New Mexico Museum of Art is an art museum in Santa Fe governed by the state of New Mexico, United States. It is one of four state-run museums in Santa Fe that are part of the Museum of New Mexico. It is located one block off the historic ...

. Austin also was active in preserving the local culture of New Mexico, establishing the Spanish Colonial Arts Society in 1925 with artist Frank Applegate. In 1929, while living in New Mexico, Austin co-authored a book with photographer

Ansel Adams Ansel Easton Adams (February 20, 1902 – April 22, 1984) was an American landscape photographer and environmentalist known for his Monochrome photography, black-and-white images of the American West. He helped found Group f/64, an association ...

. Published a year later, the book, ''

Taos Pueblo Taos Pueblo (or Pueblo de Taos) is an ancient pueblo belonging to a Taos language, Taos-speaking (Tiwa languages, Tiwa) Native American tribe of Puebloan peoples, Puebloan people. It lies about north of the modern city of Taos, New Mexico. T ...

'', was printed in a limited edition of only 108 copies. It now is quite rare because, rather than reproductions, it included photographs made by Adams.

Death and legacy

Austin died August 13, 1934, in Santa Fe. Mount Mary Austin, in the

Sierra Nevada The Sierra Nevada ( ) is a mountain range in the Western United States, between the Central Valley of California and the Great Basin. The vast majority of the range lies in the state of California, although the Carson Range spur lies primari ...

, was named in her honor. It is located 8.5 miles west of her long time home in

Independence, California Independence is an unincorporated, census-designated place and the county seat of Inyo County, California. Independence is located south-southeast of Bishop, at an elevation of 3930 feet (1198 m). The population of this census-designated pla ...

The Austin home in Independence, California, designed and built by the couple, became a California Historical Landmark. * The California Historical Landmark reads: :: ''CHL No. 229 Austin Home - Inyo NO. 229 MARY AUSTIN'S HOME - Mary Austin, author of The Land of Little Rain and other volumes that picture the beauty of Owens Valley, lived in Independence. "But if ever you come beyond the borders as far as the town that lies in a hill dimple at the foot of Kearsarge, never leave it until you have knocked at the door of the brown house under the willow-tree at the end of the village street, and there you shall have such news of the land, of its trails and what is astir in them, as one lover of it can give to another ..." excerpt from The Land of Little Rain.'' Her home in Santa Fe, at 439 Camino del Monte Sol, is listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

as a contributing building in the Camino del Monte Sol Historic District. With A biography was published in 1939. A 1950 edition of ''The Land of Little Rain'' and a 1977 edition of ''Taos Pueblo'' each included photographs by Ansel Adams. A

teleplay A teleplay is a screenplay or script used in the production of a scripted television program or series. In general usage, the term is most commonly seen in reference to a standalone production, such as a television film, a television play, or a ...

of ''The Land of Little Rain'' was written by Doris Baizley and presented on ''

American Playhouse ''American Playhouse'' is an American anthology television series periodically broadcast by Public Broadcasting Service (PBS). It premiered on January 12, 1982, with ''The Shady Hill Kidnapping'', written and narrated by John Cheever and direc ...

'' in 1989; it starred

Helen Hunt Helen Elizabeth Hunt (born June 15, 1963) is an American actress. Her accolades include an Academy Award, four Primetime Emmy Awards, and four Golden Globe Awards. Hunt rose to fame portraying newlywed Jamie Buchman in the sitcom '' Mad Abou ...

Selected works

* '' One Hundred Miles on Horseback'' (1887, 1963) (first published essay 1887, re-published posthumously). * '' The Land of Little Rain'' (1903), an account of the California Desert. :
full-text edition (Internet Archive)
:
''The Land of Little Rain''
at the

Library of Congress The Library of Congress (LOC) is a research library in Washington, D.C., serving as the library and research service for the United States Congress and the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It also administers Copyright law o ...

(scanned images and text) * '' The Basket Woman'' (1904), a book of Indian myths and fanciful tales for children. * ''Isidro (book)'' (1905), a romance of Mission days. * '' The Flock'' (1906), an account of the

shepherd A shepherd is a person who tends, herds, feeds, or guards flocks of sheep. Shepherding is one of the world's oldest occupations; it exists in many parts of the globe, and it is an important part of Pastoralism, pastoralist animal husbandry. ...

industry of California. * '' Santa Lucia'' (1908), a novel. * * '' Lost Borders, the people of the desert'' (1909). * '' The Arrow Maker – A Drama in Three Acts'' (1911). From 1921 through 1930 ''Fire'' and ''The Arrow Maker'' were produced outdoors in Tahquitz Canyon near

Palm Springs, California Palm Springs (Cahuilla language, Cahuilla: ''Séc-he'') is a desert resort city in Riverside County, California, United States, within the Colorado Desert's Coachella Valley. The city covers approximately , making it the largest city in Rivers ...

. See: * '' A Woman of Genius'' (1912). * ''Fire: a drama in three acts'' (1914) * '' The Ford'' (1917). * '' The Trail Book'' (1918). * 'The Young Woman Citizen'' (1918). * '' Outland'' (1919). * '' No. 26 Jayne Street'' (1920). * '' The American Rhythm'' (1923). * '' The Land of Journeys' Ending'' (1924). * '' Everyman's Genius'' (1925). * '' Cactus Thorn'' (1927, 1988) (written ca. 1927, the novella was published posthumously). * '' Lands of the Sun'' (1927). * ''

'' (1930). * '' Experiences Facing Death'' (1931). * '' Starry Adventure'' (1931). * '' Earth Horizon'' (1932), autobiography. * ''Non-English Writings II: Aboriginal'' The Cambridge History of American Literature Volume III Chapter XXXII pp. 610–634 (1933) * '' Can Prayer Be Answered?'' (1934). * '' One-Smoke Stories'' (1934).

Poetry (incomplete list)

*''Rathers'' *''Prairie-Dog Town'' *''Signs Of Spring'' *''A Feller I Know'' ::"His name it is Pedro-Pablo-Ignacio-Juan-Francesco Garcia y Gabaldon, But the fellers call him Pete;" *''San Francisco'' *''Caller of the Buffalo'' *''The Lighthouse And The Whistle-Buoy''

References

External links

Mary Hunter Austin's life and work
- Inyo County Museum of Eastern California :: a permanent exhibition a block from the Austin's former house in

Mary Hunter Austin Collection
at the

Autry Museum of the American West The Autry Museum of the American West (Autry National Center) is a museum in Los Angeles, California, dedicated to exploring an inclusive history of the American West. Founded in 1988, the museum presents a wide range of exhibitions and pub ...

The Austins' house

California Historical Landmark A California Historical Landmark (CHL) is a building, structure, site, or place in the U.S. state of California that has been determined to have statewide historical landmark significance. Criteria Historical significance is determined by meetin ...

229 Encyclopedias
Mary Hunter Austin
@ britannica.com
Mary Hunter Austin
@

encyclopedia.com ''Encyclopedia.com'' is an online encyclopedia. It aggregates information, images, and videos from other published dictionaries, encyclopedias, and reference works. History The website was launched by Infonautics in March 1998. Infonautics w ...

Papers
Austin (Mary Hunter) Papers
-

Online Archive of California In computer technology and telecommunications, online indicates a state of connectivity, and offline indicates a disconnected state. In modern terminology, this usually refers to an Internet connection, but (especially when expressed as "on lin ...

*Letter from

Willa Cather Willa Sibert Cather (; born Wilella Sibert Cather; December 7, 1873 – April 24, 1947) was an American writer known for her novels of life on the Great Plains, including ''O Pioneers!'', ''The Song of the Lark (novel), The Song of the Lark'', a ...

t
Mary Hunter Austin
26 June 1926
''Mary Austin'' collection
- Eastern California Museum Works *https://www.poetrynook.com/poet/mary-austin *https://www.familyfriendpoems.com/poet/mary-austin/ * * * *
Mary Austin page
works and reviews @ wsu.edu
Mary Hunter Austin (1868-1934)
@ ''Literary Ladies Guide''
Mary Austin
@ Western American Literature Journal {{DEFAULTSORT:Austin, Mary Hunter 1868 births 1934 deaths American autobiographers 20th-century American memoirists American women memoirists 20th-century American novelists American women novelists Blackburn College (Illinois) alumni Mojave Desert Owens Valley People from Inyo County, California People from Carlinville, Illinois Writers from Santa Fe, New Mexico American women essayists 20th-century American women writers 20th-century American essayists Writers from Carmel-by-the-Sea, California Novelists from California Novelists from Illinois Suffragists from California