When powerful words and wicked martinis saved America’s public lands
BY CANDICE SHY HOOPER
On Wednesday, Jan. 17, Friends of Boca Grande Community Center will welcome acclaimed author Nate Schweber to tell the true and fascinating story of a small band of Americans who rallied to save our national natural treasures.
One of the most famous writers of post-WWII America was Bernard DeVoto, whose monthly column “The Easy Chair” appeared in Harper’s Weekly for 20 years. Born in Utah, he never lost his love for the West, even when he and his wife Avis moved to New York, where they lived for the rest of their lives.
It was on a family trip west in 1946 that Bernard caught wind of a plot by ranchers, cattlemen and corrupt legislators to sell millions of acres of national parks and forests to miners, loggers and developers. Bernard and Avis immediately turned all of their considerable talents to the challenge of preventing that from happening.
Along the way, they enticed other brilliant, literate friends to the cause, among them Julia and Paul Child, Ansel Adams and Arthur Schlesinger Jr., fueling their creativity and dedication with Bernard’s famous wicked martinis. Bernard and Avis benefited from dedicated local public servants who secretly and at great risk to their lives – provided information about the scheme. The DeVotos’ progress in blocking the sale of America’s treasured lands brought down the wrath of Senator Joseph McCarthy and FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover and ultimately led to Bernard’s death.
Nate Schweber is an award-winning journalist whose work has appeared in The New York Times, Anthony Bourdain’s Explore Parts Unknown, and others. A Montana native, he lives in Brooklyn, NY.
His talk is part of the American Presidents & Politics series at the Community Center. Tickets can be purchased at the Center or online.
His beautifully written book, This America of Ours, has won national prizes and praise from The Wall Street Journal and is available at Boca Grande’s independent bookstore, The Tide, or at the Center after his talk.
And, by the way, Nate included Bernard’s wicked martini recipe.
Candice Shy Hooper is an author and historian.
