Happy Mother's Day to Martinez's Moms

In honor of the special day, here's a special post about the other leader of Martinez's famous Muir household who left her own legacy as a mother, wife and more

Wishing all Martinez mothers (and mother figures) a happy and relaxing Mother’s Day.

In honor of Mother’s Day, I thought I’d provide the following post about one of our town’s most famous mothers (and wives), Louisa “Louie” Muir. While husband John is known as our most famous citizen, his largely overshadowed wife left an impressive legacy of her own, and her roots in Martinez ran much deeper than her husband’s (she and her family arrived in Martinez in 1853, more than 20 years before she met John). As the biography of Louie on the John Muir National Historical Site website puts it: “So much has been made of Muir's life that Louie's life and contributions are hardly known. … Louie was a wonderful musician, wife, mother, ranch manager and helpmate.”

Louie Muir

Louie, who with John raised daughters Wanda (namesake of Mt. Wanda) and Helen at their Martinez home that is now a National Historic site, is perhaps best known for the famous letter she wrote her legendary husband in 1888 encouraging him to pursue his passions for nature and conservation at a time when he had become largely moored to the family ranch business.

"Dear John, A ranch that needs and takes the sacrifice of a noble life, or work, ought to be flung away beyond all reach... The Alaska book and the Yosemite book, dear John, must be written, and you need to be your own self, well and strong to make them worthy of you. Ever your wife, Louie."

To further her husband’s goals, Louie began selling off the ranch property to lessen his burdens.

Seeing her husband head off for the wild lands may not have been a total personal loss for Louie, however. According to the bio, Louie was an accomplished piano player, and her musical interests were passed down to Helen and Wanda, who pursued violin and guitar in addition to the piano.

Apparently, music practice didn’t exactly agree with John, especially when he was working on his books at the Muir home, as detailed by the John Muir Historical Site.

“Eventually, he relegated the girls' practicing to the soundproof brick room supporting the water tank at the rear of the house. Later that became known facetiously as the Music Room. Probably Louie couldn't play the piano when he was working, and likely she did most of her playing while he was gone.”

Then there was this letter from Helen written in 1963 about her mother, as detailed in a Patch article by Harriet Burt in 2012:

After her marriage, Mama played very little while Papa was at time.  For a good reason, it seems, he could not endure piano music while he was writing and his study was directly over the parlor where the piano stood.  (Before marriage, Papa lived for several months in the home of friends in San Francisco and the young daughter of the family was learning to play the piano.  She hated it but, being made to practice, she really pounded it out, near Papa’s room, where he was trying to write for publication.)  Mama understood and did not play for Wanda and me, but always when Papa was away.

Hmm, could it be that Louie had some additional motives in mind when she encouraged John in the letter “to be your own self” and head off to Alaska and Yosemite? We may never know for sure, but one thing seems certain. She knew how to raise a loving family, run a well-organized household and business, develop her own talents, and give her husband a little nudge when he (and perhaps she) needed it.

I’m sure many Martinez moms in 2023 can relate!

Helen’s letter also included this perfect snippet for Mother’s Day:

“Louie Strentzel Muir, a remarkable woman, was a wonderful mother.”

Read the full bios of Louie and the rest of the Muir clan here.

The Muir family at their Martinez home

And a final note for Mother’s Day. I know it’s likely that many people reading this have lost the mothers in their lives. Last Mother’s Day, I had the privilege with my family of watching the legendary Paul McCartney perform in Oakland, including my all-time favorite song of is, “Let It Be.” Some may know that the lyrics in the song about “Mother Mary” were inspired by McCartney’s mother, who died when he was 14.

“When I find myself in times of trouble, Mother Mary comes to me
”Speaking words of wisdom, let it be
”And in my hour of darkness she is standing right in front of me
”Speaking words of wisdom, let it be.”

A few months ago, I picked up an old book about the Beatles and their songs at a Martinez Library book sale. The entry on “Let It Be” and his mother’s inspiration for the song included this from McCartney:

I had a lot of bad times in the ‘60s. We used to lie in bed and wonder what was going on and feel quite paranoid. Probably all the drugs. I had a dream one night about my mother. She died when I was 14 so I hadn’t really heard from her in quite a while, and it was very good. It gave me some strength.

On Mother’s Day, and all days, let us remember the words of wisdom our mothers (both alive and deceased) share in our hours of darkness and trouble, when they stand right in front of us and remind us to “let it be.”