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Money Makes the Man:
Take a look around. Are you surprised by the richness of this room? Muir spent a large portion of his life surrounded by gilded mirrors, glass chandeliers and horsehair furniture. Working on his father-in-law's fruit ranch made Muir very wealthy. When Muir passed away, his estate was worth almost $250,000, or more than $5 million by today's standards.
"A large sum of money did not seem to fit somehow with the popular conception of the naturalist... in the mountains."
-- Reporter on John Muir |