Burlingtown, Iowa
Aldo Leopold was born January 11th, 1887 in the small town of Burlingtown, Iowa located on the banks of the Mississippi River. The town and its surroundings were mostly wild with dense woods and inhabited by mysterious creatures. Simultaneous however the area was developing rapidly; new roads, railroads, and factories complicated the landscape.
From an early age Leopold took an interest in the outdoors. He was an avid hunter and an insatiable reader, he wrote in his journal that he felt connected to God when he was in nature. The great American writer Mark Twain best described Leopold surroundings: |
"The majestic bluffs that overlook the river, along through this region, charm one with the grace and variety of their forms, and the soft beauty of their adornment. The steep verdant slope, whose base is at the water's edge is topped by a lofty rampart of broken, turreted rocks, which are exquisitely rich and mellow in color-- mainly dark browns and dull greens, but splashed with other tints. And then you have the shining river, winding here and there and yonder, its sweep interrupted at intervals by clusters of wooded islands threaded by silver channels. And it is all as tranquil and reposeful as dreamland, and has nothing this-worldly about it--nothing to hang a fret or a worry upon. Until the unholy train comes tearing along--which it presently does, ripping the sacred solitude to rags and tatters with its devil's warwhoop and the roar and thunder of its rushing wheels." Life on the Mississippi - Mark Twain |
Going East
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Leopold wanted a career where he could enjoy nature and history provided for that opportunity. President Theodore Roosevelt, also an avid outdoorsmen and reader, had become increasingly aware and eventually alarmed by the depletion of American forests so in conjunction with congress he established the US National Forest Service and appointed Pennsylvanian Gifford Pinchot as its head. Pinchot, a leader of the "conservationist" movement, was a "utilitarian" in his approach. He believed that natural resources existed in part for the people's benefit and so long as we manage and replace these resources, the vast American wilderness would always be plentiful. This was best exemplified when Pinchot urged the damming of Hetch Hetchy Valley in California, over the protests of the "preservationists" like John Muir. Roosevelt agreed with Pinchot and millions of acres of habitat were flooded so San Francisco and its surrounding areas would be provided with a reliable water supply. TR's wilderness legacy is well known but the presidents to follow show little concern for conservationist, much less preservationist causes, and forests throughout the early 20th century were routinely "clear cut." Although environment progress was elusive at this time Aldo Leopold was engaged in a process of education and discovery which would emerge quietly in the form of words and historically in the form of legislation.
Leopold's parents knew the Yale School of Forestry was perfect for their blossoming naturalist, but they also suspected that Aldo had a remote chance of being accepted into the prestigious university. They made a difficult descision to send him to Lawrenceville Prepatory School in New Jersey where the young Leopold could continue his passion for reading. It was at Lawrenceville that Leopold was able to study the scientific works of Charles Darwin's. Leopold attended lectures on Darwinian theory and became interested in protecting "nature's balance." (see the Legacy Page to see Aldo Leopold's influence at the Lawrenceville School today).
Like Roosevelt however Leopold precariously balanced his growing environmentalist interest with his own passion for hunting. "Pests like sparrows, crows, and hawks," wrote Leopold, "are threats to the beautiful song birds." Wolves, demonized for years by folklore and fiction, were especially detestable to Leopold and most Americans. It would be several years before he fully recognized the importance of these pests and all plants and animals to the maintenance of a healthy ecosystem. In 1905 Leopold to a profound step in that journey as he was accepted into the Yale School of Forestry. Over the next four years Leopold's study journal demonstrated an advancing recognition that, "There must be a balance of keeping the wild wild, and taking advantage of its resources."
Leopold's parents knew the Yale School of Forestry was perfect for their blossoming naturalist, but they also suspected that Aldo had a remote chance of being accepted into the prestigious university. They made a difficult descision to send him to Lawrenceville Prepatory School in New Jersey where the young Leopold could continue his passion for reading. It was at Lawrenceville that Leopold was able to study the scientific works of Charles Darwin's. Leopold attended lectures on Darwinian theory and became interested in protecting "nature's balance." (see the Legacy Page to see Aldo Leopold's influence at the Lawrenceville School today).
Like Roosevelt however Leopold precariously balanced his growing environmentalist interest with his own passion for hunting. "Pests like sparrows, crows, and hawks," wrote Leopold, "are threats to the beautiful song birds." Wolves, demonized for years by folklore and fiction, were especially detestable to Leopold and most Americans. It would be several years before he fully recognized the importance of these pests and all plants and animals to the maintenance of a healthy ecosystem. In 1905 Leopold to a profound step in that journey as he was accepted into the Yale School of Forestry. Over the next four years Leopold's study journal demonstrated an advancing recognition that, "There must be a balance of keeping the wild wild, and taking advantage of its resources."