30 Facts About Stephen Mather

Stephen Tyng Mather was an American industrialist and conservationist who was the first director of the National Park Service.

In 1917, Stephen Mather was appointed to lead the NPS, the new agency created within the Department of the Interior.

Stephen Mather served until 1929, during which time Mather created a professional civil service organization, increased the numbers of parks and national monuments, and established systematic criteria for adding new properties to the federal system.

Stephen Mather was educated at Boys' High School in San Francisco, and graduated from the University of California at Berkeley in 1887.

Stephen Mather's family moved to New York, where Mather worked as a reporter for the New York Sun until 1893.

In 1893 Stephen Mather married Jane Thacker Floy of Elizabeth, New Jersey, with Yard serving as his best man.

In 1906, Stephen Mather became the sole owner of the Stephen Mather family homestead in Darien, Connecticut, which had been built by his great-grandfather about 1778.

Stephen Mather started working for the Pacific Coast Borax Company at its headquarters in New York, where his father was administrator.

In 1894 the younger Stephen Mather moved with his wife to Chicago, where he established a distribution center for the company.

In 1898, Stephen Mather helped a friend, Thomas Thorkildsen, in starting another borax company.

Stephen Mather was active in many civic groups, including the Chicago City Club and Municipal Voter's League.

Stephen Mather became a dedicated conservationist, and a friend and admirer of the influential John Muir.

In 1904, Stephen Mather joined the Sierra Club, and climbed Mount Rainier with some of its members the following year.

Stephen Mather was active in the group and made numerous allies who helped support the creation of the National Park Service.

In 1915, Stephen Mather became a member of the Boone and Crockett Club, a conservation organization founded by Theodore Roosevelt and George Bird Grinnell in 1887.

Stephen Mather had graduated from the University of California with a Bachelor of Letters degree in 1887.

Stephen Mather did go to Washington as assistant secretary of the Interior, and lobbied for the establishment of a bureau to operate the national parks.

Stephen Mather used his personal funds to hire Robert Sterling Yard to work with him on publicizing the great resources of the parks.

Stephen Mather was effective in building support for the parks with a variety of politicians and wealthy corporate leaders.

Stephen Mather led efforts to publicize the National Parks and develop wider appreciation for their scenic beauty among the population.

Stephen Mather appointed Yard as head of the National Park Education Committee to coordinate their various communication efforts.

Stephen Mather agreed to stay on, and with Albright, helped establish the new federal agency to protect and manage the national parks, together with a new appreciation for their wonders.

In 1917, Stephen Mather was appointed Assistant Secretary of Interior and head of the National Park Service.

Stephen Mather believed that magnificent scenery should be the first criterion in establishing a national park, and made efforts to have new parks established before the lands were developed for other purposes.

Stephen Mather promoted the creation of the National Park to Park Highway.

Stephen Mather encouraged cooperation with the railroads to increase visitation to normally remote units of the National Park System.

Stephen Mather believed that once more of the public had visited the parks and enjoyed a comfortable stay in concessionaire facilities then they would become supporters for the fledgling agency and its holdings.

Stephen Mather had created the criteria for identifying and adopting new parks and monuments.

Periodically disabled by bipolar disorder, Stephen Mather had to take some leaves from work and Albright continued in their mutual understanding of the task.

In January 1929 Stephen Mather suffered a stroke and had to leave office.