In 1928, Minerva Hoyt sent a California desert exhibition across America; eight years later, Roosevelt protected Joshua Tree from mining and plant collectors

Long before Joshua Tree became one of the United States’ most iconic national parks, most of its desert landscape faced an uncertain future. Mining operations, unchecked development and commercial collectors who dug up cacti and Joshua trees for sale threatened one of California’s most distinctive ecosystems. According to the National Park Service (NPS), the turning point for Joshua Tree came through the efforts of Minerva Hamilton Hoyt, a Pasadena conservationist whose passionate campaign transformed the public’s perception of the desert. Her work culminated in 1936, when American President Franklin D. Roosevelt established Joshua Tree National Monument, which safeguarded more than 825,000 acres of the Mojave and Colorado deserts under the Antiquities Act.

Get breaking news anytime, anywhere. Download the TOI app now!