George Perkins Marsh
George Perkins Marsh was an influential American statesman, author, and early environmentalist born in Vermont. His childhood experiences, particularly the alteration of the Quechee River's flow due to human activities like logging and grazing, profoundly shaped his perspectives on environmental stewardship. Initially trained in law, Marsh served in the Vermont legislature and as a U.S. Congressman before becoming the U.S. minister to Turkey in 1850, where he observed the detrimental effects of civilization on natural landscapes. His travels in the eastern Mediterranean and France heightened his awareness of issues such as desertification and the importance of reforestation.
Marsh's role as Vermont's state fish commissioner led to the publication of his influential work, the *Report on the Artificial Propagation of Fish* in 1857, emphasizing the environmental impacts of various human activities. His groundbreaking book, *Man and Nature*, published in 1864, argued for the wise management of natural resources, drawing connections between human action and ecological consequences. This work not only impacted U.S. forest policy but also laid foundational ideas for the conservation and environmental movements of the 20th century, establishing Marsh as a precursor in the field of ecology.
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George Perkins Marsh
Diplomat
- Born: March 15, 1801
- Birthplace: Woodstock, Vermont
- Died: July 23, 1882
- Place of death: Vallombrosa, Italy
Identification: American statesman, diplomat, and author
Marsh’s widely read book Man and Nature: Or, Physical Geography as Modified by Human Action (1864), a treatise on environmental history, became one foundation for the conservation and environmental movements of the twentieth century.
George Perkins Marsh’s childhood home in Vermont was located at the base of a mountain along the Quechee River, which originally flowed all summer. However, because of logging and sheep grazing, the river flow changed to flooding in the spring and little or no flow in the late summer. The problem of the river’s flow was explained to the young Marsh by his father, an eminent lawyer, and the situation eventually became a major influence on Marsh’s thinking. In the short term, however, he followed the example of his father and grandfather and trained for the law. He then entered the Vermont legislature and later represented his state in the U.S. Congress.
In 1850 Marsh became the U.S. minister to Turkey. While serving there, he traveled around the eastern Mediterranean region and became impressed with the evidence of civilization’s impacts on the land. He realized that deforestation and grazing by goats were important causes of desertification in arid regions. Traveling to France, he saw both the severe erosion that followed deforestation in the mountains and the value of reforestation for restoring the land.
After five years abroad, Marsh returned to the United States, and the governor of Vermont appointed him state fish commissioner. He published Report on the Artificial Propagation of Fish (1857), which explained the impacts of logging, livestock, farming, and industry on fish streams. In 1861 President Abraham Lincoln appointed Marsh minister to Italy, in which position he remained for the rest of his life. At his wife’s urging, Marsh had begun writing what would become the book Man and Nature: Or, Physical Geography as Modified by Human Action in 1860, and he completed the manuscript in Italy in 1863. The book was published in 1864 to such success that it was soon reprinted, and Marsh produced a revised edition in 1874. Italian editions were published in 1869 and 1872.
Man and Nature argues urgently that humankind must learn to manage both natural and domesticated resources wisely. Marsh believed that science should provide the guidance for such management. To him the most relevant discipline was geography; today his subject might be called applied ecology. Man and Nature includes chapters on wildlife, water, sand, and the side effects of engineering projects. Its longest chapter is on the ecology of forests and the consequences of deforestation. Marsh’s book helped to convince the U.S. government to establish a forest policy and then the Forest Service. It also exerted influence on prominent scientists in Europe, and it became one foundation for the conservation and environmental movements of the twentieth century.
Bibliography
Elder, John. Pilgrimage to Vallombrosa: From Vermont to Italy in the Footsteps of George Perkins Marsh. Charlottesville: University of Virginia Press, 2006.
Lowenthal, David. George Perkins Marsh: Prophet of Conservation. Seattle: University of Washington Press, 2000.