Famed American naturalist (1837-1921) best known for his writings on nature and travel. DS, seven pages, 8 x 13, April 10, 1917. The last will and testament of John Burroughs, signed on each page by the celebrated nature writer. He bequeaths properties to his son and his granddaughters, and the royalties from his books and magazine articles to Dr. Clara Barrus, one of few women to graduate from medical school in the late 19th century. Burroughs and Barrus became close, and Burroughs relied increasingly on Dr. Barrus as his secretary and nearly constant companion until his death in 1921.
Interestingly, he also bequeaths his "rustic writing table at ‘Woodchuck Lodge,’ Roxbury" to "my friend, Henry Ford, of Detroit," who gave Burroughs his first car in 1913 and helped him possess his Old Homestead Farm. Burroughs spent the summers during the last years of his life in a house called 'Woodchuck Lodge' for the overabundance of groundhogs found in the area.
John Burroughs accompanied Henry Ford, Thomas Edison, and Harvey Firestone on several camping trips in the late 1910s. Though this group of friends called themselves 'Vagabonds,' they camped in style, served by support staff that cooked, cleaned, set up tents, and packed up the vehicles at each stop. These trips provided the four friends time to commune with nature, explore their personal interests, and act like boys again. The document is tied into its original folder, and docketed on the reverse as filed on April 29, 1921, one month after his death. In fine condition.
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