Sierra Club. Mother Lode Chapter

The Sierra Club Mother Lode Chapter was founded in 1939 and encompasses the Sacramento Valley as well as the foothills and Sierra Nevada region of Northeastern California. The chapter is one of the oldest in the state and contains within its borders much public-owned land, which its members strive to preserve and enjoy. Of the nearly 50 charter members, half were women, and most were from the Sacramento-Davis, California, area. Charlotte Mauk, later a long-time member of the national Sierra Club Board of Directors, served as the first chapter chairperson.

Administrative History

The Sierra Club Mother Lode Chapter was founded in 1939. The chapter encompasses the Sacramento Valley as well as the foothills and Sierra Nevada region of Northeastern California. The chapter is one of the oldest in the state, and contains within its borders much public-owned land, which its members strive to preserve and enjoy. Of the nearly 50 charter members, half were women, and most were from the Sacramento-Davis, California, area. Charlotte Mauk, later a long-time member of the national Sierra Club Board of Directors, served as the first chapter chairperson.

Mother Lode Chapter members wrote chapter histories in 1970 and 1975. Most recently, LaVerne and Luis Ireland prepared A History of the Mother Lode Chapter, The First 50 Years, 1939-1989. All three of these histories can be found in carton 1, folder 61.