Minerva Hamilton Hoyt was an early American activist who worked to preserve California desert areas, and helped gain preservation by establishing Joshua Tree National Park. Born on a Mississippi plantation, she later lived in East Coast cities with her physician husband before they moved to Pasadena in 1897. There she gradually became deeply interested in desert plants and habitat.
Early life and move to California
Minerva Hamilton was born on March 27, 1866 on a plantation near Durant, Mississippi to an upper-class family. She attended a local school for white students, many from the planter class. After marrying Dr. Albert Sherman Hoyt, they live for a time in New York and Baltimore, and had two sons together. In 1897 they moved to South Pasadena, California. In California, Hoyt used her influence as a wealthy socialite to support civic causes. Among these was the Los Angeles Philharmonic.
Hoyt became interested in Southern California's desert plants through her interest in gardening, particularly cactus and Joshua Trees. After the death of her husband in 1918, she became concerned that increased automobile traffic in the desert was threatening the area. Hoyt began to exhibit desert plants across the country, to educate people about their qualities. Exhibitions included the national 1928 Garden Club of America show in New York, where the work was seen and commented on by Secretary of AgricultureWilliam Jardine. She later exhibited as far as London. The exhibitions were significant efforts — for the New York exhibition, seven freight cars of rocks, plants, and sand were shipped across the country, and fresh flowers were flown in. In March, 1930 Hoyt founded the International Desert Conservation League. Throughout the 1930s she worked to encourage the state of California to create three parks, including Joshua Tree, Death Valley, and Anza-Borrego Desert. Though initially thwarted, in 1936, she gained support by the administration of President Franklin D. Roosevelt, which designated more than 800,000 acres in California desert area as the Joshua Tree National Monument. She also worked to appeal to the Mexican government, appealing to the latter to set aside 10,000 acres for cactus preservation.
Legacy and honors
In 1931, a species of Mexican cactus was named after Hoyt.
