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San Diego has a long history when it comes to talented and enterprising women, and the first society members, all of whom were men, recognized the important role women could play outside of the home. In 1875, only one year after its founding, they nominated a group of women to be associate members. Several would become prominent naturalists, including Kate Sessions, who two decades later would take the lead when it came to the foliage in Balboa Park. By 1883, society members already had their eye on the extraordinarily rare Torrey pine and encouraged city leaders to pass laws to conserve its habitat. ey drafted petitions asking Congress to donate the land to the society for protection, and by the 1920s, with local, state, and national support, the Torrey Pines State Natural Reserve was firmly established. at same decade, the society was central in the creation of Anza Borrego State Park. Society director Clinton Abbot and local naturalist Guy Fleming submitted plans for a park in the Borrego desert. San Diego voters rejected a bond measure that would have matched state funds, but society member George Marston purchased 2,320 acres near Palm Canyon, which he deeded to the state. Marston inspired other landowners to do the same, and in 1933, the year the new building opened, the U.S. government transferred 200,000 acres of federal land, giving San Diego County the park we know today. In addition to engaging the community, the original society members were eager to make a real contribution to the study of the region, and Gradwohl notes that combining the two has never been easier. Using iNaturalist, a free app, hikers and others around the county can upload photos of plants and animals they encounter, which museum scientists can then use in their research. To date, more than 600,000 images from the app have been identified by the museum's curator of botany alone. "It's a very important source of data and greatly magnifies our own efforts," says Gradwohl. "For us, the more points on the map, the better." e Nat has big plans for this year, including free entry for visitors one day during their birthday month. But the cornerstone of the 2024 celebration begins this summer with the opening of a native plant garden that will surround the building with a living display representative of the San Diego/Baja California region. Open to all park visitors, the garden represents a gift from the museum back to the community. "We want everyone to love nature as much as we do," says Gradwohl, along which lines the museum was awarded a grant to use the new garden as an outdoor classroom for all San Diego Unified School District fifth graders beginning in 2025. If you cannot visit this historic destination during the day, look into Nat at Night, when the museum stays open until 10pm on the third Friday of every month, offering access to exhibits as well as a rooftop restaurant and bar. sdnhm.org @ranchandcoast RANCH & COAST MAGAZINE JANUARY 2024 85 OPPOSITE The San Diego Natural History Museum TOP By the 1920s, society members, together with local, state, and national support, had firmly established what is known today as Torrey Pines State Natural Reserve CENTER The Nat's 2024 celebration will include the opening of a native plant garden that will surround the building with a living display representative of the San Diego/Baja California region BOTTOM San Diego Natural History Museum President and CEO Judy Gradwohl JUDY GRADWOHL: PHOTO BY STACY KECK