A fascinating history of the profitable paradox of the American outdoor experience: visiting nature first requires shopping.
With consumers spending billions of dollars on clothing and equipment each year as they seek out nature, the American outdoor sector grew over the past 150 years from a small collection of outfitters to an industry contributing more than 2 percent of the nation's economic output.
Rachel S. Gross argues that this success was predicated not just on creating functional equipment but also on selling an authentic, anticommercial outdoor identity. In other words, shopping for the woods was also about being-or becoming-the right kind of person. Demonstrating that outdoor culture is commercial culture, Gross examines Americans' journey toward outdoor expertise by tracing the development of the nascent outdoor goods industry, the influence of World War II on its growth, and the boom years of outdoor businesses.
This project was shaped by Dr. Gross's time at the Davidson Honors College at UM. DHC students and history students contributed to a history exhibit first at the Missoula Public Library and then at the Historical Museum at Fort Missoula on outdoor gear and identity. Come see the latest iteration of this project shaped by local history!
