Blood and Soil Bohemianism: Identity and Territoriality in California, 1900–30

In the early twentieth century, writers and artists in the San Francisco Bay Area embraced an ethos of outdoor bohemianism that differed significantly from urban bohemian circles in New York, London, and Paris. The focal point for this activity was the coastal literary community of Carmel-by-the-Sea, where scientists from the region's universities rubbed shoulders with writers, poets, and artists, who eagerly embraced the latest in eugenic pseudoscience. These writers included Mary Austin, who argued that literary works were doomed to failure unless they reflected a perfect marriage of blood (or what she called “racial resources”) and soil (or the places where creative workers carry out their work). This essay argues that the creative work produced by writers in California constituted a cultural wing of the eugenics movement, helping justify Anglo colonization of the region by advancing dubious ideas about racial hierarchies and the ability of settlers to establish indigeneity through better breeding.