Descriptive Summary
Access
Publication Rights
Preferred Citation
Acquisition Information
Biography/Administrative History
Scope and Content of Collection
Indexing Terms
Descriptive Summary
Title: Joseph R. Paquette Poetry Collection
Dates: 1979-1990
Collection Number: YCN: 2024 (YOSE 237734)
Creator/Collector:
Extent: 293 items; 1 LF (2 boxes: 289 loose poems, 4 volumes of bound poetry).
Online items available
Repository:
Yosemite National Park Archives
El Portal, California 95318
Abstract: The Joseph R. Paquette Poetry Collection contains over 290 poems written by Paquette between 1979 and 1990 during his later
years as a longtime Yosemite Park and Curry Company employee. The majority of the poems in the collection are influenced by
the natural beauty of Yosemite National Park. The collection is comprised of 289 unique poems, with four unpublished bound
books containing poetry written by Paquette.
Language of Material: English
Access
No restrictions.
Preferred Citation
Joseph R. Paquette Poetry Collection. Yosemite National Park Archives
Acquisition Information
The Joseph R. Paquette collection consists of one donation to the park by Joseph Paquette’s brother, Mr. Claude Paquette,
who also was a long-time employee of the Yosemite Park and Curry Company.
Biography/Administrative History
Born in Fall River, Massachusetts on February 20, 1922, Joseph R. Paquette attended Syracuse University where he trained his
voice in opera. He was in the United States Marine Corps, before gaining employment at Yellowstone National Park for eleven
years. He began employment with the Yosemite Park and Curry Company on April 26, 1959, where he worked as the manager of the
Yosemite Lodge storeroom.2 He worked in the park for over twenty nine years, where he also held frequent opera appreciation
meetings.3
In 1979, Paquette was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease and became very religious as a result of the diagnosis. He then began
to write poetry influenced by nature and religion. Paquette died on June 3, 1999, and is buried at Saint Joseph’s Catholic
Church Cemetery in Mariposa, California.
Scope and Content of Collection
The Joseph R. Paquette Poetry collection is arranged into two format-based series: Series I: Loose Poetry, and Series II:
Bound Poetry. Arrangement of the collection reflects the creator’s organization of the poetry he authored during his later
years at the Park.
