Gamlin Cabin

The cabin was built by the New Englanders Israel and Thomas Gamlin in 1872.^[a] The brothers filed a claim to use 160 acres (65 hectares) of land in General Grant Grove for logging. They had previously lived in the Fallen Monarch, a fallen sequoia that was fully carved out. While grazing sheep at higher elevations, the two used the cabin for six years until 1878, when the United States General Land Office recommended that the area around the building be preserved as a public park. They made a deal in which the Gamlins would give up their claims to the area in exchange for land in another area. The Gamlins kept their part of the bargain, but the GLO did not, never giving them their land. The Gamlins eventually moved to Idaho in search of unclaimed land.^[1]

After the establishment of General Grant (now Kings Canyon) National Park in 1890, the United States Cavalry used it for hay and grain storage from 1891 to 1901.^[1][2] It later became the living area of the first civilian park ranger, Lewis L. Davis, between 1902 and 1909. There, Davis learned about the sequoia's relationship with fire and raised young plants.^[3] During the winter of 1931–32, a falling tree damaged the roof. Due to the building's age, plans were made to reconstruct it, with the restoration happening in 1933.^[1]