34 ILLINOIS AUDUBON BULLETIN 
In Memoriam: 
T. E. MUSSELMAN 1887-1976 
Thomas Edgar Musselman, one of the most famous and beloved 
naturalists of the 20th Century died June 12 at the age of 89 in Quincy, 
Illinois. T.E., as he was best known, combined a career as a teacher-admin- 
istrator at Gem City Business College, a proprietory school founded by the 
Musselman family, with an avocation of bird study and other nature 
phenomena. In the tri-state area of IIlinois-Missouri-lowa, T.E. was known as 
the “Bird Man of Quincy” to generations of school children and adults. A 
gifted speaker, buoyed by the enthusiasm of his love for nature, T.E. 
captivated audiences with his stories and mimicry of wild birds and animals. 
A high school principal in Mexico, Missouri once remarked ‘’T.E. Mussel- 
man is the one man who can take snakes, bats, birds and other crawly 
creatures and make school boys and girls love them’’. Another remarked 
“Next to Ringling Brothers Circus, my students watch for the coming of 
‘ya = ees 
In ornithological circles T.E. was best known for his ‘‘Bluebird Trails”. 
In the early part of the century, T.E. noted a decline in bluebird populations 
which he ascertained were a result of the reduced availability of nesting sites 
in fence post and tree holes. As a consequence of his observations, T.E. 
began building bluebird boxes and establishing the many bluebird trails 
which made him famous. At one time these trails included over 1000 boxes 
which T.E. maintained himself. His 
efforts inspired numerous area in- 
dividuals, scout troops, and 4-H 
clubs to establish their own trails. 
Articles by and about T.E. in Ford 
Times and Readers Digest ex- 
tended his bluebird inspiration to 
the rest of the country and estab- 
lished for him the reputation of 
being ‘‘godfather to a million blue- 
birds’. A portion of his bluebird 
route is currently being maintained 
by members of the Musselman Au- 
dubon Society of Quincy, a 
chapter of the National Audubon 
Society, appropriately named in his 
honor. 
