In partnership with the Chautauqua Bird, Tree & Garden Club, we presented a webinar to discuss A Connecticut Yankee Goes to Washington: Senator George P. McLean, Birdman of the Senate, with Will McLean Greeley, a distinguished author with a passion for American history, politics, and birds.
Together, we explored the life and legacy of Connecticut’s George P. McLean, who helped establish lasting legal protections for birds. Senator McLean oversaw the passage of the 1918 Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA), a landmark environmental protection legislation in the U.S. Still active today, the MBTA has saved billions of birds from unnecessary harm and likely prevented the extinction of entire bird species. Greeley, McLean’s great-great nephew, puts McLean’s victory for birds in the context of his distinguished forty-five-year career marked by many acts of reform during a time of widespread corruption and political instability.
Will McLean Greeley grew up in West Michigan with a passion for American history, politics, and birds. He earned a bachelor’s degree in political science from the University of Michigan and then a master’s degree from Michigan in archives administration. After retiring from a thirty-five-year career in government and corporate market research, he embarked upon three-year research and writing journey to learn about his great-great-uncle George P. McLean and his legacy. Married and the father of two sons (and two grandchildren), Greeley lives in Midland, Michigan. A Connecticut Yankee Goes to Washington is his first book.
Senator George P. McLean’s crowning achievement was overseeing passage of one of the country’s first and most important wildlife conservation laws, the Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918. The MBTA, which is still in effect today, has saved billions of birds from senseless killing and likely prevented the extinction of entire bird species. A Connecticut Yankee Goes to Washington: George P. McLean, Birdman of the Senate puts McLean’s victory for birds in the context of his distinguished forty-five-year career marked by many acts of reform during a time of widespread corruption and political instability.
