Richard Louis Proenneke (; May 4, 1916 – April 20, 2003) was an American self-educated naturalist, conservationist, writer, and wildlife photographer who, from the age of about 51, lived alone for nearly thirty years (1968–1998) in the mountains of Alaska in a log cabin that he constructed by hand near the shore of Twin Lakes. Proenneke hunted, fished, raised and gathered much of his own food, and also had supplies flown in occasionally. He documented his activities in journals and on film, and also recorded valuable meteorological and natural data. The journals and film were later used by others to write books and produce documentaries about his time in the wilderness. Proenneke bequeathed his cabin to the National Park Service upon his death and it was included in the National Register of Historic Places four years later. The cabin is a popular attraction of Lake Clark National Park. Early life Proenneke's father, William Christian Proenneke (1880–1972), served in World War I, and made his living as a house painter, carpenter and well driller. His mother, Laura (née Bonn) (1884–1966) was a homemaker and gardener. His parents married in December 1909 and had three daughters and four sons: Robert, Helen, Lorene, Richard (Dick), Florence, Paul, and Raymond (Jake). The year of Proenneke's birth is often given as 1917, but social security and census records note Richard Louis Proenneke was born in Primrose, Harrison Township, Lee County, Iowa, on May 4, 1916. Proenneke completed primary school in Primrose, but left high school after two years because he did not enjoy it. Until 1939, he worked in proximity to Primrose driving tractors, working with farm equipment, and doing typical chores Iowa family farms required at the time. He also admired motorcycles and obtained a Harley Davidson as a teen. Naval career Proenneke enlisted in the United States Navy the day after the attack on Pearl Harbor and served as a carpenter. He spent almost two years at Pearl Harbor and was later stationed in San Francisco waiting for a new ship assignment. After hiking on a mountain near San Francisco he contracted rheumatic fever and was hospitalized at Norco Naval Hospital for six months. During his convalescence the war ended and he was given a medical discharge from the Navy in 1945. According to one of his biographers and friend, Sam Keith, the illness was very revealing for Proenneke, who decided to devote