The American Forest: From

Pre-Settlement to Colonialism

Part 2. Colonialism- Early Forests &

Policies for Management

Week I. Historical Basis for Modern-Day ForestryIntroduction to Forest Resources and Conservation

Rich, plentiful fishing grounds ("cod banks") off of Newfoundland

New souls; missionaries at the First Mass at Monterey, 1770

In 1602 Sabastian Vizcaino wrote of Monterey Bay, “There are pines from which masts of any desired size can be obtained, as well as live oak and white oak.”

• De Soto, 1539-43, Spanish, FL to LA, southern oak-pine, central broad-leaved, southern bottomland forest types

• Smith, 1607-12, English, Chesapeake Bay: central broad leaved forests & southern oak-pine forest types

• Hudson, 1609, Dutch, Chesapea;ke Bay north to New York: southern oak-pine forests, central broad-leaved, northern hardwood forest types

• Descriptions of these new forests sent back to Europe were based on their personal perspectives, backgrounds

European Attitudes about North America forests

• Expectations and impressions resulting from European folklore and traditions, mythology– The forest has a spirit of its own: The supernatural,

the mystical beings lived there• Centaurs, trolls, dwarfs, ogres

• Witches– child-eating (Hansel and Gretel)

• Red Riding Hood, Sleeping Beauty

– The forest paradox: Contradictory beliefs from Judeo-Christian stories and hero legends

• Holy men escaped to the forest to purify their souls (e.g. Moses on Mount Sinai)

• Robin Hood & the Sherwood forest

Both perspective and forest type influence the reports on the discovered

forests• Member of De Soto’s crew: “In places [are] high

[tall] and dense forests, into which the Indians that were hostile betook themselves where they could not be found, nor could horses enter there.”– From Southern Bottomland Forest, LA

• Description from Vizcaino: “The land has a genial climate, its waters are good, and it is very fertile– judging from the varied and luxuriant growth of trees and plants…particularly chestnuts and acorns”– From open Med. Woodlands to the Pacific Coast Forests,

CA

DeSoto’s forest- southern bottomland

Both perspective and forest type influence the reports on the discovered

forests• Member of De Soto’s crew: “In places [are] high

[tall] and dense forests, into which the Indians that were hostile betook themselves where they could not be found, nor could horses enter there.”– From Southern Bottomland Forest, LA

• Description from Vizcaino: “The land has a genial climate, its waters are good, and it is very fertile– judging from the varied and luxuriant growth of trees and plants…particularly chestnuts and acorns”– From open Med. Woodlands to the Pacific Coast Forests,

CA

Vizcaino’s forest- coastal Caliofornia/ Monterrey Bay

North America forests as known to Europeans by 1620

• Limited access: Primarily a coastal view

• Impressions– Fear and

Consternation– Champlain,

1615

Northern Hardwood Forest Type, south of Lake States

North America forests as known to Europeans by 1620

• Limited access: Primarily a coastal view

• Impressions– Fear and

Consternation– Inexhaustible

economic potential

– New Eden– - Propaganda

Theodore de Bry around 1590/ N. Carolina coastal view

Reports of Plentiful Forests/ Lands Encourage the First Settlements

• Spanish settlement – Florida

• St. Augustine (1565)

• English Colonies – Virginia

• Roanoke - Walter Raleigh (1580s) – John White (painter) First illustrations of forest landscapes in the

United States (1590) – Thomas Hariot (astronomer and mathematician) A briefe and true

report of the new found land of Virginia (1588) – Theodore de Bry, printed version of Hariot’s report with engravings

• Jamestown - John Smith (1607-12) – Plymouth (1620)

• Importance of the success of the Plymouth Colony • Establishment of other European colonies followed…

– Regional settlement patterns • Migration away from the

coast and into the forests • Settlement along and up

rivers • Displacement of Nat. Ams.• Clearing of the forest for

agriculture – Subsistence farming in

northern colonies – Slash and burn tobacco

agriculture in the southern colonies

Settlements following 1650

Forest Clearing Techniques • The cleared land was

necessary not only for agriculture, but also became a symbol of order and civilization

• Settlers adopted Native American Techniques– Shortcut to clearing afforded by

methods of girdling, rather than tree cutting

– Roots left on site rather than removed

– Use of hoes rather than plows • No need for regular, large fields• No heavy equipment, draft

animals, and lowered labor input• Enabled individual families to

settle land & provide sustenance

Forest Clearing, then agriculture : The South

• “The English have up to now with little difference imitated the Indians in this.” (William Byrd, 1623)

• Girdling employed extensively in southern plantations (limited numbers of work animals)– Tobacco and cotton plantations- large scale

monocultures• Both nutrient-demanding crops• Cut some trees at about 1 yard height, then burned on-site to

return nutrients to soil

– Highly marketable, lightweight to ship to Europe• Led to soil exhaustion and shift of populations to Piedmont

Beyond forest clearing: Demand for forest resources increases with

population

Year Population

1620 103

1630 4,600

1650 50,400

1670 111,900

Year Population1700 250,9001720 466,2001740 905,6001750 1,170,8001770 2,148,100

Forests of the Original Thirteen

Colonies

• To meet population growth, forest use extends inland to different forest types within the major forest

formations

Utilization of 13 Original Colonies’ Forests– the Economy

•Agriculture •Fur trapping •Fishing

Forest Industries•Lumber and timber (construction materials: poles, logs, wood shakes)•Maple syrup•Naval stores (resin, turpentine)

Slash pine- resin source for caulking ships

• Other industries – Ship building: masts

from E. white pine; ribs from oaks

– 1609 - First shipment of masts from the colonies was sent from Virginia to England

• Ironworks • Rum Distilleries • Trading and shipping

Utilization of 13 Original Colonies’ Forests– the Economy

Technology for extraction of forest products– reflected European methods

– Felling Trees – Removal from forest

• Horse/ ox• Water

Technology for extraction of forest products

– Saw milling of logs 1631 - First commercial sawmill in the colonies (Berwick, Maine)

– Pit sawing – Water powered mills

European Traditions of Forest Use and Management

• Forest ownership – Royal lands: Lands of the aristocracy– Common lands (Magna Carta 1215, set 7, “Forest

Clauses”)• Ended the separation of forest courts, penalties from the

rest of the lands– equal justice for forest dwellers

• Objectives of management – Game production for hunting – Timber (masts, naval stores), and other forest

products

Management of Colonial Forests

• The wilderness – Undeclared commons – Magna Carta-type equal justice for forest

dwellers

• Land ownership – Purchase or confiscation from Native

Americans – Land grants

• Initial steps toward forest conservation

The First Forest Policies• 1631 - Massachusetts Bay Colony forbade the burning of

any ground prior to March 1

• 1681 - William Penn provided that for every 5 acres of forest cleared 1 acre should be kept in trees.

• 1739 - Massachusetts undertook to check the encroachment of sand dunes at Truro and on Plumb Island in Ipswich Bay by regulating timber cutting, grazing, and burning.

• 1772 - New York forbade the bringing to Albany for fuel, of more than six pieces of wood per load, under 6 inches in diameter for pine and under 4 inches for other species.

The First Forest Policies, cont. • 1691 - William and Mary in a new charter creating the Province of

Massachusetts Bay forbade the cutting, without permission of the British government, of all trees 24 inches or more in diameter at 12 inches above the ground growing on land not theretofore granted to a private person, under penalty of law. This became known as the Broad Arrow policy because of the practice of marking trees reserved under it for use of the Crown with a broad arrow.

• 1704 - Navigation Act placed a penalty on injuring pitch pine trees through cutting or burning (initiation of fire suppression?)

• 1705 - The British Parliament prohibited the felling of "Pitch Pines and Tar Trees" less than 12 inches in diameter and not growing on private property.

• 1729 - Broad Arrow policy was reenacted with somewhat stricter provisions as to what constituted private land.

References

• McBride, J. R. 2007. The American Forest. Slide Collection and Notes. University of California, Berkeley.

• Williams, M. 1989. Americans and their forests. (Chapter 3-6). Cambridge: Cambridge Univ. Press. pp. 53-145.

• Dana, S. T. and S. K. Fairfax. 1980. Forest and range Policy. New York: McGraw-Hill. pp. 349 352.)

• Bonnicksen, T. M. 2000. America's Ancient Forests. New York: John Wiley & Sons. pp. 258-292.

• Goetzmann, W. H. and G. Williams. 1992. The Atlas of North

American Exploration. Prentice Hall. NY. 224 p.

Chronology of Colonial Forest Policies

• 1609 - First shipment of masts from the colonies Was sent from Virginia to England

• 1626 - Plymouth Colony forbade the selling or transportation of timber out of the colony without the approval of the governor and council.

• 1631 - First commercial sawmill in the colonies (Berwick, Maine) • 1631 - Massachusetts Bay Colony forbade the burning of any ground prior to

March 1 (prevent damage to young forest growth and soil) • 1668 - Massachusetts reserved for the public all white pine trees fit for masts

in certain parts of the town of Exeter. • 1681 - William Penn provided that for every 5 acres of forest cleared 1 acre

should be kept in trees. • 1691 - William and Mary in a new charter creating the Province of

Massachusetts Bay forbade the cutting, without permission of the British government, of all trees 24 inches or more in diameter at 12 inches above the ground growing on land not theretofore granted to a private person, under penalty of law. This became known as the Broad Arrow policy because of the practice of marking trees reserved under it for use of the Crown with a broad arrow.

• 1704 - Navigation Act placed a penalty on injuring pitch pine trees through cutting or burning.

Chronology of Colonial Forest Policies, cont.

• 1705 - The British Parliament prohibited the felling of "Pitch Pines and Tar Trees" less than 12 inches in diameter and not growing on private property.

• 1729 - Broad Arrow policy was reenacted with somewhat stricter provisions as to what constituted private land and with better machinery for enforcement.

• 1739 - Massachusetts undertook to check the encroachment of sand dunes at Truro and on Plumb Island in Ipswich Bay by regulating timber cutting, grazing, and burning.

• 1743 - New York authorized anyone to call for help in fighting forest fires. • 1752 - Connecticut forbade the appropriation, by others than their owners,

the logs and other forest products being floated down the Connecticut River. This action prevented land owners adjacent to streams from preventing the use of streams for the transport of logs and other forest products. It led to the doctrine than any stream which will float a log is navigable and consequently a public highway.

• 1772 - New York forbade the bringing to Albany for fuel, of more than six pieces of wood per load, under 6 inches in diameter for pine and under 4 inches for other species.