The Weeks Act and the Eastern Forests

 

 

Daniel Boone National Forest - Redbird Unit

The forests and parks we have now came after struggles.  The Congress and authors and prominent citizens debated the idea of setting aside land for protection of water resources and the enjoyment of the people.  John Muir and Giford Pinchot were a part of it.  The Weeks Act was a watershed event in this land's history.  Were it not for the Weeks Act there would be no Daniel Boone National Forest, Nantahala National Forest or Cherokee National Forest. John Muir said the struggle would go on.  What needs to be done in our time?

This image is from the Redbird area of the Daniel Boone National Forest where there are large American Beech trees.  The land that became the Daniel Boone National Forest was once bare of trees over wide areas of the landscape.  Like most of the places that became the eastern national forests the land was bare of trees and blackened from fires.

But in the these tracts of land with hills and valleys were old growth trees.  These stately trees survived the ax through the wide lumbering times before the Weeks Act.  When the Forest Service amnounces timber sales sometimes the sale areas include the locations of these old growth trees.  Sadly our woods become the poorer for the loss of these old growth denizens.