Free Essays,College Free Essays,Free College Essays at Anti Essays

The Forest Service Headquarters History Collection contains many materials concerning the experiences of the forest rangers of the early 1900's. If you were already a forest officer, you may have received a letter like this one from Gifford Pinchot, Forest Service Chief, to Seth Bullock, Forest Supervisor (1905). If you were an aspiring forest ranger like this candidate above, you'd first have to meet the qualifications for rangers, and then pass a test like this 1908 Ranger Examination. (If you were a real procrastinator, you might end up taking the 1925 Ranger Examination instead.) You might want to study for the exam by reading about Pack Hitches. Not so happy with your Forest Service experience? Maybe you'd write a letter to the Chief like this one containing the Resignation of Fred S. Breen (1908). If you were a little happier, however, or were just trying to make the best of the situation, you might be composing or singing Rangers' Songs. Want to know more? Check out this bibliography of Early Ranger Experiences from materials in the History Collection.
Forest Service research dates back almost to the time the national forests were created. The first study in the Pacific Northwest was started in 1909 to determine tree volume, taper, and bark thickness of hundreds of trees. Permanent growth plots were established on the Willamette National Forest in 1910. In that same year, research began at Wind River (Carson), Washington, to learn more about reforestation following a wildfire. In 1913, the Wind River Forest Experiment Station was established as the first Forest Service research facility in the Pacific Northwest.
In the early days of research, much emphasis was placed on developing knowledge necessary to harvest timber, allow for adequate regeneration of the forests, and protect other resource values. Timber harvest practices--clearcutting in Douglas-fir and selective cutting in ponderosa pine--were developed. Forests were surveyed for age,...