97-16AP Father of Forestry in the South Art PrintIn 1917 during World War I, there was an urgent demand to construct 1,000 wooden ships. Southern lumbermen assured the nation that they would furnish timber needed to win the war. But the lumbermen faced many problems with the shipbuilding program. A great number of timbers 12-in. x 12-in. x 24-ft. were needed. To fill the orders, huge Longleaf Pine trees had to be hunted out, such as the one being felled in this painting.By 1930, due to heavy demand for wood products from the railroad industry and the public, it became apparent that the end was near for the virgin pine forests. Louisiana's Henry E. Hardnter, known as the "Father of Forestry in the South," cooperated with others interested in getting a second crop of Longleaf Pine. The virgin forest of Longleaf Pine, around 1900, was generally considered a nonrenewable resource to be mined like iron ore. Hardnter worked with Herman H. Chapman of Yale University and others to find ways to regenerate Longleaf Pine. At Bogalusa, Louisiana, Red Bateman, chief ranger with Great Southern Lumber Company, designed a dibble (still used by many) and planted 20,000 acres of Longleaf Pine seedlings. In 1920, Austin Carey, noting a good Longleaf pinecone crop, suggested that Bateman burn the seedbed to prepare for a "catch." His suggestion was taken and several thousand acres were seeded naturally. Today, thriving pine forests are productively surviving in the South as modern technology gives the present generation an ever-improving method of regenerating our southern forests. (Thanks to T.R. Miller Mill Company for information for this painting and story.) |
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