Peeling Back The Bark
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CSI Madison, Wisconsin: Wooden Witness
By Amanda T. Ross on March 31, 2009The setting: A bleak and blustery evening at an estate in 1930s Hopewell, N.J. The scene: At 9:00 p.m., a well-dressed man hears a noise he later likens to an orange crate falling off a kitchen chair. Noting nothing amiss, he shrugs and returns to his evening activities. The night continues uneventfully until 10:00 p.m.,…
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In Her Boots: Women in the Forests
By Amanda T. Ross on March 8, 2009In honor of International Women’s Day, please enjoy a brief sampling of FHS resources on women in forest-related professions. Dr. Eloise Gerry at microscope. Our U.S. Forest History portal highlights the contributions of many foresters, scientists, and others. The efforts of females employees are recognized, including those of: Research scientist Eloise Gerry, who conducted pioneering…
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Pancakes and Pastimes
By Eben Lehman on February 26, 2009The four new photo galleries added to our website today provide a unique look into various aspects of the lives of loggers outside of the forest work environment. These new online galleries, containing nearly 150 historic photos, feature subjects such as Logging Camp Food, Logging Communities, Family Life, and Logger Rodeos. The Logging Camp Food…
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Lights! Camera! YouTube!
By Eben Lehman on February 18, 2009As part of our ongoing efforts in using new technologies to provide online access to materials in our library and archives, the Forest History Society is pleased to announce the launch of its own YouTube Channel. YouTube, the leading online video community, allows organizations to reach a huge audience of users through the creation of…
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Forests in Fiction: Tom Gill Lived What He Wrote
By Amanda T. Ross on February 6, 2009Through one degree of separation, we can connect professional foresters with Hollywood glamour! FHS holds the archival records and popular novels of the nexus: Tom Gill, a leader in international and American forestry and prolific author. Thomas Harvey Gill (1891-1972) served as a forester with the U.S. Forest Service (1915-1925), the Charles Lathrop Pack Forestry…
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Seasons Greetings!
By Eben Lehman on December 24, 2008In honor of the season, Peeling Back the Bark would like to feature a small selection of just a few of the holiday cards and greetings found in various Forest History Society archival collections. The following selected materials represent just a fraction of the many collections available in the FHS Archives. Below each image can…
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New Collection: National Fire Danger Rating System
By James Lewis on December 12, 2008A key instrument in fighting wildfires is the National Fire Danger Rating System — used to anticipate fires ahead of time by predicting the potential danger for fire in a specific geographic area. The Forest History Society Library and Archives staff recently processed a collection that provides a history of the Forest Service’s creation of…
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The 10th and 20th Forestry Engineers of WWI
By Eben Lehman on November 11, 2008Ninety years ago today, on November 11, 1918, at 11:00 am Paris time, an armistice treaty was signed between the Allies and Germany, officially ending WWI on the Western Front and marking victory for the Allied forces. To further mark the historical significance of November 11th, we would like to announce the launch of a…
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Driving the River
By Eben Lehman on October 24, 2008Six brand new photo galleries featuring more than 160 historic photos documenting various aspects of river log drives were added to our website today. River drives were a standard way of moving large amounts of cut timber to sawmills during the late 19th and early 20th centuries, prior to the expansion and adoption of railroads…
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For the Ladies…
By Amanda T. Ross on October 8, 2008Photographs from the Forest History Society collections have been used for a great variety of purposes, from scholarly publications to popular documentaries to home decor. Perhaps we have the beginnings of a Men of Logging calendar?
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Logger Photos
By Eben Lehman on October 7, 2008Two new online photo galleries have just been added to our website today. The new “Loggers” gallery features more than 80 historic photos of loggers posing while at work in the field. Photos in this gallery showcase the outdoor working environment as well as the individual personalities of many of the loggers: The second new…
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Photograph Collections: A Capital Idea!
By Amanda T. Ross on October 6, 2008On September 17, 2008, FHS’s own Technical Archivist Eben Lehman participated in a news conference sponsored by the Alabama Forest Owners’ Association, Inc. The AFOA advocates for owners of Alabama forestland and strives to keep members informed on matters related to forest ownership. As part of his segment, Eben highlighted the riches of the Forest…
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Dignity Dies an Ignoble Death
By James Lewis on October 3, 2008By coincidence, we were looking through artist Rudy Wendelin’s papers the other day when the news broke about the baccanalian goings-on in the Department of Interior’s Minerals Management Service. We found several party invitations from the 1930s for which Rudy did the artwork. These events were tame affairs by comparison, no doubt, but you have…
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"Delinquent Raindrop"
By Amanda T. Ross on September 12, 2008In 2007, the Forest History Society became the fortunate recipient of the Rudolph Wendelin Papers, 1930-2005. This collection comprises the personal papers and artwork of Rudolph “Rudy” Wendelin (1910-2000), who is the best known artist behind the United States Forest Service mascot and spokesman “Smokey Bear.” In addition to the widely recognized and much beloved…
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World War I Photos
By Eben Lehman on September 3, 2008As historic photographs in the FHS collections are digitized and added to our online image database, photos are also periodically grouped into browsable online galleries organized by subject. The newest gallery, just added to our website, features images relating to World War I. Much of this set is made up of photos documenting the important…
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Welcome
By Eben Lehman on August 8, 2008Welcome to the Forest History Society’s blog. Check back often to see information on new acquisitions, updates on new online exhibits and photo galleries, as well as highlights from the rich resources held in our Photo Collections and Archives. Feel free to make comments or provide additional information on any of the posted items and…
