1973: Forest Service and Eastern Wilderness

As the National Wilderness Preservation System developed, it became clear that the vast majority of qualifying wilderness areas existed in the western United States. Few tracts of public land in the east were large and pristine enough to meet the standards set forth in the 1964 Wilderness Act.

Eastern wilderness considerations also called forth questions of purity and precedent: if formerly logged or roaded areas in the East qualified for wilderness designation, would it undermine the standard for wilderness elsewhere? In a 1973 speech, Forest Service recreation director Owen Jamison touched upon many of the ingredients that would emerge in the bill Congress finally approved. President Ford signed the Eastern Wilderness Act into law on January 3, 1975.

Jamison highlighted the following points in his speech:
"The need for the kind of solitude and spiritual refreshment found in primitive, scenic surroundings has rapidly increased in the populous eastern and southern States. This situation has developed as eastern urban growth accelerated -- it is only one of many influences felt as the Nation's people seek escape from the artificial and crowded conditions of the city...

Because of the clear need for values obtainable in Wildernesses near the eastern population centers, the Department of Agriculture believes it appropriate that National Forest lands in the East which have been restored to a near-natural condition be considered for inclusion in the Wilderness System...

In his February 8, 1972, message on the environment, President Nixon highlighted the unequal distribution of Wilderness units throughout the Nation. The President directed the Secretaries of Agriculture and of the Interior to accelerate identification of areas in the East having Wilderness potential...

The Congress is now considering three major approaches to the designation of eastern Wilderness...
...the Administration proposal, would amend the Wilderness act by broadening the admission criteria for eastern areas only... The Administration proposal would provide the same or greater degree of protection as that provided under the Wilderness Act.

If enacted, the Administration proposal would permit inclusion within the Wilderness System of National Forest lands which were once significantly affected by man's works, but within which the imprint of such works have been substantially erased, the appearance has reverted to a natural condition, and opportunities for solitude or a primitive and unconfined recreational experience now exists."

Source:

"The Forest Service and Eastern Wilderness,"speech by U.S. Forest Service Assistant Director of Recreation, Owen T. Jamison, at the Executive Committee Meeting of the Appalachian National Scenic Trail Advisory Council, Harpers Ferry, West Virginia, September 28, 1973.