INFLUENCES OF THE NATIONAL FORESTS IN THE 

 SOUTHERN APPALACHIANS. 



By William L. Hall 

 Assistant Forester, U. S. forest Service 



When into a region long and thickly settled an unusual system of 

 ownership is projected which sets up new aims, causes rearrangement 

 of the population and reorganization of the industries, it is important 

 to observe closely the results to see to what extent they are beneficial. 

 This kind of a change has occurred in the Southern Appalachians. 

 Into this region, thickly populated and long occupied under individual 

 ownership and used for agriculture, was projected a plan of national 

 ownership which has forestry for its purpose and which efifected 

 change of title and of use to more than a million acres of land, causing 

 a complete rearrangement of communities and material readjustments 

 of industries. In such a transition it is important for those interested 

 in forestry to observe and interpret the results as soon as they become 

 apparent. 



It should not escape attention that widespread changes were occur- 

 ring in the Southern Appalachian region before the Government be- 

 gan to transform large parts of it into National Forests. The South- 

 ern Appalachian region is thickly settled. It is reported by one au- 

 thority to be as thickly settled as the Blue Grass Section of Kentucky 

 and twice as thickly settled as the State of lowa.^ In all probability, 

 however, its population is no greater today than 30 years ago, and 

 so far as certain localities are concerned the population today is less 

 than one-fourth what it was 30 years ago. 



What has happened is that a redistribution of population has taken 

 place. Thirty years ago families were scattered all through the moun- 

 tains, each family occupying a small farm, from 60 to 95 per cent of 

 which was covered by timber. Each family subsisted on what could 

 be produced on the few acres of cleared land, pieced out by fish and 

 game. There were no good roads, frequently no roads at all, and no 

 opportunity to reach outside markets with farm products except those 

 which could be carried on horseback or on foot. In the transition 

 that has ensued, irrespective of Government ownership, the population 



'J. H. Arnold: Farmer's Bulletin 905, U. S. Department of Agriculture. 

 402 



