FORESTRY IN THE ALBEMARLE AREA 



I ntroduc tlon 



The first explorers and settlers from the old world found 

 the whole eastern seaboard of North America to be heavily forested 

 with massive hardwoods and pines. The forest lands were much 

 more open than they are now. Fires caused by lightening and the 

 Indians burned at fairly frequent intervals and kept down the 

 undergrowth. The climax or mature virgin forest was made up of 

 large trees and due to heavy shade on the forest floor undergrowth 

 was discouraged. That, plus the intermittent fires, kept the 

 forest floor relatively open making travel much easier than it 

 would have been had the woods been grown-up with undergrowth as 

 they are at the present time. 



Interlaced through the forests in the Albemarle Area were 

 vast impenetrable bogs and swamp lands. These wet lands, plus 

 the extensive waterways and sounds in the area made overland 

 travel very difficult and time consuming. It was natural that 

 waterways served as the primary transportation system in early 

 times. Settlements clustered near the sound and along the banks 

 of its tributary rivers and streams. Therefore, the vast wetlands 

 and the penetration of water bodies and streams into the hinter- 

 land were major factors in determining the settlement pattern of 

 the Albemarle Area. 



Farm land was clained with the axe and with fire, and agri- 

 culture began to prosper during the latter part of the 17th cen- 

 tury. At the same time, the forests yielded lumber, firewood, 

 and naval stores. During the latter part of the 18th century, 

 naval stores declined in importance as the available supply of 

 suitable long leaf pines was depleted. However, lumber production 

 and the manufacture of staves and shingles became quite important. 



Because the population was thinly distributed and land titles 

 were not always clear, open range grazing by hogs and cattle was 



