In 1912, the Forest Service 

 was designated to examine 

 lands for purchase under 

 the Weeks Law. The 

 commission considered the 

 agency's recommendations, 

 approved or disapproved 

 the purchase, and fixed the 

 price for approved lands. 



During the first 5 years of 

 the Weeks Law program, 

 purchases in what is now 

 the Southern Region were 

 confined to purchase units 

 established in 1911 and 

 1912 in the Appalachian 

 States. Those mentioned in 

 the 1912 report were: 



1 . A tract of virgin timberland 

 situated in Fannin, Union, 

 Gilmer, and Lumpkin 

 Counties in Georgia. The 

 watershed was the Toccoa 

 River, a tributary of the 

 Tennessee. 



2. A group of tracts in the 

 Massanutten, VA, area, 

 comprising 19,322 acres 

 situated in Page and 

 Rockingham Counties on 

 the Shenandoah River. 



3. A group of tracts in the 

 Mount Mitchell area in 

 McDowell County, NC, in 

 the upper watershed of the 

 Catawba River. 



4. A group of tracts in the 

 Nantahala area consisting 

 of 27,815 acres in Macon 

 and Swain Counties, NC, 



on the watershed of the 

 Nantahala and Little 

 Tennessee Rivers. Of this 

 tract, 20,000 acres 

 supported virgin timber of 

 excellent quality, averaging 

 4,500 board feet per acre. 

 The remaining lands were 

 cut over and in part virgin. 



5. A tract containing 24,900 

 acres on the James River 

 watershed in Rockbridge, 

 Bedford, and Botetourt 

 Counties, VA. 



6. In the Smoky Mountain 

 area, a group of tracts 

 containing 59,213 acres in 

 Blount and Sevier Counties, 

 TN, in the headwaters of 

 Little River, a tributary of 

 the Tennessee. 



7. Three groups of tracts in 

 the White Mountain area 

 totaling 33,800 acres. 



8. Two tracts comprising 

 33,619 acres situated in 

 Johnson and Sullivan 

 Counties, TN, and in 

 Washington County, VA. 

 These lands were in the 

 watershed of the Holston 

 River, which forms the 

 extreme headwaters of the 

 Tennessee. 



These were all cutover 

 lands. 



Of the lands (within present 

 Southern Region 

 boundaries) approved 



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