Preface 



ONE OF THE IMPORTANT research undertakings of the United States Forest Service 

 in recent years is a Nation-wide forest stirvey. Tlie survey was authorized in the 

 McS-^veeney-McNary Forest Research Act of May 22, 1928, and has now been ex- 

 tended to most of the important forest regions. This report deals ^vith the results of the 

 survey in the Lake States region — Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Michigan. It is based on a 

 field inventory completed before the -^var (1934-36), a reappraisal of resource data made 

 in 1945, and the results of resurveys made in certain counties since 1946. 



Forests ha\'e played an important part in the development of the Lake States during 

 the past 75 years, and even today they are a major element in the economy of the region. 

 The stn-vey of forest indtistries has disclosed thousands of primary Avood-using plants 

 engaged in converting logs and cordwood into lumber, pulp, shingles, etc.. and many 

 additional secondary operations engaged in further processing of the lumber and ptilp. 

 More than 100.000 men are employed to cut, transport, and manufacture forest products, 

 and the finished products bring much revenue into the region. 



A number of sawmills and other wood-using plants in the Lake States have closed 

 during the past decade, and some concern has been felt for the security of others becatise 

 of a progressive decline in qtiantity, quality, and availability of standing timber. A major 

 purpose of the survey, therefore, w^s to determine the extent of remaining timber stip- 

 plies. the wood requirements of local industries, and the possibilities of meeting these 

 requirements through proper management of the forest resources. Consideration was 

 also given to the possibility of developing ne\v indtistries to utilize materials hitherto left 

 in the woods or wasted in the logging and milling process. 



While this report deals primarily ^vith physical resources, the tmderlying purpose has 

 been to measin^e the capacity of the forests to contribiue to local re\enue, employment, 

 and community welfare. 



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