chaired by Gifford Pinchot, 
and its 48 members 
included a member of 
Congress chairing each 
section. The commission 
immediately undertook a 
resources inventory in 
response to its charge “to 
inquire into and advise on 
the condition of the 
country s natural resources.* 
In an all-out effort, the task 
was completed and 
summaries of the four 
sections were presented to 
the full Commission on 
December 1 (Pinchot 1947). 
A Joint Conservation 
Conference, called for 
December 8—10, 1908, 
attracted nearly 500 people, 
including 22 Governors, 11 
personal representatives of 
Governors, and 98 
representatives of 31 State 
commissions. In the words 
of Henry Clepper, “It was, 
and remains in our history, 
the single greatest stimulus 
to resource preservation 
and management. And this 
stimulus, be it noted, 
affected not only Federal 
and State governments; 
private interests also took 
action." Important outcomes 
included increased State 
action in fire detection and 
control, actions that led to 
4 
the passage of the Weeks 
Law, a stimulus to forestry 
education, and greater 
attention of major industry 
owners to protection and 
management of their 
holdings. The Governors’ 
Conference, followed by 
the Joint Conservation 
Conference, awakened 
many State governments to 
the condition of their natural 
resources and stimulated 
them to take action. 
Sometimes they faced great 
inertia from their 
legislatures, but 
nevertheless, many States 
made progress toward 
protection and management 
of their forest resources 
(Pinchot 1947, Clepper 
1968). 
Returning from the 
Governors’ Conference, 
Governor Blanchard 
encouraged the Louisiana 
Legislature to establish a 
State commission, which it 
did with Act 144, July 2, 
1908. Members of the 
temporary Commission for 
the Conservation of Natural 
Resources were instructed 
to report to the 1910 
legislature, and they 
presented their report with 
six recommendations. The 
legislature was responsive. 
