The Great Southern Lumber Company Reforestation Practices

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• published: 01 Jul 2012
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This silent film was produced by The Great Southern Lumber Company somewhere between 1910 and 1938. It gives a look into early forest management, reforestation practices, sustainability and forest research. The Great Southern Lumber Company were pioneers in reforestation and nursery practices within the forestry industry in North America. Also Note: McKean County Democrat, February 12, 1925 Perpetual Timber Supply Until Eternity at Great Southern Co.'s Tract at Bogalusa -- A Local Reforestation Project H. H. Redfield, a stockholder and official of the Great Southern Lumber Company, which is conducting one of the worlds largest lumbering operations near Bogalusa, Louisiana, informed the democrat editor Monday that his company had adopted a plan of scientific reforestation, which is calculated to make the Louisiana operation perpetual to the end of time. Profiting by the tragic blunders of early lumber operators in Pennsylvania which resulted in Penn's woods being converted into a barren desert, the Great Southern Lumber company has been systematically reforesting as the work of cutting their big southern tract progresses. An average of three pine trees to the acre are left standing as the wave of woodsmen cut their way through the forests. The progress of second growth timber over the tremendous area which has already been cut over during the past twelve or fifteen years is truly remarkable. Extraordinary precautions are taken to prevent forest fires and to these successful efforts the gratifying progress of the second growth timber is largely due. Not content with the progress already made the lumber company, is continually seeking to improve its conservation and reforestation program. Some time ago Mr. Conger Goodyear, president of the Great Southern Lumber company made a trip to Sweden for the special purpose of studying reforestation methods there. Mr. Goodyear was granted every facility to study conditions under most advantageous conditions, both by the Swedish government and by the kingdom's leading lumber companies. One of these Mr. Goodyear found had been operating on one tract of land continuously since the year of 1220, thanks to scientific reforestation, The well known Buffalo man found the Swedes to be enthusiastic guardians of forest wealth, and some time ago the Swedish ambassador to Washington made a special trip to Bogalusa to observe the reforestation work being carried out there and was highly pleased with what he saw. When the Great Southern Lumber company, in which Smethport capital is largely interested, started cutting its gigantic tract several years ago it built what at that time was the worlds largest sawmill at Bogalusa which became one of the south's most thriving cities. This gigantic sawmill has been running continuously 24 hours a day cutting timber at the rate of 600,000 feet a day, or nearly the capacity of some of the small mills which at one time, years ago, dotted this section of Pennsylvania. It is estimated that, sawing at the present rate, there is still enough virgin timber on the company's big tract to keep the mill running at peak production for thirteen years to come. At the end of thirteen years the work of cutting the second growth timber will start and it is expected that the mill can then be kept in operation, sawing at the rate of 125,000 feet of timber per day, as long as time endures. In citing this remarkable timber operation in which so much local interest attaches, it is worthy of note that a parallel perpetual operation is in a progress on the vast Heinemann estate near Smethport. The Heinemann estate, thanks to intelligent reforestation and fire prevention feeds the large chemical industries at Crosby and reproduction renders the supply of wood inexhaustible at the present rate of consumption.