COLUMBUS, OH -- As John "Johnny Appleseed" Chapman planted his way across the Ohio Valley in the early 1800s, he encountered a landscape dominated by forests. The land that would soon become the state of Ohio was almost entirely covered by trees. By the time Chapman died in 1845, Ohio had become the nation's third highest populated state and the agricultural center of the country. But forested land dropped precipitously. Ohio's forests hit a low point in the early 1900s when they shrank to just 12 percent of the state land base.
At the turn of the 19th Century, Ohio's dwindling forests begged for help, and some visionary Ohioans responded by making Ohio one of the first states in the country to enact a formal forestry program. The results of nearly 80 years of scientific forest management have been dramatic.
A new start:
In 1912 the General Assembly amended the Ohio Constitution to allow for the creation of a forest reserve system. Their goal was to prove the practical value of forestry.
The state forest system was born in 1916 with the purchase of 221 acres in Athens County which would become Waterloo State Forest and the purchase of 1,500 acres in Lawrence County leading to the creation of Dean State Forest.
The Division of Forestry, then under the umbrella of the State Board of Agriculture, continued to purchase lands throughout Ohio, particularly in the hill region of the state. By the end of the 1920s, the division had acquired over 30,000 acres of land, and started Shawnee and Brush Creek State Forests. Virtually all were remnants of past land abuse. Much was either cut over forests or poorly degraded farm and pasture land. To aid in reforestation efforts, the division created state forest nurseries on a number of state forest holdings. Shortly thereafter, a separate tree seedling nursery was started near Marietta.
During the 1940s the Division of Forestry stepped up timber production to meet a bulging demand for war supplies. After the war, the division responded to increased public demand for additional recreational lands and opportunities. Land acquisition increased and by 1949, when the division was placed under the newly formed Ohio Department of Natural Resources, state forest lands stood at 138,628 acres.
Today, the state system includes twenty state forests covering more than 182,700 acres. Management has broadened to ensure that other natural resource values, including soil and water quality, endangered species, wildlife habitat, and back-country recreation are protected or enhanced.
The division's mission is to promote and apply management for the sustainable use and protection of Ohio's private and public forest lands. Ohio is now more than 30 percent forested. Adams County is 50 percent forested and Scioto County 67 percent.
Today, visitors who first saw land purchased in the early 1900s for one of Ohio's earliest and boldest conservation efforts would not recognize the landscape. Today's Ohio state forests provide temporary haven for tens of thousands of recreational visitors, habitat for almost 100 endangered species, and are some of the oldest, tended forests in the United States. Shawnee and Brush Creek State Forests in Scioto and Adams counties now encompass 76,000 acres. Visitors to these two local state forests can enjoy sightseeing, backpacking, riding horses, camping, hunting and fishing. For further information on Shawnee and Brush Creek State Forests, call (740) 858-6685.