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Pisgah National Forest: A History
Over 80,000 of woodland acres became the home of America's first forestry school and the heart of the East's first national forest formed under the Weeks Act.
When George Vanderbilt constructed the Biltmore House, he hired forester Gifford Pinchot and, later, Dr. Carl A. Schenck to manage his forests. Now comprising more than 500,000 acres, Pisgah National Forest holds a vast history and breathtaking natural scenery. The forest sits in the heart of the southern Appalachians and includes Linville Gorge, Catawba Falls, Wilson Creek Wild and Scenic River, Roan Mountain, Max Patch, Shining Rock Wilderness and Mount Pisgah. Author and naturalist Marci Spencer treks through the human, political and natural history that has formed Pisgah National Forest.
When George Vanderbilt constructed the Biltmore House, he hired forester Gifford Pinchot and, later, Dr. Carl A. Schenck to manage his forests. Now comprising more than 500,000 acres, Pisgah National Forest holds a vast history and breathtaking natural scenery. The forest sits in the heart of the southern Appalachians and includes Linville Gorge, Catawba Falls, Wilson Creek Wild and Scenic River, Roan Mountain, Max Patch, Shining Rock Wilderness and Mount Pisgah. Author and naturalist Marci Spencer treks through the human, political and natural history that has formed Pisgah National Forest.
- GenresHistory
206 pages, Paperback
First published October 13, 2014
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
September 11, 2022
I liked this book. Pisgah, "Summit" in Hebrew, is a great place full of opportunities to get outdoors and to hike, volunteer, to preserve, rebuild, and help. Pay it forward. The author is a Nurse Practitioner by career and she does a great job at writing a comprehensive and cursory account of such a rich environmental place. Fascinating stories, privileged people doing whatever they want, and the others hard scrabbling to clean up and eke out their own livings. Sad to think that the erosion problems are a big issue and down-played by evaluations. Evaluations need to be more stringent, in my very humble opinion. Anyway, dabble on a page here and there in this little gem of a history; it's a good overview and a great place to start when a curiosity strikes you about one of America's most beloved National Forests. Start here.
May 2, 2021
I am so overwhelmed at the beauty that surrounds me everyday living on the edge of the beautiful forest. What a history! As part of a red spruce restoration project at the Southern Highlands Reserve, I will refer to this book over and over again.
February 26, 2018
Awesome book about the places that I love to go! It's so much more interesting to learn the history of the places that you frequent! Can't wait to read her others books!
February 27, 2020
Interesting hike ideas, want to do more research on the The Biltmore School of Forestry
March 15, 2021
Very disappointed in this book, which is a mish-mash of random facts and anecdotes with no order or structure.
February 19, 2020
Newer to the Asheville area, I was curious to learn more about the history of my favorite neighboring national forest - Pisgah National Forest (PNF). It's a 45 minute drive from my front door to my favorite trailhead - Cat Gap Loop, and the amount of people I see everyday soaking in the natural beauty of these mountains and trees only reaffirms my decision to move here in May of 2018.
Here is a bit of what I learned reading Marci Spencer’s (MS) Pisgah National Forest: A History. PNF is 1 of 155 national forests and the word "Pisgah" is the Hebrew word for summit. The forest lies in the heart of the Blue Ridge Mountains on Western North Carolina - where there are nearly 200 mountains towering 5000 or more feet above sea level.
What we now consider the national forest was first roamed by local native Cherokee and Catawba tribes. MS’s account fails to mention any use or ownership of these lands prior to Zachariah Candler, the Revolutionary War Veteran who first laid claim to these lands. In what seemed like a move to garner political favor, Candler gifted Mount Pisgah, Pisgah Forest's highest mountain, to Thomas Clingman, who required land to meet eligibility requirements for a federal senatorial election. He won and took claim of the mountain and surrounding areas before selling it for $800 to George Vanderbilt who helped fund the development of more sustainable forestry. The book spends significant time telling of the Vanderbilt arrival, projects, and methods for establishing pragmatic forestry principles as a best business practice.
Vanderbilt chose Gifford Pinchot to begin the forestry efforts, who later became the 1st Chief of the U.S. Forest Service. It was Pinchot who wanted the forest to bring "the greatest good to the greatest number, for the long run." To that end, his successor Carl Schenck became the most renowned and celebrated forestry advocate in modern history.
The book goes into great detail about Schenck’s story and legacy but I’ll mention here that he founded the Biltmore Forest School which essentially created the occupation of forest manager so that forests could be maintained and harvested judiciously and with great respect and understanding for fragile ecosystems, erosion, symbiotic relationships, and mutual enjoyment. Shenck’s Black Forest Lodge - a forward forward base of operations if you will - was located at what is now the Pisgah Wildlife Center & Fish Hatcheries - at the trailhead of Cat Gap Loop. You can and should learn more about Schenck by reading this book or by visiting the Cradle of Forestry Museum in PNF.
Some fun facts from the book:
Pisgah Ranger District is 160,000 acres and boasts more than 400 miles of trails
Art Loeb trail is its longest at 30 miles and follows much of the former property line of George Vanderbilt, the founder of the Biltmore Estate
The stone pillars at the Forest’s entrance near Brevard were erected as a World War I monument to area veterans. The decorative bronze eagle at its apex was stolen in the 1970s and never recovered.
Black Walnut trees were harvested near the Cat Gap Loop for construction of airplane propellers in World War I
The Pink Beds are appropriately named for the amount of pink and white rhododendron and mountain laurel blossoms found here from May to July.
Lassie, the famous TV collie, slid down Slide Rock as a stunt for one of the episodes
Pisgah Astronomical Research Institute (PARI) is a star-gazing research center located in PNF’s dark mountain forest
John Rock was used as a hideout for Civil War bandits and was later used to house 7,650 North Carolina members of the Civilian Conservation Corps who constructed a number of forest projects in the area from 1933-42
Vanderbilt’s widow Edith sold estate forests to the federal government for $5/acre in 1921, which then became PNF under the care of the U.S. Forest Service
If you find yourself at all interested regional western North Carolina history - and its forests in particular - this is a must read. My interests were specific to the Pisgah Ranger District, but MS covers the history of PNF’s other districts as well. Chapters 3 and 4 are excellent primers in the history of forestry education in America.
Here is a bit of what I learned reading Marci Spencer’s (MS) Pisgah National Forest: A History. PNF is 1 of 155 national forests and the word "Pisgah" is the Hebrew word for summit. The forest lies in the heart of the Blue Ridge Mountains on Western North Carolina - where there are nearly 200 mountains towering 5000 or more feet above sea level.
What we now consider the national forest was first roamed by local native Cherokee and Catawba tribes. MS’s account fails to mention any use or ownership of these lands prior to Zachariah Candler, the Revolutionary War Veteran who first laid claim to these lands. In what seemed like a move to garner political favor, Candler gifted Mount Pisgah, Pisgah Forest's highest mountain, to Thomas Clingman, who required land to meet eligibility requirements for a federal senatorial election. He won and took claim of the mountain and surrounding areas before selling it for $800 to George Vanderbilt who helped fund the development of more sustainable forestry. The book spends significant time telling of the Vanderbilt arrival, projects, and methods for establishing pragmatic forestry principles as a best business practice.
Vanderbilt chose Gifford Pinchot to begin the forestry efforts, who later became the 1st Chief of the U.S. Forest Service. It was Pinchot who wanted the forest to bring "the greatest good to the greatest number, for the long run." To that end, his successor Carl Schenck became the most renowned and celebrated forestry advocate in modern history.
The book goes into great detail about Schenck’s story and legacy but I’ll mention here that he founded the Biltmore Forest School which essentially created the occupation of forest manager so that forests could be maintained and harvested judiciously and with great respect and understanding for fragile ecosystems, erosion, symbiotic relationships, and mutual enjoyment. Shenck’s Black Forest Lodge - a forward forward base of operations if you will - was located at what is now the Pisgah Wildlife Center & Fish Hatcheries - at the trailhead of Cat Gap Loop. You can and should learn more about Schenck by reading this book or by visiting the Cradle of Forestry Museum in PNF.
Some fun facts from the book:
Pisgah Ranger District is 160,000 acres and boasts more than 400 miles of trails
Art Loeb trail is its longest at 30 miles and follows much of the former property line of George Vanderbilt, the founder of the Biltmore Estate
The stone pillars at the Forest’s entrance near Brevard were erected as a World War I monument to area veterans. The decorative bronze eagle at its apex was stolen in the 1970s and never recovered.
Black Walnut trees were harvested near the Cat Gap Loop for construction of airplane propellers in World War I
The Pink Beds are appropriately named for the amount of pink and white rhododendron and mountain laurel blossoms found here from May to July.
Lassie, the famous TV collie, slid down Slide Rock as a stunt for one of the episodes
Pisgah Astronomical Research Institute (PARI) is a star-gazing research center located in PNF’s dark mountain forest
John Rock was used as a hideout for Civil War bandits and was later used to house 7,650 North Carolina members of the Civilian Conservation Corps who constructed a number of forest projects in the area from 1933-42
Vanderbilt’s widow Edith sold estate forests to the federal government for $5/acre in 1921, which then became PNF under the care of the U.S. Forest Service
If you find yourself at all interested regional western North Carolina history - and its forests in particular - this is a must read. My interests were specific to the Pisgah Ranger District, but MS covers the history of PNF’s other districts as well. Chapters 3 and 4 are excellent primers in the history of forestry education in America.
January 7, 2016
This work on Pisgah National Forest is a quick, enjoyable combination of natural history, history, and travel writing, with some trail writing also thrown in. Mari Spencer presents very good details on: Carl Schenk, the Biltmore Forest School, Pisgah's lumber industry, and the legislation enacted in creating Pisgah National Forest and in increasing its size.
I, in particular enjoyed the last three chapters on the three ranger districts, esp. chapter seven on the Appalachian Ranger District, where the author hikes the Appalachian Trail from the Smokies' northern boundary to the Nolichucky River, crossing the Bald Mountains. Descriptions on Pisgah's birds are also well-done. However, a fair criticism of the book is that it lacks a true conclusion.
I, in particular enjoyed the last three chapters on the three ranger districts, esp. chapter seven on the Appalachian Ranger District, where the author hikes the Appalachian Trail from the Smokies' northern boundary to the Nolichucky River, crossing the Bald Mountains. Descriptions on Pisgah's birds are also well-done. However, a fair criticism of the book is that it lacks a true conclusion.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews