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YALE UNIVERSITY • SCHOOL OF FORESTRY
Bulletin No. 55
THE YALE FOREST
IN
, TOLLAND AND WINDHAM COUNTIES,
CONNECTICUT
BY
, WALTER H. MEYER
Harriman Professor of Forest Management, Yale University
and
BASIL A. PLUSNIN
Superintendent, Yale Forest
NEW HAVEN
Yale University
J945
M
The publication of the results of this in-
vestigation was made possible by the Charles
Lathrop Pack Foundation Fund at Yale
University.
CONTENTS
Page
INTRODUCTION i
LOCATION AND ACCESS 2
HISTORICAL NOTES 3
POPULATION GROWTH, DECLINE, AND CHANGE 17
CONSOLIDATION OF TRACT 20
ORGANIZATION OF TRACT 21
General 21
Acquisition 23
Administration 23
Improvements 24
Instruction and research 25
Maps and surveys 25
Protection 26
Utilization 27
Wildlife 31
ENVIRONMENTAL CONDITIONS 32
Drainage 32
Topography 34
Climate 34
Soils 36
The hurricane of September 1938 38
PRESENT FOREST CONDITIONS 39
Type descriptions 39
Forest subdivisions 44
Areas and volumes 44
Growth 50
REFERENCES 54
ILLUSTRATIONS 55
TABLES
Page
1. Population statistics for several towns in two counties of northeastern
Connecticut. 19
2. Weather summary from records taken at Mansfield (Storrs), Connecticut. 35
3. List of trees commonly found in the Yale Forest. 40
4. Distribution of area by cover types. 46
5. Volume by forest types, age classes, and species groups. 47
6. Distribution of volume by major groups of diameter at breast height. 49
,7. Ranking of species by rate of growth. 51
8. Growing stock at the end of 10 years, following various intensities of cut. 53
YALE FOREST IN TOLLAND AND WINDHAM COUNTIES
ILLUSTRATIONS
Frontispiece. Headquarters of the Yale Forest in Tolland and Union Counties,
Connecticut.
Plates {placed at end of text)
i. Red oak, 41 to 60 years of age.
2. Red oak, 61 to 80 years of age.
3. White oak, 41 to 60 years of age.
4. White ash, 41 to 60 years of age.
5. Red maple with mixture of yellow birch, 41 to 60 years of age.
6. Paper birch, 40 years of age.
7. Sleet damage in hardwood type in 1921.
8. Natural reproduction of white pine, 10 years of age.
9. Advance white pine reproduction under mixed hardwood stand, 21 to 40
years of age.
10. White pine stand, 20 years of age.
11. Pure white pine, 61 to 80 years of age.
12. Group of white pine, 61 to 80 years of age.
13. Complete destruction of a 40-year-old white pine stand by the 1938 hurricane,
followed by salvage cutting. White pine now seeding in.
14. Red pine plantation, 25 years of age.
15. Pine-hemlock-hardwood mixture, 81 to 100 years of age.
16. Uneven-aged hemlock-hardwood type.
17. Advance hemlock reproduction of hemlock under a mixed hardwood stand,
21 to 40 years of age.
18. Swamp hardwood, 40 years of age.
19. Former swamp hardwood type on Still River further flooded through the
activity of beaver in constructing dams, resulting in the killing of all trees.
THE YALE FOREST
IN
TOLLAND AND WINDHAM COUNTIES, CONNECTICUT
INTRODUCTION
THE Yale Forest in Tolland and Windham Counties of north-
eastern Connecticut, commonly known as the "Union For-
est," is a tract of 7,858 acres granted to the Yale School of Forestry
in the years from 1930 to 1934 through the generous gift of Mr.
George Hewitt Myers, a member of its first graduating class. This
tract is one of three areas now owned by the School and one of six
or more areas on which extensive instructional, demonstrational,
and investigational field work is being conducted. The second
school-owned tract is the Yale Forest at Keene, N.H., covering
about 1,400 acres, chiefly in the white pine type, the original nucleus
of which was also a gift of Mr. Myers. The third it the Bowen Forest
of 460 acres, located in the Green Mountains near Mt. Holly, Ver-
mont, characterized by spruce and northern hardwood types.
Areas not owned by the School, but upon which it has extensive
facilities for instruction and research, are: (1) the Eli Whitney
Forest of the New Haven Water Company, covering 22,000 acres
in southern Connecticut; (2) the Great Mountain Forest, owned
by E. C. Childs and F. C Walcott near Norfolk, Conn., covering
5,500 acres with a wide variety of forest types, both hardwood and
softwood; and (3) the lands of the Urania Lumber Company at
Urania, La., in the southern pine country.
Thus three of the six areas lie in Connecticut hardwood forests,
yet they are sufficiently different so that each one of them supple-
ments the others in the character of problems furnished and in
opportunities for work by the School. The Union Forest and the
Great Mountain Forest were formerly much alike in character,
since they both lay in a transition zone between the oak types
characterizing southern Connecticut and the more northerly coni-
fer and hardwood types. They both have a wide variety of hardwood
types ranging from pure oak through birch, beech, and maple; both
have extensive stands of eastern hemlock and good representation
of white pine. The hurricane of 1938, however, removed all resem-
YALE FOREST IN TOLLAND AND WINDHAM COUNTIES
blance in that the Union Forest was almost completely wrecked
and the Great Mountain Forest was left unharmed.
The present bulletin deals with the Union Forest. It summarizes
the past history of the area in general from the time of first settle-
ment and treats the history of the Forest in detail; it relates the
impact of the great hurricane and describes the present conditions.
In compiling this report, the authors have drawn extensively upon
the works of the several local historians (i, 8, 1 i, 12, 13, 18) and have
made use of information and statistics gathered by Nathan D.
Canterbury, who was Director of the Union Forest between 1930
and 1937, by Robert T. Clapp, who succeeded Mr. Canterbury and
stayed until 1942, at which time he was accepted for service by the
U.S. Navy, and by Basil A. Plusnin, the present Superintendent.
Use is also made of surveys carried out by Mr. Myers prior to the
transfer of the tract to Yale, and by Mr. Clapp who conducted the
1937 survey and started the post-hurricane survey in 1943 to be
completed in 1944 by the present superintendent. A detailed de-
scriptive survey (9), made by Robert W. Hess in the summer of
1 941 is also drawn upon.
LOCATION AND ACCESS
IF one took a map of southern New England, drew on it a straight
line between Hartford and Boston, and then plotted a point
exactly one- third the distance from Hartford, this point would lie
in the Union Forest. The Forest is a roughly rectangular area, 4 by
4>£ miles in extent, lying in the towns of Ashford, Eastford, and
Woodstock of Tolland County and in the town of Union of Wind-
ham County. It is readily accessible by motor transportation, less
readily so by railroad. The new Wilbur Cross Highway, a portion
of the planned superhighway between New York and Boston,
touches upon the northwest corner of the tract, shortly before it
by-passes the village of Union. This highway, together with the
roads leading into it, forms the best means of access from the west,
southwest, north, and northeast, particularly if one is interested in
reaching the Forest headquarters. The southwest corner of the
Forest is reached by state highway 89 and the eastern part by high-
ways 91 and 198. The latter route is preferable if one desires to
reach the summer camp area.
HISTORICAL NOTES
The Central Vermont Railroad connecting Willimantic, Conn.,
and Palmer, Mass., passes through Stafford Springs, about nine
miles west of Union. The New York, New Haven and Hartford
Railroad between Willimantic and Worcester, Mass., passes through
Putnam, about 10 miles to the east of North Ashford.
Directly adjacent to the Union Forest are several small settle-
ments: Union on the northwest, North Ashford on the east, East-
ford on the southeast, and Westford on the southwest. Further dis-
tant are more substantial communities. Nine miles to the west is
Stafford Springs with a population of 3,401, according to the 1940
census; about 12 miles to the north is Southbridge with a popula-
tion of 16,285; 10 miles to the east of West Ashford is Putnam with
a population of 7,775, and 20 miles to the south is Willimantic with
a population of 12,101. Still further distant lie the larger cities.
Worcester, Mass. (population 193,694), is about 30 miles to the east
of north; Springfield, Mass. (population 149,554), about 30 miles
northwest; Hartford, Conn. (166,267), 30 miles southwest; and
Providence, R.I. (population 253,504), 45 miles southeast.
HISTORICAL NOTES
THE principal towns in which the Union Forest is located,
namely, Ashford, Eastford, and Union, were among the latest,
if not the latest, to become settled in eastern Connecticut, yet
settlement dates back to the earliest part of the eighteenth century.
With slight amendment, the words of Waldo (18) in reference to
the Town of Tolland, a community lying only a few miles west of
the Union Forest, can be applied to the towns being discussed. He
states:
In looking back through the long vista of years since this town was
first known, we can discover no incident of thrilling interest connected
with its history. We can point to no spot where the white and the red
man have met in mortal combat, nor where hostile armies have sought
for vengeance in the bloody encounter. Nor can we find the footsteps
of any distinguished personage upon its territory who has attracted the
gaze of the world by his deeds of daring or acts of self-devotion. The
history of Tolland, in short, is not calculated to interest the marvelous,
nor produce wonder and astonishment in the reflecting, but like a gentle
YALE FOREST IN TOLLAND AND WINDHAM COUNTIES
current, bears upon its quiet bosom facts worthy of our notice and which
may afford us both interest and amusement.
One is forced to amend Waldo's statement regarding "distinguished
personage" if applied to these towns, since even a casual survey of
local genealogies will reveal that they have yielded more than their
due share of scholars, divines, inventors, warriors, industrialists, and
business men. It is quite true, however, that many of the reputa-
tions were not gained in the local communities, but nevertheless
such was the origin of the talent.
The history of the Union Forest is one of long-continued land use*
including agriculture, grazing, lumbering, hunting and fishing, min-
ing, and recreation. It is one of relatively rapid population growth
and decline; one of use and abuse of the natural resources; one of
the persistence of the forest to maintain itself, since it came back
again and again in spite of every adversity, such as logging and re-
logging, stripping for agricultural purposes, fire, disease, and hurri-
cane. After two centuries of use, it is still a forested country, with a
percentage of area under forest substantially exceeding that of a
century ago.
The first white man to traverse the area did so during the earliest
days of settlement in Connecticut. It is reported (8) that in 1633
two parties left Boston with the intent of establishing a new settle-
ment on the Connecticut River at what is now Hartford. One party
went by ship, the second party under John Oldam went overland
by the old Indian trail known as the "Connecticut path" which
passed just south of where the Union Forest is now situated. It is
quite definitely established that in 1636, a large number of Cam-
bridge settlers sold their land, and traveling over the old Connecti-
cut path, which entered Connecticut at what is now Woodstock,
crossing the upper part of Windham and Tolland Counties, made
their settlement and took up land at Hartford. They did not tarry
in the wilds of the hills but sought a heme in fertile river bottoms.
It was almost three-quarters of a century later when the pressure
of excess population forced the bolder spirits to move out into the
wilder country. They came in from north, east, south, and west.
Woodstock, on the eastern bounds of the forest, was settled by
settlers from Massachusetts; Windham to the south by settlers
4
HISTORICAL NOTES
from Norwich; and Tolland to the west by overflow population of
Windsor, near Hartford.
Before the advent of the white man, the northeastern part of
Connecticut was occupied by the Nipnet or Nipmuck (Fresh Water)
Indians. The present towns of Woodstock, Union, Ash ford, and
Eastford were a part of the Wabbaquasset or mat-producing
country, named after the wealth of flags in the swamps from which
the Indians made mats and baskets. The Wabbaquasset Indians
were a peaceful tribe, giving allegiance tc whatever major tribe was
currently in power, whether Mohegans, Narragansets, or even
stronger Nipmucks. The region was never heavily populated by the
Indians, only one settlement being known, that near the present
location of Woodstock village in the most fertile part of the country.
The only other mention of Indian settlement is a winter camping
ground in what is now known as Boston Hollow, to which the Sound
Indians went, probably for the hunting. Hunting was of course the
major aboriginal use of the country as a whole, although in the
fertile section of Woodstock some corn and beans were planted.
The first transfer of land, involving Windham County, was made
in 1653 by Allumps, or Hyems, alias James, to John Winthrop, later
Governor of Connecticut, in the southernmost part. The second
transfer, which is of more concern, was made in 1684 t0 Captain
James Fitch and included the entire Wabbaquasset country en-
croaching in small part on Winthrop's grant. Uncas, the Indian
chief who had been of substantial assistance to the English in the
Pequot War, although a Pequot himself, by right of conquest had
laid claim to all these lands, which claim was recognized by the
Massachusetts court. On his death he passed his lands over to his
sons Owaneco and Joshua, the Wabbaquasset country going to
Owaneco. The latter proved himself to be incompetent and con-
sented to have Captain James Fitch appointed as his guardian.
Fitch's purchase was soon consummated and was confirmed by the
General Court of Connecticut.
The Massachusetts colony, however, had also a very definite in-
terest in at least part of the Wabbaquasset country, since in 1642,
it had hired two surveyors (Woodward and Saffery) to run its south
boundary in accordance to the Royal grant. This line was supposed
to run west from a point 3 miles south of the southernmost part of
the Charles River. As related by Ellen D. Larned (n), the starting
YALE FOREST IN TOLLAND AND WINDHAM COUNTIES
point was chosen on Wrentham Plain; the surveyors then took a
sloop down along the coast, through Long Island Sound, and up the
Connecticut River to establish the end point in what is now Wind-
sor, Conn., 10 to 12 miles south of where it should have been. It
is not recorded how or if the line between the two points was run,
but it is definite knowledge that when the New Roxbury "Go-ers"
came to run out a new township, which was to be Woodstock, they
could not find the line and later found that they had lapped two
miles over the boundary into Connecticut. The location of the
Massachusetts-Connecticut boundary was to remain a subject for
dispute for the next century and a half.
As soon as Captain Fitch got possession of the land he threw it
open to purchasers. Apparently he tried to dispose of large tracts
to colonies and towns rather than to sell in small lots to haphazard
settlers. His first sale was made in 1686 to Roxbury in the colony
of Massachusetts. The area was to be one of its own choosing in the
Wabbaquasset country in Massachusetts. Thirteen pioneers or
"Go-ers" were appointed to select the area, which they did forth-
with, selecting an area which they called New Roxbury after the
mother town, but which was soon to be called Woodstock. As noted
above, they could not find the Woodward-SafFery line and went
over into Connecticut at least two miles. Their first acts were to
erect a barracks for future settlers and a sawmill. This was done in
1686 before they returned to Roxbury to make their report.
It was at this time that Sir Edmund Andres was appointed
Governor of Massachusetts. Immediately upon his arrival in 1686
he withdrew all the charters and privileges of the colonists and
declared void all purchases from the Indians. Under his adminis-
tration, the first settlers of Massachusetts, even those who had
possessed their lands for 50 years or more, were required to obtain
new deeds at considerable expense. The New Roxbury settlers were
not so troubled, but nevertheless felt quite insecure.
Captain Fitch, owing to the lack of clarity in his title, the action
of Sir Andres, and other personal reasons, became less active in try-
ing to dispose of his land. In 1695, however, as the result of a court
judgment, he was required to transfer a tract of land 4 miles square
in the southern part of the present Eastford County to Simeon
Stoddard. No settlement ensued immediately. In 1706 the General
Court of Connecticut decided to have the country surveyed and
6
HISTORICAL NOTES
opened to settlers, and Fitch, hearing of this, immediately sold a
tract 5 miles by 3 miles in dimension in the southern part of the
present Ashford County and later the remaining area of 21,400
acres to James Corbin of Woodstock. A protracted conflict between
the Government of Connecticut and the various purchasers and
claimants followed. Title to the Stoddard tract was early confirmed
but not to the rest. Corbin created a Company, which surveyed out
his land as rapidly as possible and offered it for sale. The first settler
in Ashford came in 1710 from Woodstock, taking 100 acres at the
site of the present Warrenville and on the Connecticut road, the
old thoroughfare for travel between Boston and Hartford. Within
six years time, 40 families settled in Ashford.
The settlement at Woodstock in 1686 was the very first in Wind-
ham County, but was shortly followed in 1688 by Windham, where
Willimantic now lies, and later byPlainfield (1699), Coventry (1700),
Mansfield (1703), Ashford (17 10), Stafford (171 8), and Union
(1727). The towns in which the Union Forest lies therefore date
their founding back to the years between 1686 and 1727.
The life of the settlers was by no means an easy one, remaining
difficult for many years. King Philip's war in the late 1690's did
much to delay further active settlement. The inhabitants of Wood-
stock felt the interruption keenly. Population fell off, public affairs
were neglected, highways grew up to brush, and the mill-house
became dilapidated. The first emigration from Woodstock, but by
no means the last, ensued.
James Corbin was one of the notable men of the community of
this period. His activity was not confined to Woodstock but spread
out through all the neighboring towns, particularly those to the
west, such as Ashford. He and his sons (11) "dealt largely in furs,
they collected turpentine from the adjoining forests, they took in
the surplus produce of the planters, exchanging them and any
marketable commodities for liquor, ammunition and other neces-
saries in Boston." The Indians furnished most of the skins and un-
doubtedly many of them were taken from Union Forest lands.
The subdivision of Woodstock is of more than passing interest,
since the whole town in various years (1695-6, 1713, 1715) was
divided into ranges running north and south with widths usually
of 160 rods but running up to 172 rods and provision for range-
ways between ranges. The ranges themselves were divided into lots
7
YALE FOREST IN TOLLAND AND WINDHAM COUNTIES
by east and west lines, blocking off rectangles of varying width-
There is little in the present ownership pattern to indicate these
original systematic divisions. Union was also originally subdivided
into rectangular tracts, but not quite so methodically as Woodstock.
The boundary controversy between Connecticut and Massa-
chusetts demands further attention. Connecticut had confirmed the
Woodstock deeds in 1694 although Massachusetts still claimed the
town. Since the Woodward-Saffery line was admittedly faulty, the
two colonies agreed to a compromise in 1713, which placed the towns
of Woodstock, Enfield, and Suffield (the latter two on the Connecti-
cut River) under the jurisdiction of Massachusetts, but all the re-
maining towns up to a corrected boundary, as it should have been
run originally, under the jurisdiction of Connecticut. Woodstock later
became dissatisfied by this arrangement and began to petition
for acceptance into Connecticut, basing its claim in part on the fact
that the King had never recognized the boundary agreement and
that the first line was wrongly located. The Connecticut Assembly
finally agreed to accept the petition (1749) and took Woodstock
into the Colony. Massachusetts, of course, was not a party to this
agreement and kept up the struggle through the Revolutionary
War. The dispute was not finally settled until 1834, more than a
century after the period under discussion.
The lands in the present town of Union came to Connecticut
under the 17 13 agreement and were known as the "Union Lands"
or sometimes "Union Right." In 1719, the General Assembly of
Connecticut appointed a committee to sell certain lands, the de-
rived funds to go to Yale College, then a small struggling institu-
tion just moving to New Haven. The only previous claim to lands
in Union that can be found is one dated 1657, wherein the General
Court of Massachusetts awarded a tract of land to Captain Thomas
Clarke of Boston as a reward for public service. This tract lay on
what was then called Ocquebituque hill, or what is now Lead Mine
hill, on the town line between Union and Ashfcrd and directly
adjacent to the western bounds of the Yale Forest. As the current
name signifies, the tract was awarded for its "lead" mining possi-
bilities, but there was no mining activity until after the settlement
of the town three-quarters of a century later. In the Revolutionary
War, 400 pounds of so-called "lead," but probably graphite, were
taken from the mine.
HISTORICAL NOTES
The Union land committee sold the town on July I, 1720, at a
price of 307 pounds to twelve proprietors, all from Windsor, Con-
necticut, with the optimistic reservation that a fifth part of all the
silver and gold ore that may be found on the tract must be saved
for the King and his successors. The tract was divided into 13
shares, one share for each proprietor and one to be held in common,
but only one of the proprietors is known to have actually settled on
the land. The bulk of the rights were sold as fast as possible to
settlers and speculators, and Union joined the adjacent towns as a
field for great land speculation and frequent ownership change. The
first settler arrived in 1727. In 1729 the first subdivision of land was
made in the prospective village location and further settlement pro-
ceeded. The town of Union was the last in northeastern Connecticut
to be settled. It was incorporated in 1734.
In 1726, the County of Windham was established from parts of
Hartford and New London Counties and in 1785 Tolland County
was formed from parts of Windham and Hartford. When Wood-
stock was recognized by the Connecticut Assembly in 1749, it was
added to Windham County. Union was the only one of the four
towns affected by the creation of Tolland County and was trans-
ferred thereto.
Thus at the end of the first quarter of the eighteenth century one
finds each town settled and the political structure progressing
rapidly. The state of development of the towns varied considerably.
Woodstock was the most prosperous, but only relatively so, boasting
as early as 1718, of 100 houses and barns, 11 mills of various kinds,
such as sawmills, gristmills, and tanneries, and 1,281 acres of agri-
cultural land including pasture. It was a center of influence, which
spread over neighboring towns. Ashford was struggling along with
two main centers of settlement, one in the east and one in the west;
this at a later date (1847) was to lead to dividing Ashford into the
two towns of Ashford and Eastford. Life was so difficult in Ashford
that the town was exempt from colony taxes for many years, up to
1732. Union was just starting up and as yet had not made much
impression.
The period from then on through the Revolutionary War was one
of slow development, largely an agricultural phase with the gradual
introduction of home industry and local manufactories. The typical
procedures for the settlers was to clear, burn, and fence a small
YALE FOREST IN TOLLAND AND WINDHAM COUNTIES
plot of woodland annually, and gradually increase the cultivated
acreage. Agricultural development was strictly limited by the very
nature of the ground and active emigration from such pressure
points as Woodstock again took place in 1747—1755, many inhabit-
ants going on to western Massachusetts and New Hampshire and
later in 1 760-1 775 to Vermont and New York. Wheat, rye, corn,
barley, flax, and hemp constituted the chief agricultural crops.
Cattle and sheep grazing was common. Local manufactories catered
to supplying the needs of the population, producing such items as
potash, and pearlash, coarse pottery, and domestic fabrics such as
linen and woolen goods. In 1760, the first iron works came to these
towns, the New Roxbury Iron Works located at Black Pond a
short distance east of the Yale Forest. Local deposits were worked
for the raw material.
Location on the Connecticut Road helped substantially in the
development of the country. Ashford, which had such a hard time
in getting a start, catered particularly to the overland trade and by
1760 had several taverns, saw- and gristmills, and a tannery or two.
Like Woodstock, Ashford also felt the pressure of over-population
and emigration set in about this time, inhabitants going further
west, some to New York and Vermont. Shoe manufacturing in the
home, which was destined to take a prominent place in the future
local industry, made its appearance. The silk business also was
founded about the year 1760 by the introduction of mulberry trees.
President Ezra Stiles of Yale was a dominating figure in the pro-
motion of this particular industry. It is recorded (8) that the neigh-
boring town of Mansfield had reached a production of 390 pounds
of raw silk by 1830 and further to 25,000 pounds by 1850, whereafter
the business died down, owing partly to a disease which attacked
the trees, but also undoubtedly to the great expansion of transpor-
tation systems, which occurred about that time, and the consequent
dying out of home industry.
Following the Revolutionary War, a new period of development
profoundly changed the character of activity. Cooperage shops,
brick and pottery manufactory, a gold and silver smithery and
brick yard directly adjacent to the north and east bounds of the
Still River tract of the Union Forest, boot shops, blacksmith
shops, a fulling mill, a cotton and wool factory, and a number of
taverns and even more grist- and sawmills were to be found in Wood-
10
HISTORICAL NOTES
stock. Trade began to boom and with it the demand for more and
better roads. The lower turnpike from Boston to Hartford was
authorized in 1796 and passed through the village of Ashford. It
was abandoned in 1840. The upper or central turnpike was built
in 1826-7, took over much of the travel on the lower turnpike, and
became an important thoroughfare. This turnpike passed through
Woodstock and North Ashford, traversing the Union Forest area.
Remnants of this road are still found near the site of the School
camp. Heavy stage travel and the overland mails from New York
to Boston took this route for the first time in 1837. A turnpike from
Woodstock to Stafford and Sommers was built in 1808, as an ex-
tension of the Woodstock-Providence road, and crossed the
northernmost part of the Union Forest. The activity in road con-
struction was a boom to the country. Woodstock, Ashford, and
Union prospered as a result, but not until after still another exodus
of population from Woodstock shortly after the Revolutionary War.
For example, the Census of Windham County taken in 1800
showed a decrease in population from 1790 and only a slight increase
since 1780, with Ashford one of the heavy losers.
New marufactories had come in and were given further impetus
by the development of appropriate machines. Carding machines
introduced to Woodstock in 1806 caused a profound change. Home-
grown wool and flax lost their importance and imported cotton
became prominent. In 1807 the first cotton factory was established
in northwestern Connecticut and soon nearly every house had its
loom, weaving cloth for the factory. Manufacture of paper started
in 1 8 10 at New Boston and continued until 1831, when the building
was converted to a cotton mill. In this first quarter of the nineteenth
century, Woodstock claimed two blacksmith shops with large trip
hammers, two wheelwrights, one goldsmith, one carding machine,
one fulling mill, one oil-mill, seven gristmills, twelve sawmills, two
distilleries, cloth factory, tanneries, brick and pottery works. Ash-
ford had six gristmills, nine sawmills, five tanneries, four carding
machines, and a tinware factory. Carriage making became a thriv-
ing industry in Woodstock, starting in 1835, using at Arst tne build-
ing facilities of the old foundry which by this time had been aban-
doned. Agriculture and stock raising were still important, being
stimulated by the expanding manufacturing development. The shoe
industry increased at a rapid pace in all three towns. Shoemaking
11
YALE FOREST IN TOLLAND AND WINDHAM COUNTIES
at the time was largely a domestic activity, the tanneries and stores
acting as distribution centers, parceling out the work to the local
inhabitants. Its importance can be indicated in Woodstock's re-
ported production (n) of 5,561,580 pairs of shoes and boots in
1845 with about nine thousand people participating, and in Union's
country store business of home shoe making of $100,000 a year.
The Woodstock figure must be looked upon with a great measure of
doubt, however, since it must cover a number of years, or a number
of towns, or even a combination of the two, Woodstock having a
population at this time of less than four thousand people. Tub and
pail factories, cooperages, twine and cotton batting production,
both at home and at mills, and stave manufacture in Union attest
to further widening of commercial activity. Palm leaf hats manu-
factured at home, and axe handle production in a factory at Boston
Hollow were other industries. No period of the history of these
towns shows more activity and more diversified effort than the
second quarter of the nineteenth century.
The era of prosperity did not last long. First of all, new railroads,
from Norwich to Worcester in 1840, to Willimantic in 1849, to
Stafford Springs in 1850, and later the extension to Boston of the
Middletown-Willimantic line in 1 870 took all the transport business
off the turnpikes. Second, the development of better machinery,
the concentration of manufacture in larger and larger units, located
along major streams and along railroads, brought home production
and small factories to a stop. The home shoe industry vanished. It
had produced rough brogans for the southern trade and could not
compete with machine-made shoes. With the decline in this industry
came also a changed emphasis and decline in the live stock business.
Ashford suffered particularly; formerly on the main route of Hart-
ford to Boston travel, it now became isolated. In addition, in 1847
it lost its eastern half, from which the town of Eastford was es-
tablished. Eastford remained active for some time, and as late as
1880 is noted (10) as being a brisk, young town. It still presents the
busiest appearance of any of the old small towns, adjacent to the
Forest. Ashford however did get another new temporary industry in
that a glass works was established in 1857 at Westford, which be-
came the largest industry ever established in the town and gained
considerable local renown.
The coming of the machine age is the primary reason for the
12
HISTORICAL NOTES
rapid development of Windham County as a whole, but it was a
development made at the expense of such towns as Woodstock,
Ashford, Eastford, and Union, which were forced to turn back more
and more to agricultural activities and its accompanying limitations.
As a consequence, while the population of the County and the State
gained rapidly, that of these hill towns regressed rapidly, until at
the present time they have again reverted almost totally to the rural
state, with the former humming communities converted to pleasant
roadside villages, or even completely abandoned, serving now prin-
cipally as gasoline supply points for the traveler and local com-
munity centers. Farms were rapidly abandoned and agricultural
land grew up to brush and trees. A renaissance of agriculture set in
shortly after the beginning of the current century with the advent
of foreign-born immigrants, as is described later in this report.
An interesting picture of contrasts would be obtained by the
present traveler, if he took the travel notes of Oliver A. Hiscox (13)
and traversed the same route. Hiscox made his trip in the 1880's
and passed from Union around the north and east edges of the Still
River tract of the Yale Forest into Woodstock Valley and then east
through the rest of the town. In regard to the first part of the trip,
which is most intimately associated with the Yale area, he says:
"I drove out from the pine forests of Union and the first thing in
Woodstock that attracted my attention was the Lyman Sessions
house and mills; it was easy to see that this had been the center of
considerable activity; it had been the life-long home of Lyman
Sessions. Here he had sawmill, gristmill, carried on a general
lumber business; kept a country store; engaged in the shoe manu-
facturing business. . . . Nearby is the site of Lowdin Arnold's silver-
smith shop. Silver spoons may still be found in Woodstock which
he made more than a hundred years ago. David Hiscox had a brick-
yard near Arnold's shop. The bricks for the house in West Wood-
stock, known as the Andres Martin house, were made there in 1882.
I passed over the old Boston and Hartford turnpike to Green's
Tavern on the west side of Black pond. This was a noted hostelry
during stage coach days, and still known as Green's Tavern for
miles around, Caleb Green now living here and carrying on the large
farm connected with the early hotel. His father had run the hotel
before his day, buying it from Daniel L. Healy, who came to Wood-
stock from Dudley, Mass., about 1820. Turning south I passed the
J3
YALE FOREST IN TOLLAND AND WINDHAM COUNTIES
venerable old chestnut tree that for a hundred years has been a
landmark along the way. I next passed the schoolhouse, only about
twenty feet square; it was one of the red schoolhouses of town, but
now had received a coat of brown paint. Next I came to a large two-
story house that has sheltered at least three generations of the
Dewing family, Ebenezer being the last of the line to live there. . . .
Hiscox mills just south owned by Alba Hiscox since 1836. Mr.
Hiscox ran the sawmill, shingle mill, and gristmill for over fifty
years. These mills occupy the site of Woodstock's earliest attempt
to utilize the iron ore deposit of the town. A furnace was in operation
here as early as 1760. Mr. Hiscox was also interested with his
brother in the manufacture of shoes, making heavy brogans called
'stogeys' which were shipped south for the slave trade. Joseph
Hallock runs the tannery just below the gristmill, this is the tannery
built by G. and Z. Wight. . . . The Lyon family were among the
earliest settlers in this part of the town, building saw- and gristmills
near Black pond. The dam at the outlet of the pond was built by
slaves of Ebenezer Lyon and is the only known specimen of Wood-
stock slave laboring existing." And so on through the township, but
already covering the roads lying closest to the Union Forest.
By retracing the identical trip in 1945, as the authors have done,
a different picture is obtained, not only contrasting with the past
conditions as related by Hiscox, but with conditions existing at his
time and shown on a contemporary map included in Bowen's book
(1), dated 1883. One no longer "drives out of the pine forests of
Union." The present stand is heterogeneous, characterized more by
hardwood than pine, but with occasional large and branchy white
pine here and there and a fair amount of pine reproduction under-
neath, threatened with domination by the hardwood canopy. The
Sessions and Arnold developments have practically disappeared.
Only two small cellar holes can be found surmounted by huge
clumps of lilac, which appear to be attempting to cover up the signs
of past occupation, but by their very strangeness forming a living
monument. Two huge gravel pits, dug out recently to furnish ma-
terials for roads, have probably removed the traces of other build-
ings and the brick yard. Green's Tavern still stands in good repair,
though no longer a tavern. Of course the "venerable old chestnut
tree" is gone. Not even a large enough stump remains which would
permit one to identify its location. The old red schoolhouse with its
14
HISTORICAL NOTES
coat of brown paint stands no longer. Only a low ridge of stone in
the form of a 20-foot square covered by soil and sod remain to in-
dicate the site. The "large two-story house" no longer looks large
in comparison to newer dwellings, but it still stands and is still
inhabited. The Hiscox mills have almost vanished, although the
dwelling houses have not. The dam is still in place although badly
breached at the spillway; the foundations of the various mills and
the tannery have been washed out or removed and only small
sections of the original foundations remain.
The pattern of change as revealed by the above comparison is
typical of the general history of this portion of northeastern Con-
necticut. Settled originally for purposes of agriculture and stock
raising, the inhabitants found the procurement of a livelihood so
difficult that they ventured into many forms of industrial pursuit.
Small mills and manufactories of many kinds sprang up plentifully
throughout the entire country and operated through a relatively
long period, only to meet their end with the development of indus-
trial centralization. Subsequent deterioration was rapid. Mills were
abandoned, dismantled, or fell to ruin. Population declined and a
retrogression in development ensued, reaching the depth at the turn
of the present century. Introduction of new peoples with a willing-
ness to work under hard conditions and with a vision and spirit
probably akin to that of the original settlers of almost 200 years
previous have produced a partial restoration, but in agriculture and
stock raising only. Industry, except for sawmilling, has gone and
may never be restored.
Of all the many human activities in the struggle for livelihood
which have existed in these towns, the original pursuits of farming,
grazing, and lumbering have lasted the longest, even to the extent
of becoming almost the exclusive ones. Each has had a varied his-
tory, changing almost constantly in scope and character, but they
have endured and will undoubtedly last much longer. The story of
lumbering is naturally of particular interest to this treatise. Advent
of white settlement brought with it immediately the construction
of sawmills. Up to the middle of the nineteenth century, they were
located practically always on brooks and rivers, where water power
could be used to drive the saws. The saws were of the up-and-down
type, with only one blade, and production was low, probably one
to two thousand board feet a day. Operation was strictly seasonal,
15
YALE FOREST IN TOLLAND AND WINDHAM COUNTIES
being confined to those portions of the year when water was high,
probably two to three months. The production was for local con-
sumption and entered little into trade with distant communities.
It was so local in fact that mills sprang up all around the country.
The total annual production for sawmills in the Town of Woodstock,
for example, is estimated (13) to have amounted to only 50 thousand
board feet per mill between 1820 and 1830. Lincoln (13) tells of nine
sawmills in Ashford in 1818; Lawson (12) of 13 sawmills in Union
township about the middle of the century, and 12 sawmills in 1820
in Woodstock. Much of the work was undoubtedly custom sawing,
the farmers hauling in logs to be sawed at the mills and the lumber
returned for their own use.
During most of the eighteenth century the woods were considered
as a barrier to agriculture and substantial areas of forest land were
cleared and the product disposed of in the simplest fashion, namely,
by burning. The advancing commercialism of the next century
brought about a wiser use; in addition, agriculture by this time had
reached the limits of expansion, all suitable lands having been
cleared and agriculture being subordinated to home and central
manufacturing. Prior to the middle of the century it is said (13)
that the settlers cut only the largest trees, "practicing forestry as
recommended by forestry schools today." The development of the
circular saw and the application of steam power to drive the saws
brought about a great change in this industry. This occurred
about 1870. The operation needed no longer to be seasonal since
one did not have to depend upon the height of the water. The logs
did not have to be hauled long distances to the mill; the mills could
go to the woods; the cut was no longer one to two thousand feet a
day, but increased to 20 thousand board feet; selection cutting was
abandoned and clean cutting was practiced; improved transporta-
tion facilities, road and railroad, permitted shipping out far from
the source of supply. The extent of coverage which logging for these
mills accomplished can hardly be sensed by the present aspect of
the forest. The Union Forest alone shows evidences of four dozen
or more of these temporary settings. At the beginning of the present
century little virgin forest remained, except in scattered remnants
of old, defective trees too poor for the saw. Some of the stands,
particularly those having high percentages of chestnut, were even
being cut for the second time. Most of the present stands, at least
16
POPULATION GROWTH, DECLINE, AND CHANGE
prior to the hurricane of 1938, dated from this period of clean cut-
ting in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century, which was
simultaneous with the period of agricultural land abandonment and
population depletion.
POPULATION GROWTH, DECLINE, AND CHANGE
AN interesting and significant trend in population is revealed by
-£"*- census statistics (4), of which Table 1 abstracts those which
pertain most directly to the situation. The first census available is
for the year 1756 and the second for 1774, while official United
States censuses date from 1790 on at 10-year intervals. For the state
as a whole the increase in growth rate was rapid for the period up
to 1790, then gradually reduced and reached a relatively constant
geometric rate of increase of 0.52 per cent per year from 1790 to
1840. Following this, owing to the centralization and expansion of
established industry and the introduction of new industries into the
State, the rate increased strikingly, maintaining a level of about
1.84 per cent up through 1930. The rural population by itself in-
creased at a somewhat slower geometric rate for the period 1790
to 1840, being 0.32 per cent a year, followed by a rate of 0.95 per
cent between 1840 and 1870, while the state population as a whole
was undergoing its rapid expansion. Rural population remained
almost constant (0.15 per cent rate of increase) for the following
30 years or more, followed again by a comparatively rapid increase
(1.22 per cent), particularly from 1910 on when rural living became
more and more popular for city workers.
The population of Tolland County stayed around 14,000 be-
tween the years 1790 to 1820 and then gained steadily up to the
present time, maintaining an average geometric rate of growth of
close to .59 per cent per year for the entire 150 years. In Windham
County, population remained fairly constant around the 29,000
level between 1790 and 1840, increased rather rapidly for the next
40 years, and then maintained a slower rate of increase lasting to
the present time; over the whole 150 years the rate of increase
averaged 0.45 per cent per year.
While the populations of Windham and Tolland Counties on the
whole were increasing throughout much of the period, those of the
four towns in which the Union Forest lies followed a different pat-
17
YALE FOREST IN TOLLAND AND WINDHAM COUNTIES
tern. In spite of the ever-increasing population of the state, both
urban and rural, and of the two counties, each of the four towns
reached a peak of population during the middle of the nineteenth
century and then fell off more rapidly than they had built up. Since
Eastford and Ashford were once a single town, the statistics of the
two should be combined if the true trend is to be observed. These
declines continued to about 1910 in Woodstock and Ashford com-
bined with Eastford, when the populations apparently stabilized.
In Union the decline continued to 1930, followed by a recovery.
However at the present time Union has less than one-half the popu-
lation it had in 1756 and less than one-third of that at the time of
its peak development. Woodstock is down at its 1770 level, while
Ashford and Eastford combined are at about the 1756 level.
Initial rapid growth of the towns is easily explained if one takes
the trouble to survey the family statistics, such as listed by Lawson
(12), wherein it is seen that a family with four children in the early
days was truly a small one, and ore with eight to ten children was
by no means rare. Casual survey of the land itself would convince
one that a saturation point must have been reached rapidly and
that exodus to other areas was soon essential. Several emigrations
have already been mentioned. Minor movements in the eighteenth
century were followed by a major exodus in the i82o's. Spurred on
by the opening up of main highways, the development of railroads,
and the centralization of industry in major cities, all of which took
place during the mid-nineteenth century, the exodus continued,
being further accelerated during the agricultural depression and the
opening of western lands which followed the Civil War.
The early population was almost totally of English blood and re-
mained so for a long time. In Woodstock in the 1870's a minor
immigration of Swedish workers took place, to work in the cran-
berry bogs then being established. Union is unique in that it was
settled by Scotch-Irish, probably the only settlement of this
national strain in eastern Connecticut. Only within the current
century did a radical change take place, when substantial influx
of central Europeans settled in the towns and began to rework the
farms which had long been abandoned or were on the verge of
abandonment. Bohemians came in first, then Poles, Russians,
Hungarians, and Slovaks.
POPULATION GROWTH, DECLINE, AND CHANGE
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YALE FOREST IN TOLLAND AND WINDHAM COUNTIES
CONSOLIDATION OF TRACT
IN 1906, at the time when population had reached its low ebb and
just prior to the influx of the new nationalities from central
Europe which was to stop further decline, Mr. Myers made his first
purchase in the town of Union. Incidentally, in the same region
at approximately the same time (1905) the State of Connecticut
began to establish its second oldest existing forest, the Nipmuck
Forest. Continued abandonment of agricultural lands and further
emigration of the native population gave Mr. Myers frequent op-
portunity to add to his initial purchase, so that within a decade-
and-a-half the privately acquired area reached a total of about
6,000 acres and by 1930, when the bulk of the property was deeded
to Yale, of about 8,000 acres. During the period from 1906 to 1930,
the activities on the acquired land were varied, centering primarily
on the use of the tract for a summer-home residence and for a game
refuge, but also serving the purpose of furnishing facilities for
studies in forestry and for the training of forestry students. Active
logging was carried on from time to time to help carry the expense
of holding the tract. Many abandoned fields were planted to white
pine and red pine in various years a total of about 150 acres being
planted.
Because a permanent all-year staff of workers was kept on the
forest, the tract was benefited by an intensity of fire and game pro-
tection not practiced on neighboring lands. Roads and trails were
kept cleared, new roads constructed, a fire tower erected on Walker
Mountain and the area patrolled throughout the entire year. Old
dams were maintained and a few new ones built to encourage bird
and fish life.
A major tragedy during the second decade of the present century
was the killing of the most valuable species in the forest by the
chestnut blight. Chestnut salvage continued for many years, be-
yond 1930, and even at the present time there are opportunities to
harvest dead chestnut from the more remote parts of the forest.
In 1906, the U.S. Forest Service made use of parts of the area by
locating four permanent sample plots, two of which were in pure
chestnut type and two on clear cut pine lands. Each year from 191 7
to 1922, the tract was the location of the spring field work of the
junior class of the Yale School of Forestry, during which period
20
ORGANIZATION OF TRACT
over 4,000 acres were cruised and type-mapped with main emphasis
on evaluating the possibilities of the tract for pine production and
on assembling data for more intensive management practice. The
field type sheets were assembled into a general map, starting in
1919, and kept up to date when additional cruises were run. A com-
plete set of these maps is kept in the files of the School. It is interest-
ing to note that, in 1922, the pine acreage amounted to 612 acres
or 15.2 per cent out of the total of 4,026 acres cruised, and the pine
volume to 4,500,000 board feet. At the present time, owing partly
to cutting, but principally to the hurricane destruction, the pine
area constitutes only 7.3 per cent of the total and the pine volume
is only 1,800,000 board feet.
In 1929, a general survey of the tract was made, at which time
it was estimated that the forest contained 27,500,000 board feet of
timber, of which 32 per cent was white pine, 22 per cent hemlock,
27 per cent oak, and 19 per cent other hardwoods. It was in this
year that Mr. Myers made the proposal to transfer a large propor-
tion of his lands to the Yale School of Forestry, an ofFer which was
accepted by the Corporation of Yale University on December 11,
1929. Mr. Myers' continued interest is evidenced by further aid and
contributions toward a detailed boundary survey, a further de-
velopment of tract improvements, and acquisition of other desirable
interior holdings.
ORGANIZATION OF TRACT
General
THE first transfers of land to Yale occurred in 1930, others in
1932 and the last in 1934, by which time the title to about
7,500 acres of the total of approximately 8,000 acres had been
deeded to the University. Included with the gift of land were 18
old houses and their outbuildings in various stages of repair, four
sawmills, of which two were water-power mills, and six horses.
The livestock was soon disposed ol by sale. Mr. Myers retained the
ownership of about 500 acres in the north central part of the tract,
where his summer residence was located, and also reserved certain
modest hunting and fishing rights. A graduate forester, Nathan D.
Canterbury, was appointed in 1930 to help effectuate the transfer,
21
YALE FOREST IN TOLLAND AND WINDHAM COUNTIES
to act as agent of both parties in the control of the properties, and
to organize the Forest for production.
Yale's initial object in managing the tract is well expressed by-
Dean Graves in a statement to the Charles Lathrop Pack Founda-
tion (7), in which he says in part: "The first purpose is to demon-
strate forest management in all particulars for the benefit of owners
of forest estates. The School has the challenge of business as well
as technical management of diversified resources, of protection,
of marketing of products, and other problems which offer peculiar
opportunities for demonstration of features of management."
The first job was therefore one of organization of a forest property
and business, to which much of the time in the succeeding eight
years was devoted. The most immediate tasks performed were the
assemblage and coordination of the various ownership maps and
the running of accurate transit surveys over the major routes of
travel on which to tie these maps. Retracement of all the original
bounds was out of the question, since, as is the case in many
portions of the hilly country of Connecticut, exact retracement is
difficult, owing to the disappearance of original corners, forcing the
establishment of new corners by litigation, or more commonly by
mutual agreement and historical hearsay. Intensification of the fire-
protection program proceeded concurrently and within a short time
the assessment of the property for forest production and other pur-
poses, such as wildlife and water development, student training,
research, and the study of potential local markets took substantial
time and thought. Particular emphasis was placed on public re-
lations in the form of creating good will toward the Forest and
making it an integral part of community life. In view of the fact
that a sound appraisal of the entire tract was needed before a pro-
gram of utilization could be recommended and started, the logging
operations which were current at the time of first acquisition were
closed down, thus reducing the revenue to a minimum for the time
being. Even if the operations had been continued, it could not be
and was not expected that the Forest be self-sustaining immedi-
ately, owing to the need of greatly increased expenditures for fur-
nishing a sound basis for the new administration and the desirability
of building up a depleted forest capital. The financing of these new
activities was handled through several sources, such as revenues
from forest products, assignment of part of the incomes from the
22
ORGANIZATION OF TRACT
Charles Lathrop Pack Fund (established in 1928) and the Childs
Foundation (established 1929), plus further donations by Mr. Myers
and others, including particularly Dean Graves.
The activities subsequent to the time that Yale acquired the tract
calls for a more detailed discussion than contained in the above
summary paragraphs and are divided into several logical categories
in the following pages.
ACQUISITION
Further acquisition of forest land did not affect the total acreage
to a marked extent, although it did place two properties, aggre-
gating somewhat over 250 acres, under Yale ownership. These
tracts were acquired in 1937 under gift from Mr. Myers and Dean
Graves and were located desirably within the exterior bounds of
the forest, close to the site that served for a number of years as
the School's summer camp. A third area of 60 acres, now known as
the "Graves lot," was acquired by Dean Graves at about the same
time and is included in the statistics of area and volume, since it
is under the nominal supervision of the Forest although still owned
by Dean Graves. The total area was increased by these additions
to 7,857.56 acres, at which figure it remains. An additional 2,000
acres seem to make desirable further acquisitions, but the program
of adding new lands is now inactive.
ADMINISTRATION
After 1930, Mr. Canterbury, as director, assumed general re-
sponsibility over all forest affairs, being assisted by a resident
superintendent, who for the most part had charge of the execution
of the work program. The old Fairbanks house (see Frontispiece),
said to have been built about 1732 and hence one of the oldest
houses in the township of Union, was thoroughly repaired for use
as forest headquarters and summer residence of the director. In
1932, when a demand arose for more substantial and central office
space, such space was obtained in the First National Bank Building
at Stafford Springs and held until 1942.
In 1937, following the resignation of the first director, a modified
administration plan was adopted in that the new director also
served in charge of all three school forests and maintained his
winter residence in New Haven. The resident superintendent
23
YALE FOREST IN TOLLAND AND WINDHAM COUNTIES
assumed greater responsibility by this change. Following the dis-
posal of the bulk of the hurricane material, a policy of retrenchment
was made necessary because of the prospective severe curtailment
of logging operations for many years to come and the resultant
anticipated heavy reduction in income. As it now stands, the posi-
tion of director and resident superintendent have been combined
into one job, with a technically trained forester maintaining year-
long residence in the Fairbanks house.
IMPROVEMENTS
The improvement program following 1930 centered about road
and trail maintenance and building repair or disposition. A sub-
stantial part of the time of two men was occupied in the task of
removing brush along roads and trails, keeping ditches open and
culverts in shape. The network of roads was sufficiently intensive
so that no further new construction was required. State and town
work resulted in the improvement of several roads under their
jurisdiction. The new Wilbur Cross Highway greatly increased the
accessibility of the Forest from the west and took 11.45 acres °f
forest land from two of its outlying northwestern lots. Relocation
of a road at Ashford took an additional 1.3 acres. The hurricane
barricaded the entire interior road system and to this date many of
the formerly accessible trails are still not fit for travel.
The three dozen or more buildings and four mills acquired in
1930 constituted a special problem. Many of them had been aban-
doned for a decade or more. All of them were in a poor state of
repair. In addition the need no longer existed to maintain most of
them. Costs of repair in many instances were prohibitive and would
not be warranted considering the low-rental incomes they would
produce if made habitable. As a result only those houses in the best
state of repair and those needed for the staff and employees were
further maintained and improved. The remainder were left tem-
porarily untouched and eventually removed. At the present time, six
houses have been repaired and are occupied, while most of the others
have been dismantled. One of the water-power mills was in such
poor condition that it was dismantled and torn down. The second
water-power mill, the Morse Mill, was repaired and reequipped
and served a useful purpose through the period of major disposal
of hurricane material.
24
ORGANIZATION OF TRACT
INSTRUCTION AND RESEARCH
One of the original purposes of the Forest was to furnish effective
instruction facilities for the School of Forestry summer camp. By
1933 two school buildings were constructed, located near the center
of the tract near the Morse water-power mill, and the field work
for incoming junior students was transferred from East Lyme,
Conn., to the new headquarters. Within the next two years a third
building was added and the housing facilities completed. The prem-
ises were used from 1933 through 1939, when owing to the excessive
destruction of the forest stands, a change to new quarters at Nor-
folk, Conn., was made necessary. The decision was a hard one to
make and might not have been necessary if the main emphasis in
summer-term instruction had not been on mensuration and cruising.
The Union Forest is not essentially organized as a research forest,
although a number of activities carried out from the beginning to
the present time can be classed as of research character. A dozen
permanent sample plots were on the tract when acquired, located
principally in the white pine type. These plots were ruined, of
course, in 1938. Special studies on utilization, such as on power
equipment, new heating devices such as the Charwood heater, cord-
wood studies, recreational and wild life possibilities, ecology of
laurel cover, botanical check lists, and other items complete the
list. The area now furnishes excellent opportunities for investiga-
tion of the rehabilitation of forest stands after heavy damage with
and without special silvi cultural treatment and of returning to
conifer types some of the area which had been taken over by hard-
woods.
MAPS AND SURVEYS
Early surveys made by Yale School of Forestry students in the
course of field training during the years from 1917 to 1922 covered
over 4,000 acres of the land then held by Mr. Myers. Active cutting
in subsequent years necessitated a new survey in 1929, just prior
to the transfer to Yale, at which time it was estimated that about
25,000,000 board feet of timber stood on the area to be transferred.
The estimates seem to have been somewhat high, since a resurvey
made in 1930 on 1,500 acres, set the total volume 23 per cent lower
than first estimated. Immediately upon acquisition by Yale, the
25
YALE FOREST IN TOLLAND AND WINDHAM COUNTIES
ground work was laid for a thorough-going survey project by the
establishment of a road transit survey with the placement of monu-
ments at key points. The many ownership maps from different
sources had to be reconciled and the exterior lines retraced and
posted. Within a short time, that is in 1933, through cooperation
with the Connecticut National Guard, supplemented by work of
Fairchild and Company, a complete set of aerial photographs and
mosaics was procured. These photographs together with the road
traverse were used in 1937 in a ground survey to furnish the first
detailed type map of the Forest. The survey was a line-plot cruise
including timber estimating as well as sampling for growth. The
type map was completed, but before much work had been done on
the cruise estimate the hurricane of 1938 swept over the country.
Topographic mapping was a feature of the instruction given at
the summer camp and during the course of the years a contour map
of the forest, centering about the camp site, was gradually being
built up. Control was readily coordinated into the state system
after the Connecticut Geological Survey set up a triangulation
station on Chandler hill in 1936.
In 1941, a descriptive survey of forest conditions (9) in each
compartment of the Forest was made, thoroughly revising the type
map of 1937 and placing it on a post-hurricane basis. Later in 1943
and 1944, a five-per-cent timber reconnaissance was run, forming
the basis for the statistics of the present bulletin.
PROTECTION
Adequate protection from fire is the first concern in any forestry
venture and was so conceived at Union. The property had long been
well patrolled and staffed so that actual damage by fire had not
been serious. As is typical in much of the hardwood country,
critical fire conditions are apt to occur at Union during two periods
during the year, one in spring and one in fall. The spring season
lasts from the time that the dead leaf litter starts to dry out after
the winter snows have disappeared until the leafy forest canopy
is again well established and together with the ground vegetation
increases the moisture content of the previous season's leaf cast.
The fall season starts with the leaf fall and lasts until the heavy
autumn rains and winter snows. In spite of the potential threat the
actual fire danger has not proven to be quite as serious as originally
26
ORGANIZATION OF TRACT
feared- Effective control was secured by the almost daily patrol of
the workmen and superintendent in the course of their work and
by the purchase of ground-fighting equipment such as fire rakes,
shovels, and back-pack pumps. The wooden fire tower on Walker
mountain was manned during fire days until the State constructed
a fire tower on Bald hill to the west of the Forest, which not only
gave better coverage but was coordinated into the state system
of lookouts. Cooperation with other land owners, such as the Quine-
baug Forestry Company, and with the State was also an essential
feature of the fire-protection program. During the fifteen years that
the Union Forest has been held by the School only five small fires
have been known to occur, none of them reaching serious propor-
tions.
The hazards from other natural sources, such as wind, sleet, dis-
ease, and insects, has proven to be far more serious and in most
cases protection measures are non-existent or inadequate. No
measures could forestall the heavy hurricane damage of 1938. Little
can be done to alleviate sleet damage (see Plate 7), which occurs
frequently in southern New England forests and is undoubtedly a
prominent factor in producing in trees the branchiness and low
quality, so common in this part of the country. The chestnut blight
could not be stopped and the Forest lost its most valuable species.
Only with white pine blister rust has an effective protective measure
been available, through the eradication of the alternate host, Ribes.
This measure has been applied to the Union Forest through the
efforts of the enrollees in the Civilian Conservation Corps about the
year 1935. Later on, following the hurricane, the C.C.C. performed
another valuable protection service by helping to dispose of the
slash along roads and by constructing water holes for supplying
water to power pumps and back pumps at convenient intervals.
The gypsy moth and browntail moth remain potential threats,
although fortunately they have caused little damage in the Forest,
in spite of the fact that the tree species, considered to be their
favored feeding grounds, are among the most common on the Forest.
UTILIZATION
The production of revenue through the utilization of'all con-
ceivable products is an essential element in the management of a
tract of this nature. The degree of utilization must of course be
27
YALE FOREST IN TOLLAND AND WINDHAM COUNTIES
commensurate with continued productivity and not bar further im-
provement of forest conditions and gradual increase of the forest
capital. Just prior to acquisition by Yale, a crew of eight men
under a foreman had been kept busy for a number of years, princi-
pally in logging and saw-milling. It was deemed advisable to dis-
pense with the services of this group, pending an investigation of
the forest resources and the markets for forest products. A small
working crew of two to three men was substituted to keep up with
essential maintenance work and to form a nucleus for supplemen-
tary labor when the demand arose from time to time. Small cutting
contracts, such as for railroad ties, were taken on for the first year
or two, and on the whole during the first five years, the cutting
averaged only about 100,000 board feet annually. The national
depression, which started in 1929 and reached its climax in 1932,
had of course a pronounced effect and prevented a rapid rise in
business on the forest. Total gross income, however, increased at
an average annual rate of about $1,000, reaching $6,000 to $7,000
by 1937. Much of the increase was due to the disposal of products
other than stumpage on lumber itself.
An interesting variety of revenues was obtained during these
years, as shown in the following list:
Wood products
Stumpage
Logs
Sawed products
Boards, rough or dressed
Dimension
Timber
Pattern stock
Cross ties
Slabs
Shavings
Sawdust
Posts
Highway
Fence
Chestnut tobacco poles
Cordwood
28
ORGANIZATION OF TRACT
Other sources of income
House rentals
Pasture rentals
Hay
Sand and gravel
Evergreens
Furs
Fruit
Wrecking of old houses and outbuildings
Miscellaneous equipment
The old Morse water-power mill was repaired and converted to
be driven by the power unit of a tractor, which came with the tract.
In 1933 a small planer and matcher were added to the edger and
circular saw already in use. It was in this year that the N.R.A.
Lumber Code was drawn. The Forest applied for an annual cut
of 410,000 board feet based upon the performance prior to acquisi-
tion.
A market survey in the early years revealed 774 prospective users
of forest products worth investigating in the 116 towns and cities
within a 40-mile radius of the Forest. By 1935, 132 of these were
interviewed. The continued depression caused a postponement of
the study until more favorable times and normal markets. These
had not arrived before the Forest was hit by the 1938 storm. The
small market that did exist at the time, notably for cordwood, was
subject to severe competition. Owing to the presence in the market
of large quantities of cordwood, resulting from Civilian Conserva-
tion Corps activities on state forests, sold at prices at which the
private owner could not compete, this outlet was taken from the pri-
vate owners. In addition, the demand for cordwood lessened with
the increasing use of liquid fuels by the local population. At the
present time, the situation is such that kerosene and oil are not
only preferred because of their convenience, but also because they
are cheaper than wood.
All the cuttings prior to 1938 were in the form of thinnings,
improvement cuttings, and salvage with the intention to build up
the growing stock and improve its quality. From 1930 through
1937, approximately three-quarters of a million board feet were
removed. To facilitate marketing, the Forest took membership in
29
YALE FOREST IN TOLLAND AND WINDHAM COUNTIES
the regional trade associations, connections which were severed in
1942.
Following September 1938, the operations took on an entirely
different aspect. It was estimated at the time that about seven
million board feet of timber had been felled by the wind, an estimate
which later proved to be quite conservative, and the timber had to
be utilized quickly. The New England Timber Salvage Authority
was established late in 1938 to take charge of the salvage problem
throughout New England. The first emphasis in salvage lay on
logging the conifers, and placing the logs in storage reservoirs,
where they could await future disposal to mill men, or on dry sites,
where they could be sawn up by mills already in operation or being
put into operation. Several ponds were leased to NETSA for storage
purposes and were filled with pine and hemlock logs before the end
of the winter. Dry storage sites were also leased. In the Union
Forest three methods of disposal were used. A few million feet were
logged and sold to NETSA, chiefly the better grade of conifer logs;
a sizeable quantity of lumber was manufactured in the Morse mill
by the forest employees; and a large amount of stumpage as well
as some logs were sold to independent portable mill operators. By
October 1942, close to seven million board feet had been disposed
of, an estimate much on the low side, owing to the strict grading
and scaling rules applying to logs sold to NETSA. The advent of
the Great War made disposition of the logs and lumber an easy
matter.
Salvage utilization is still going on. In 1944 about 300,000 board
feet, net scale, of hurricane timber, chiefly hardwood, were sold on
the stumpage basis, a record which will probably be duplicated in
1945. In all, up to the present time, a volume of close to eight
million board feet, net scale, of hurricane timber has been used.
The down conifer timber is now badly deteriorated, except that
which is still partly rooted; the hardwood timber has lost all its
sapwood, but is still sound-hearted. Consequently the gross scale
represented by the eight million board feet utilized is probably
near nine, if not ten million board feet of pre-hurricane scale. It is
estimated that two to three million board feet still remain to be
disposed of, though much of it is too scattered for practical logging.
Following 1942, a change of policy was instituted in regard to
sawing logs in the Morse mill. The volume of the annual cut, par-
30
ORGANIZATION OF TRACT
ticularly that in view following the disposition of the hurricane
material, and the necessity to maintain a permanent staff of workers
of only two to three men, relatively inexperienced in lumbering,
have proven that such practice is less profitable than the selling of
stumpage to independent operators. The Morse mill is now closed
down; even renting of the mill on a royalty basis to independent
operators is not feasible, since it does not yield a sufficient return
to cover maintenance costs with a reasonable margin of profit.
WILDLIFE
The use of the Yale Forest for wildlife purposes has always been
a primary consideration and, indeed, was specified in the contract
between Mr. Myers and Yale University. Under Mr. Myers' owner-
ship, the tract as a whole was handled more or less as a game pre-
serve, the resident manager taking an active interest in the pro-
tection of game. This policy has been continued under the manage-
ment by Yale. The combination of the varied topography, such as
lakes, swamps, flatland, and hill land, with the many cover types,
such as hardwood, softwood, brush, and open land, make the area
ideal for wildlife.
While shooting and hunting are restricted, the trapping of certain
kinds of fur-bearing animals by a state-authorized agent, namely,
the resident superintendent of the forest, is encouraged. This policy
was started in 1933 and has continued up to recent times. The catch
of fur-bearing predators during these years includes red and grey
fox, mink, muskrat, raccoon, bobcat, skunk, beaver, and even house
cats gone native. Sale of the furs contributes to the forest income
annually.
Thirty years ago, deer were scarce throughout the region, but
now they are plentiful. Under the Connecticut law, there is no
public hunting season for deer, but the woodland owners may obtain
permits from the State Board of Fisheries and Game to kill deer.
Although beaver are said to be native to the region, none were
noticed when Mr. Myers first acquired the property. Since then at
least two attempts to restore them by liberating imported stock
were made under permit from the State, one about 1906 and again
in 1935. In both cases a policy of immediate discouragement had
to be adopted, since the resulting damage to timber, both by feeding
and by flooding was not compensated for by expected benefits (See
31
YALE FOREST IN TOLLAND AND WINDHAM COUNTIES
Plate 19). Beaver production has no place in the management of a
tract of this kind.
In regard to game birds, grouse are plentiful, as are ducks on
Still River at certain seasons, woodcock are present, pheasant are
scarce, and there are but very few quail. Still River pond was early
set aside as a special wildlife sanctuary and duck food was planted.
The lakes, ponds, and streams are on the whole too shallow or
sluggish for game fish and such species as pickerel, horned pout,
perch, sunfish, chub, and others dominate. Bushmeadow brook and
parts of Bigelow brook are fair trout streams, but the fishing rights
are here reserved.
In September 1943, Yale entered into an agreement with the
State Board of Fisheries and Game, granting to the State the right
to regulate public use for hunting, fishing, and trapping on the
Forest. The State governs use by the issuance of regulations and
by supplying a reasonable amount of patrol, while Yale is respon-
sible for supplying and posting appropriate notices. In return the
Forest has the right to apply for a limited number of hunting
licenses, including deer licenses, and has the protection of the State
against illicit use.
ENVIRONMENTAL CONDITIONS
DRAINAGE
THE general direction of the major drainage systems of the
Union Forest is southerly. Bigelow brook or Bigelow River, one
of two outlets of Lake Mashapaug, which lies a mile or two north of
the forest close to the Connecticut-Massachusetts boundary, flows
southward, roughly bisecting the Forest and with its feeding streams
draining most of the forest area. Still River, also flowing to the south,
drains the most easterly portion, and branches of Mount Hope
River the most westerly. All these rivers eventually reach the
Thames River or one of its branches and thus to Long Island Sound.
Shortly after Bigelow brook enters the northern edge of the
Forest it forms Bigelow or Myers' pond, an artificial lake whose
history goes back to the time of early water-power mills. Near the
southern end of the pond it is joined by Gulf brook entering from
the northwest and by Bushmeadow brook from the west, both
32
ENVIRONMENTAL CONDITIONS
junctions being on Myers' preserve. Bass brook, also coming in
from the west, joins Bigelow still further south (Compartment 70).
Another main creek, running into Bigelow brook, is Branch brook,
which flows out of Morse Mill pond near the site of the summer
camp, flowing almost due south until it enters Bigelow.
A number of ponds add to the attractiveness and utility of the
Forest. Some of them are natural ponds; others are artificial ponds
of long standing, dammed in the days of water-power mills, some
dating back to early Colonial days; and still others are of more
recent origin, established for the purposes of recreation, fishing,
and wildlife. Including Myers' preserve, eleven pond areas can be
named (5). Bigelow pond in the north central part of the Forest,
extending halfway through Myers' preserve, is a long, shallow pond
covering about 60 acres and formed by a dam on Bigelow brook.
The dam-site area was for a long time a favorite spot for locating
water-power mills. Several are known to have been constructed
there. Lawson pond, a small artificial pond on Bushmeadow brook
about two acres in size, lies just west of the southern tip of Bigelow
pond. Kinney pond, containing $.3 acres in Compartments 14 and
15, is the most attractive lake on the Forest. Gardiner pond, or
Old Mill pond as it is sometimes called, is located in Compartment
1 directly west of the old road to Union. Barlow pond lies in the
center of the Forest on Bigelow brook at the junction of Compart-
ments 100, 101 and 69 and covers about three acres. It is a small
artificial pond on which was located the old Barlow Mill, removed
within the last few years. Morse Meadow pond covers 37 acres in
Compartment 43 and is a shallow lake with no definable inlet. Its
main outlet leads down to Morse reservoir and Morse Mill pond
in Compartments 52 and $6 near the location of the Forest School
camp. All three ponds are artificial, being built to furnish water for
early mills. After the 1938 hurricane they served as storage areas
for hurricane timber. The reservoir is 16.5 acres in area, and the
Mill pond is about one acre. Lost pond, only partly in the Forest
(Compartment 44) is said to have originally been a natural pond,
but the water level has been raised by the construction of a small
dam. It covers eight acres. Still River pond, a new artificial pond,
is a shallow, long area of fifty acres in Compartments 166 and 167.
A small pond of two acres, known as Paine pond is an attractive
place at the southern end of the Forest in Compartment 118. Two
33
YALE FOREST IN TOLLAND AND WINDHAM COUNTIES
large ponds, Crystal pond to the southeast and Chaffee pond to the
southwest, do not lie directly in the Forest, but are close enough
to be significant. They are by far the largest ponds in the neighbor-
hood.
TOPOGRAPHY
The Union Forest is characterized by a variable topography,
somewhat rugged, but still not mountainous in any sense. The
lowest elevation at a point where Bigelow brook leaves the Forest
is 550 feet and where Still River leaves about 650 feet. The highest
elevations are on Coye hill and Walker mountain, both about 1,050
feet. Lead Mine hill directly to the west of the Forest reaches to
about 1,150 feet and the highest hill in the area, Bald hill just north-
west of Lead Mine hill is 1,286 feet in elevation. It is also the highest
point in eastern Connecticut. The maximum difference on the Forest
itself is therefore only 500 feet.
Coye hill and Walker mountain are both on the main ridge run-
ning through the center of the Forest at an angle of about 20 degrees
west of south in the northern half and slightly east of south in the
southern half of the Forest. The east boundary of the Forest lies
on a spur from the main ridge except where the Forest extends into
Still River bottom. The west boundary lies against the main ridge
on which the village of Union lies. The north boundary of the Forest
coincides with Bigelow hollow, passing over maximum elevations
of 900 feet on the east side of Bigelow brook and reaching to 1,020
feet near Union.
On the whole, the ridges are broad and comparatively flat-topped
with frequent rock outcrops both on the slopes and summit. The
valley bottoms tend to be narrow and in many places originally
were swampy. A number of the swamp areas have, however, been
converted into ponds.
CLIMATE
Climatic records are kept on the Forest, but as yet the accumula-
tion has not covered a sufficient span of years to make a recording
of these data more valuable than those which have been gathered
over a long term of years at Mansfield, Connecticut (10), which lies
only ten miles to the southwest. The temperatures of the Union
Forest are probably slightly lower, the rainfall and snowfall slightly
34
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YALE FOREST IN TOLLAND AND WINDHAM COUNTIES-
heavier and the growing season a few days shorter than at Storrs.
Table 2 shows average annual temperature to be 47.5^., with
monthly averages ranging from a low of 25.2°F. in February to a
high of-94^^*=4^«5M^;. The highest temperature recorded in 47
years was ioi°F. and the lowest — 2oJF. Average precipitation is
43.25 inches with a fairly even distribution throughout the months
of the year, but with a slight tendency to increase during July and
August. The largest annual precipitation recorded is 60.18 inches
and the least 31.74 inches. Snowfall averages 43.3 inches a year,
but has reached a maximum of 88.1 inches. Average date of the
last killing frost in spring at Storrs is given as May 2 and that of
the first killing frost in the fall as Oct. 9, making a growing season
of 160 days.
SOILS
In his studies of Connecticut land types (17), Morgan shows by
means of reconnaissance land type maps the occurrence of the
specific soil series and the land use for which each area is most
appropriate. Three of his maps apply in part to the four towns in
which the Forest lies and show that seven soil series are found in
the Forest. Two soil series are dominant, namely, Gloucester and
Brookfield. The Gloucester soils extend eastward with minor in-
terruptions from Bigelow brook in Eastford, but in Union cross
over Bigelow to the west with a boundary running roughly 200
west of north. To the west of the Gloucester soil, Brookfield domi-
nates. Morgan's soil key permits the following almost verbatim
description of each soil series. Gloucester soils are found on lands
of hilly to mountainous topography, having irregular slopes of 8
to 50 per cent or more with occasional to frequent bedrock out-
crops. The surface soil is medium to dark brown, mellow with few
to many boulders. The subsoil is medium light yellow-brown and
friable. The substratum start* at 28 to 36 inches, and is gray to
brownish gray, moderately loose and containing a little clay. It
has much stone and irregular rock fragments of all sizes, composed
chiefly of light-colored granite gneiss and schist. Bedrock lies at
3 to 20 feet. Of the several phases under this series, Gloucester fine
sandy loam, stony phase, is most prevalent, grading into rough
stony land in the worst places and occasionally in the best into
Gloucester fine sandy loam.
36
ENVIRONMENTAL CONDITIONS
The Brookfield series is found under the same topographic con-
ditions as the Gloucester, but has a surface soil which is medium
brown, often with slight reddish cast, mellow, and few to many
schistose rock fragments. Its subsoil is bright yellow-brown to
reddish yellow-brown, and is friable to firm. The substratum lies
at 28 to 36 inches and is light yellowish-brown: it is loose to firm,
and is composed chiefly of partially weathered fragments of rust-
colored mica schist. Bedrock starts at 3 to 15 feet. The stony phase
of Brookfield fine sandy loam is most common, again grading into
rough stony land in the worst places and into fine sandy loam in
the best.
Hinckley series is the third most common type and is character-
ized by its sandy, character. The region north and northwest of
Lake Mashapaug, the Bigelow valley from the southern third of
Union on the south, parts of Branch brook bottoms and other small
areas are occupied by this soil. It is defined as a valley soil developed
from water-laid material of prehistoric origin, having good surface
drainage and unimpeded underdrainage. Topography is irregular
with rounded knolls and short ridges and variable slopes of 3 to
15 per cent. It has no bedrock outcrops, no large boulders but well-
rounded cobbles, and is more or less gravelly. The surface soil is
medium to light brown, mellow to friable, and moderately to ex-
cessively gravelly or sandy. The subsoil is yellow-brown, becoming
paler in color with depth, and firm. The substratum lies below 28
to 30 inches and is brownish-gray to yellowish-gray, very gravelly
or sandy, and composed of water-deposited gneiss or schist ma-
terial. Merrimac sands also are present but on too small an area
to warrant description.
Charlton soils can be listed as fourth most common, although
mucks are probably just as frequently found. Both are, however,
relatively isolated and cover but small areas. Charlton soil occurs
on areas where there is good surface drainage and slightly impeded
underdrainage on topography which is hilly with moderate irregu-
lar slopes of 5 to 30 per cent. Bedrock outcrops are few to none.
The surface soil is medium to dark grayish-brown, friable to firm,
with few to many fragments and boulders of schist. The subsoil
is light yellow-brown, with slight olive cast with increasing depth
and is firm to slightly compact. The substratum lies below 24 to
28 inches and is yellow-olive to drab, very compact, and slightly
37
YALE FOREST IN TOLLAND AND WINDHAM COUNTIES
porose. It is composed chiefly of a heavy well-decomposed mass of
glacial till with schist material predominant and extends with little
change to bedrock at 25 to 75 feet.
Muck is an organic soil, of which the largest body lies in the Still
River bottom with smaller areas locally in other drainages. Water
table is at or near the surface at all times. The organic material is
very dark brown to black, mellow and well disintegrated, and often
more or less mixed with earthy material of alluvial deposition. It
is composed of residues from woody and herbaceous plants, rushes
and sedges. Depth to a mineral substratum of light bluish-gray,
silty sand occurs from 3 feet on down.
THE HURRICANE OF SEPTEMBER 1 938.
Frequent mention is made throughout this bulletin of the great
hurricane of September 21, 1938. It was an unusual catastrophe and
has had such a profound effect on the management of the Union
Forest that the incident merits special description. Kirk (10) sum-
marizes the sequence of meteorological events in an effective man-
ner and includes in addition an account of past atmospheric phe-
nomena which makes it appear that hurricanes are by no means
infrequent visitors. It appears that a storm of almost equal pro-
portions and similar nature occurred on September 23, 181 5,
coming up from the tropics and causing widespread destruction
from the Connecticut River to the coast. Other storms of lesser
violence occurred in 1788, 1821, 1839, 1869, 1878, 1893, 1898, 1903,
1 904, and 1944. The storm of 1938 was particularly destructive,
since not only were the winds of high velocity, but the immediately
preceding rainfall was so heavy that the ground was thoroughly
soaked and thereby the damage greatly accentuated. Kirk states
"In September, 1938, moderately heavy rains fell on the 13th and
15th; then during the 5-day period from the 17th to the 21st, in-
clusive, rain fell almost continually, and during much of the time
at excessive rates. Several stations reported 24-hour falls of over
6 inches. The rainfall for this 5-day period was greatest in the
middle sections of the State, and the greatest amount at any station
was 17.7 inches at Camp Buck (Civilian Conservation Corps) in
the town of Portland. More than 13 inches fell throughout a belt
10 to 15 miles wide, extending from Branford, northeastward be-
yond the Massachusetts border, and the total fall was over 8 inches
38
PRESENT FOREST CONDITIONS
in all sections of the State, except the southeast corner. All streams
in the northeastern, middle, and western portions of the State rose
to unusually high stages, the Connecticut river rising to 35.4 feet
at Hartford, which is only 1.1 feet below the crest of March, 1936."
On the Union Forest about 13 to 14 inches fell during this 5-day
period. Meanwhile the hurricane formed in the tropics, and moved
northward remaining relatively unobserved, since it crossed no land
until it hit Long Island and Connecticut. Its forward movement
over Connecticut was at a rate of 50 to 60 miles an hour and it
consisted of a whirling circular storm more than 300 miles in
diameter. "In all such storms wind movement is greater on the
right side of the center; but because this storm traveled northward
at such an unusually high speed the winds east of its center were
exceptionally strong and destructive." Heavy winds, unofficially
registering at 100 miles an hour maximum, combined with the
extremely soggy condition of the ground and the temporarily high
water table caused a destruction to the forests unprecedented in
known history, even greater than that of the storm of September
18.15.
PRESENT FOREST CONDITIONS
TYPE DESCRIPTIONS
TOPOGRAPHIC variation and geographic location favor an
interesting complexity of forest types on the Union Forest.
Being located in the highest portions of the eastern highlands of
Connecticut, the Forest represents a transition zone between the
predominantly oak forests of southern Connecticut, and the pine
and hemlock types and the northern hardwood types of more
northerly regions. The variety of tree species in Table 3 is indicative
of this situation.
The forest type map is less indicative, since on it the many hard-
wood types have been combined into one hardwood category. This
was done deliberately, owing to the extreme complexity of the
hardwood composition pattern as well as to the existence of a de-
tailed descriptive survey made in 1941, which portrays minutely
the character of each variation within each compartment and sum-
marizes the general conditions for the tract in its entirety. This sur-
vey, described in a summary report of 75 pages (9), supplemented
39
YALE FOREST IN TOLLAND AND WINDHAM COUNTIES
TABLE 3. LIST OF COMMONLY FOUND TREES ON THE YALE
FOREST IN TOLLAND AND WINDHAM COUNTIES.
Common Name
Ash, white
Ash, black
Aspen, large-toothed or bigtooth
Basswood, or American linden
Beech, American
Beech, blue or American hornbeam
Birch, black
Birch, gray
Birch, paper
Birch, yellow
Butternut
Cherry, black or sweet
Cherry, pin
Chestnut, American
Dogwood, flowering
Elm, American
Elm, slippery
Fir, balsam
Hemlock, Canada or eastern
Hickory, bitternut
Hickory, mockernut
Hickory, pignut
Hickory, shagbark
Hophornbeam or Ironwood
Maple, sugar or hard
Maple, red
Oak, black
Oak, red
Oak, scarlet
Oak, chestnut
Oak, white
Pine, eastern white or northern white
Pine, pitch
Pine, red or Norway
Red cedar
Tulip tree
Scientific name*
Fraxinus nigra Marsh.
F. americana L.
Populus grandidentata Michx.
1'ilia americana L.
Fagus grandifolia Ehrh.
Carpinus caroliniana Marsh.
Betula lenta L.
B. populifolia Marsh.
B. papyrifera Marsh.
B. lute a Michx.
Juglans cinerea L.
Prunus serotina Ehrh.
P. pensylvanica L.
Castanea dentata (Marsh.) Borkh.
Cornus florida L.
Ulmus americana L.
U.fuha L.
Abies balsamea Mill.
T'suga canadensis (L). Carr.
Carya cordiformis K. Koch
C. tomentosa (Lam.) Nutt.
C. glabra Sweet.
C. ovata K. Koch
Ostrya virginiana (Mill.) K. Koch
Acer saccharum Marsh.
A. rubrum L.
Quercus velutina LaMarck
^. borealis var. maxima (Marsh.) Ashe
Q. coccinea Muench.
Qj. montana Willd.
|. alba L.
Pinus strobus L.
P. rigida Mill.
P. resinosa Ait.
Juniperus virginiana L. var. crebra Fern.
Liriodendron tulipifera L.
*Scientific nomenclature conforms to Standardized Plant Names, 2d ed. Harlan P.
Kelsey, and William A. Dayton. 1942.
by almost 400 manuscript pages of compartment notes, is utilized
in the following description of forest types and type variations.
40
PRESENT FOREST CONDITIONS
The types represented on the map are listed below in descending
order of total area covered:
Hardwood 5,530.24 acres
Hemlock-Hardwood 812.65 acres
Swamp, open and forested 583-87 acres
Pine-Hardwood 381.25 acres
Open (old field, agricultural and administrative) 224.30 acres
Pure white pine I37-3° acres
Ponds and streams l3^-75 acres
Red pine plantations 51.20 acres
Total 7)857.56 acres
Within each of the forest types, 20-year-age classes and also an
uneven-aged class are recognized. The following type descriptions
are based largely upon Hess' study (9).
Hardwood type
The hardwood type is a complex one, composed of many species,
yet certain distinctive features can be recognized. The Forest is
dominantly an oak forest and promises to become more so because
of the great damage caused by the hurricane. In general there is a
strong difference in composition between the type as found in the
northern part of the Forest and that in the southern part. In the
northern part the most typical stand is a mixture of red oak,
maple, and birch, paper birch being quite common. (See Plates 1
and 6.) It occurs most commonly on intermediate slopes and grades
off into a red oak — white oak mixture at higher elevations (see
Plate 3) and into a red oak-maple mixture at the lower and moister
elevations. Other associated species are gray birch, particularly in
the young stands, yellow birch, aspen, hemlock, and white pine.
Even an occasional ash can be found.
In the southern part of the Forest, the typical stand is domi-
nantly red oak and occupies all sites except the driest and the
wettest. (See Plate 2.) On the drier sites a mixture of white oak,
black oak, and hickory with some chestnut oak, scarlet oak, and
pitch pine is found. (See Plate 3.) On the wetter sites, one sees a
mixture of red oak and maple, with maple becoming more prominent
with increasing wetness. Ash is here fairly common in the red oak
type and other species such as gray, black, and yellow birch are
usually present.
4i
YALE FOREST IN TOLLAND AND WINDHAM COUNTIES
The quality of the trees in the hardwood type is on the whole
unsatisfactory and as with quantity is related to site, being the best
on good sites.
Pine-hardwood type
Before the hurricane the pine-hardwood type was one of the most
promising in the Forest as far as actual and potential timber pro-
duction was concerned, although the area covered was not as great
as that of the hardwood types. The hurricane caused extraordinarily
heavy damage throughout the type and leveled almost all of the
large pine. Many of the areas will not revert to type but will remain
permanently in the hardwood type and have been so mapped. In
other areas, where there is a substantial understocking of young
pine in the stand, intensive cleaning will allow the pine-hardwood
type to reestablish itself. (See Plates 5 and 9.) Without the cleaning
it will turn to hardwood type and the young pine will be largely
eliminated. As it now stands the type is quite variable in character,
the white pine occurring in greatly varying percentages and grow-
ing with a large number of associated species, apparently larger
than in any other forest type.
The total area now occupied by the type will diminish, if cleanings
are not made in the younger age classes where hardwoods are over-
topping the pine.
Hemlock-hardwood type
This important timber type is found on intermediate slopes,
moist lower slopes and flats, and even in decidedly wet swales in
the northern part of the Forest. On favorable sites it occurs also on
the upper slopes and ridges. It appears that hemlock could occupy
to advantage a much greater area than it now does. Composition
of this type may range from pure hemlock, found frequently in
small areas of insufficient size to be mapped separately, to stands
predominantly hemlock with a mixture of hardwoods, principally
red oak, black birch, and maple but also paper birch, white oak,
white ash, and yellow birch, and further to stands predominantly
hardwoods of the species just named with single trees or small
patches of hemlock scattered throughout.
Hurricane destruction was heavy in this type and consequently
the remaining stand of merchantable timber runs small in size, but
is in an active growing stage. The type on the whole is now much
42
PRESENT FOREST CONDITIONS
more irregular than before the hurricane, contains a great number
of leaning trees, and commonly patches of total windfall, originating
in a pure hemlock stand and extending out into surrounding hard-
woods. The age designation on much of this type has therefore been
changed from even-aged to uneven-aged.
Swamp type
The topography, influenced in a marked degree by glacial de-
posits, has led to the formation of frequent swamps, ranging in
size from less than an acre to over 20 acres. These swamps are either
open or covered with hardwoods. Conifer swamps are lacking. On
the whole the type is of small economic importance, owing in part
to small size of the trees, their roughness, sparse stocking, and in
part to the undesirable character of the species, such as alder and
red maple, or to the lack of any forest stand whatever. Most of the
forested swamps are stocked principally with red maple, with vary-
ing amounts of yellow birch, white ash, black ash, butternut, and
slippery and American elms. Alder swamps are frequent but must
be considered a brush type rather than a forest type. The better
hardwood swamps, such as occur in the northern half of the Forest,
may have a mixture of red maple and yellow birch, with some white
ash, black ash, and even hemlock present in addition to the featured
species. Tulip tree is occasionally found. In one area, the northern
Still River swamp, the forest cover has been killed within the last
ten years, owing to a rise in water level. (See Plate 19.)
Pine type
The pine type includes relatively pure stands of white pine, not
only naturally reproduced largely of old-field origin, but also
plantations. (See Plates 8, 10, 11, and 12.) The old-field stands
were formerly of considerable economic importance, but owing to
the action of the hurricane have now been relegated to a subordi-
nate position. The only remaining stands of the former 81- to 100-
year-age class occur on sheltered west slopes of Coye hill, Walker
mountain and Horse Pound hill, much of it off the Forest proper
and in Myers' preserve. Heavy damage occurred even in the older
plantations.
Open type
Under this heading have been classified administrative areas,
43
YALE FOREST IN TOLLAND AND WINDHAM COUNTIES
agricultural lands, and abandoned fields which have at the most
only a sparse covering of scattered tree growth. These tracts are
scattered throughout the Forest, chiefly along or near the major
roads. Old fields which have come up into solid timber stands are
classified in the appropriate forest type.
Red pine type
This type consists altogether of plantations, since no native red
pine is present in the Forest. (See Plate 14.) The stands range from
10 to 35 years in age and consequently were not seriously affected
by the hurricane.
• FOREST SUBDIVISIONS
The Forest has been divided into compartments for purposes of
management, as indicated on the type map. The compartments
number 165 and range in size from a minimum of 0.75 acres (Com-
partment 25) to a maximum of 236 acres (Compartment 72). The
smaller sized compartments are usually located along the borders
of the property where future acquisition may increase their size to
conform more closely to the average size, namely, close to fifty
acres. Sixteen compartments are less than twenty acres in size
and 13 compartments more than one hundred acres. The boundaries
of the compartments in most instances coincide with waterways,
roads and trails, and property bounds. Their location on the ground
is simplified thereby, particularly since the compartment numbers
have been painted on trees at the corners along all the roads and
trails.
Type and volume statistics are available for each compartment,
but have not been included in this report.
TYPE AREAS AND VOLUMES
The forest survey of 1937 furnished a base type map, which how-
ever was no longer strictly applicable after the 1938 hurricane. The
descriptive survey of 1941 resulted in sufficient information to
correct the 1937 map and bring it up to date for post-hurricane
conditions. This revised map was later used in 1944, as the basis
for the volume survey made at that time and again further modified.
The present distribution of types is shown in the colored map ac-
companying this bulletin.
44
PRESENT FOREST CONDITIONS
Table 4 summarizes the type conditions for the forest and Table
5 the summarized volumes. The ages of forest stands are here
divided into 2,0-year classes with the following designations:
1 to 20 years age class 1
21 to 40 years age class 1
41 to 60 years age class 3
61 to 80 years age class 4
81 years and over age class 5
The plus sign following the age designations of the first two classes
on the map indicates that trees of older age, or standards, are found
scattered throughout, but have a volume insufficient to throw the
stand into a higher age group. Almost six per cent of the total
area is classified as open, water, or unforested swamp; 70.4 per cent
as belonging to the hardwood class; 17.6 per cent in the various
conifer combinations; and the remaining 6.1 per cent as hardwood
swamp. Although only 39.3 per cent of the total forested acreage is
listed as being in the first two age classes, the actual appearance
of the Forest would tend to belie this statistic. This results from
the fact that, while the stands of older age and those classified as
uneven-aged have been badly hit by the wind and have suffered a
tremendous reduction in growing stock, they have sufficient ma-
terial of the age class in question to cause a temporary allocation
to the class. As the new stands develop there may be a reallocation
to younger age classes, when the latter form the dominating com-
ponent. The percentage of the forested area in conifer type is small
for somewhat the same reason. Mature conifers in all types were
severely damaged, frequently requiring at least a temporary assign-
ment to pure hardwood type. The general prevalence of young pine
and hemlock in the understory in many portions of the Forest
leads one to believe that with moderate silvicultural manipulation
the composition on substantial areas can be so modified as to appre-
ciably increase in the future the area occupied by the various
conifer types.
The total volume in the Forest, according to Table 5, is 10,125,400
board feet plus 43,855 cords. The minimum diameter for board
measure is taken at ten inches for hardwood and six inches for pine;
that of cord volume is four inches. Cord volume has been computed
for hardwood only, and includes small trees, trees above ten inches
45
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YALE FOREST IN TOLLAND AND WINDHAM COUNTIES
in diameter with a merchantable length of less than one-half a log,
and the tops of merchantable trees. The volumes of hardwoods have
been estimated by tables contained in Yale School of Forestry
Bulletin 54 (16) and have been based on a tally of trees by diameter
and log height. The scale is by the International rule for ^-inch
kerf. Volumes for pine have been estimated from one of Frothing-
ham's tables (6) and for hemlock from Merrill and Hawley's table
(14). Of the total board-foot volume, the distribution by species
groups is as follows:
Oak 35637,575 board feet
Other hardwoods 2,107,325 board feet
Hemlock 2,671,375 board feet
Pine 1,799,125 board feet
It is apparent that the oak, pine, and hemlock dominate in volume,
a fortunate circumstance since on the whole they are the fastest
growing and most valuable of all the species.
Table 6 shows that 1 1 .9 per cent of the board measure is in the
6- to 9-inch diameter class, this volume being all conifer, 85.8 per
cent in the 10- to 17-inch sizes and only the very small remaining
volume of 2.3 per cent in sizes 18 inches and larger.
Reconnaissance estimates on the Forest in 1929, when the trans-
fer to Yale took place, list the standing volume at about 25,000,000
board feet, which however appeared to represent an overestimate
of about 23 per cent, if credence is placed on a check cruise of about
1,500 areas made in 1930. Cutting in pre-hurricane years amounted
to a little less than one million board feet, and was more than re-
placed by growth, which at the time was estimated at about a half
million board feet a year. Adjusting for the overestimate, deducting
the cut and adding the sum of annual growth would result in a
revised estimate for 1938 of about 23 million board feet. The 1937
survey would have furnished an accurate appraisal, but since it
had no meaning or application after the hurricane damage, the
computations were not completed. The 1944-5 survey now shows a
volume of close to 10 million feet; the scaled volume of utilized
hurricane material is close to 8 million feet, which if adjusted to
terms of pre-hurricane volume should represent nearly 10 million
feet, owing to the high stumps and incomplete utilization of the
salvage job, the conservative scaling practice, and the loss of the
48
PRESENT FOREST CONDITIONS
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49
YALE FOREST IN TOLLAND AND WINDHAM COUNTIES
sapwood through decay in timber which was not logged immedi-
ately. The difference between the pre-hurricane estimate of 23
million feet and the 10 million feet of standing timber plus the 9 to
10 million feet gross of salvaged timber, represents unsalvaged
remnants of the hurricane-damaged timber scattered throughout
the Forest, much of it in concentrations which are too low to be
logged and in trees which are now too far deteriorated and too small
to be merchantable. Probably not more than a half million board
feet of this remaining 3 to 4 million board feet will be salvaged in
the future.
Comparisons of volumes in areas in the various forest types and
age classes show effectively the low degree of stocking now existing
on the Forest and indicate indirectly that a long period of rebuild-
ing and improving the forest capital lies ahead.
GROWTH
A wide basis of information for the estimation of growth is avail-
able for the Union Forest, not only because of detailed measure-
ments made in the Forest itself, but also because it was possible to
draw upon information which the Connecticut Forestry Depart-
ment has gathered on its two neighboring state forests, the Nip-
muck and the Natchaug. For the purpose of the present calculation,
records of diameter and diameter growth, as read from increment
borings, and of bark thickness and height of trees were borrowed
from the State Department and combined with similar records
•taken in the Union Forest after a preliminary study showed that
such a combination was permissible. Altogether 2,407 such samples
were thus made available, covering at least 22 species. Each sample
was a tree arbitrarily selected in accordance with cruising specifica-
tions as being located nearest the center of the circular plot of the
line-plot cruise.
The various species show interesting differences in growth poten-
tiality, as is indicated briefly in Table 7, which classifies the species
into groups on the basis of the past ten years' growth in diameter,
uncorrected for bark increment.
The dominating species of the forest from the point of view of
merchantable volume, namely, red and scarlet oaks, white pine,
and hemlock all have average diameter growth rates above 1.5
inches per decade (except white pine over 60 years of age, of which
5o
PRESENT FOREST CONDITIONS
TABLE -j. RANKING OF SPECIES BY RATE OF GROWTH
Growth class
{inches)
Species
Number
of
samples
Past fO-y ears'
diameter growth,
wood only
{inches)
2.00 and over
White pine, 1-20 yrs.
12
3.08
Aspen
11
2.38
White pine, 21-40 yrs.
57
2.25
1.80 to 1.99
Black and scarlet oaks
266
1.88
Red oak
470
1.84
1.60 to 1.79
Black cherry
15
1.63
White pine 41-60 yrs.
144
1.61
Tuliptree
12
1.60
1.40 to 1.59
Hemlock
226
1.51
1.20 to 1.39
White and chestnut oaks
353
i-37
White pine, 61-80 yrs.
18
1-34
Black and yellow birches
191
1.20
1.00 to 1. 19
White ash
91
1. 17
Sugar maple
36
1. 15
Paper birch
47
1.15
Red maple
293
- 1. 14
Miscellaneous swamp hdwds.
70
1. 12
Hickory
79
1.02
there is relatively little). The white pine data show a definite de-
crease in growth rate with advancing age. The plottings of growth
rate over diameter reveal some interesting relationships, in that
those for most of the hardwood species show no particular trend;
in other words, a horizontal line fits the data just abou t as well, if not
better, than a sloping line. Only in the case of red oak, and, to a
lesser extent, black and scarlet oaks, do growth rates increase per-
ceptibly with diameter. The plottings of the conifers show a definite
increase of growth rate with increasing diameter. Composite trend
lines corrected for bark increment, for five groups of species, were
used in connection with stand tables for the entire range of type
and age classes to arrive at the estimate of board-foot volume
growth for the entire tract. These five groups were oaks, other
51
YALE FOREST IN TOLLAND AND WINDHAM COUNTIES
hardwoods, swamp hardwoods, hemlock, and pine. The adjustment
for bark increment varied slightly among the several species, but
centered very closely around .08 inch increase for each inch of wood
increment in the case of hardwoods and pine and .09 inch for
hemlock.
To facilitate various comparisons and to furnish the basis for
estimating cutting budgets, the results are here presented in terms
of growth percentages, but not without a warning to the reader of
the variable nature of these percentages, particularly as applied to
board-foot volume. With constant diameter increment, the growth
percentage curve falls off sharply from an infinite value at the point
where a tree suddenly enters the merchantable class, reaching a
comparatively level and low rate only at the larger diameter classes.
In other words, the average diameter and the distribution of trees
among the diameter classes alone have a decided influence on the
percentage rate. Advancing age, correlated with increase in average
diameter, also has its effect. Finally the nature of the volume table
itself is a factor of importance. For example, the hemlock per-
centages tend to be higher than those for white pine, owing to the
fact that the volume tables used for hemlock assume less complete
utilization in the smaller size classes than do those for white pine,
but approximately the same utilization in large sizes. Thus an arti-
ficial stimulus is introduced with increasing size.
For the species groups, the following growth rates have been
computed on the simple interest basis for the next 10-year period:
Pine — 5.07 per cent, hemlock — 7.39 per cent, oaks — 5. 14 per cent,
and other hardwoods — 2.86 per cent, contributing to a weighted
average of 5.17 per cent for the entire Forest. For the forest types,
the following growth rates have been obtained: Hardwood — 4.75
per cent, hemlock-hardwood — 6.12 per cent, pine-hardwood — 4.06
per cent, pine — 6.52 per cent, red pine — 15.55 Per cent) and swamp
hardwood — 3.61 per cent. These percentages do not include in-
growth, which is handled separately. Similar data are available
for each age and species group class for each type, but are not listed
here.
The average growth rate of 5.17 per cent applied to the present
merchantable volume of 10,125,400 board feet, gives an estimate
for current growth of 523,483 board feet per year for the next 1
year period, if the stand is left untouched. However it is planned
52
PRESENT FOREST CONDITIONS
to continue cutting operations on a minor scale so as to defray at
least part of the expenses of running the Forest. The degree to which
cutting can be made and the effect it has on the rehabilitation of
the stand can be estimated through the application of the formula
given by Meyer (15):
Vn = V0 (1+ g)» - f [(1 + g)n - 1]
where Vn is the volume at the end of the period of prediction, V0
the initial volume, g the growth rate on the compound interest
basis, and A the annual cut. The simple rate of 5.17 per cent for
the 10-year period corresponds to a compound rate of 4.25 per cent,
which is the rate used in the following calculation. (See Table 8.)
TABLE 8. GROWING STOCK AT THE END OF IO YEARS,
FOLLOWING VARIOUS INTENSITIES OF CUT
Volume of present
Total
Annual cut
merchantable trees
Estimated
estimated
at the end of 10 years
ingrowth
volume
{board feet)
{boardfeet)
{board feet)
None
i5>352»IO°
2,218,300
17,570,400
100,000
i4>i37>5°°
2,218,300
16,355,800
200,000
12,923,000
2,218,300
15,141,300
300,000
11,708,400
2,218,300
13,926,700
400,000
10,493,800
2,218,300
12,712,100
500,000
9,729,200
2,218,300
">947>5°°
In Table 8, ingrowth has been estimated as being equal to 30
board feet per acre per year, occurring on the growing area of 7,394.4
acres of forest land. This is a conservative figure, as it involves a
substantial factor of safety. With optimum development, ingrowth
may probably be 50 per cent larger than estimated in the above.
The cutting should not exceed 200,000 to 300,000 board feet
annually and even this will mean a somewhat slow progress away
from the low degree of stocking now prevalent. Silvicultural re-
quirements will of course be a factor of first importance in deter-
mining the volume of cut. The total volume of cut will be increased
to a marked degree, if further utilization of wind-thrown and wind-
damaged timber is feasible.
53
YALE FOREST IN TOLLAND AND WINDHAM COUNTIES
REFERENCES
i. Bowen, Clarence Winthrop. The history of Woodstock, Conn. Vol. i. 691 pp.
1926. Plimpton Press, Norwood, Mass.
2. Canterbury, N.D. The Yale Forest in Tolland and Windham Counties, Conn.
Yale Forest School News. XIX (3): 50-51. 1931.
3. Clapp, Robert T. The Yale forests and the hurricane. Yale Forest School
News. XXVII (1) 2-3. 1939.
4. Conn. Secretary of State. Connecticut state register and manual. 1 943-1 944.
709 pp. 1943. Hartford, Conn.
5. Eckes, A. E. A plan for recreational developments on the Union Forest. Special
Report. Ms. 37 pp. Library of Yale School of Forestry. 1931.
6. Frothingham, E. H. White pine under forest management. U.S. Dept. of
Agriculture Bui. 13. 70 pp. 1914.
7. Graves, H. S. and N. D. Canterbury. Report regarding the work of the Charles
Lathrop Pack Foundation at Yale University. Ms. 75 pp. Library of Yale
School of Forestry. 1936.
8. Harwood, Pliny LeRoy. History of Eastern Connecticut. Vol. I. 387 pp. 1932.
Pioneer Historical Publ. Co. Chicago and New Haven.
9. Hess, Robert W. A descriptive survey of the Yale Forest, located in Tolland
and Windham Counties, Connecticut. Ms. 74 pp. Library of Yale School
of Forestry. 1941.
10. Kirk, Joseph Milton. The weather and climate of Connecticut. State of Conn.
Geol. and Natural History Survey. Bui. 61. 242 pp. + xi. 1939.
11. Larned, Ellen D. History of Windham County, Connecticut. Vol. I 1600-
1760. 581 pp. 1874; Vol. II. 1760-1880. 600 pp. 1880. Charles Hamilton,
Worcester, Mass.
12. Lawson, Harvey M. The history of Union, Conn. Founded on material gathered
by Rev. Charles Hammond, LL.D. 508 pp. 1893. Press of Price, Lee, and
Adkins Co., New Haven, Conn.
13. Lincoln, Allen B. A modern history of Windham County, Connecticut. Vol. I.
920 pp. 1920. S. J. Clarke Publ. Co. Chicago, 111.
14. Merrill, Perry H. and Ralph C. Hawley. Hemlock: Its place in the silvicul-
ture of the southern New England forest. Yale University: School of Forestry
Bui. 12. 68 pp. 1924.
15. Meyer, Walter H. Amortization in stand-growth and depletion problems.
Jour, of Forestry 41 (12): 920-922. Dec. 1943.
16. Meyer, Walter H. and Raymond Kienholz. Volume tables for Connecticut
hardwoods. Yale University: School of Forestry Bui. 54. 58 pp. 1944.
17. Morgan, M. F. The soil characteristics of Connecticut land types. Connecticut
Agricultural Experiment Station Bui. 423. 64 pp. plus 35 maps. 1939.
18. Waldo, Loren P. The early history of Tolland. 184 pp. 1861. Case, Lockwood
and Co. Hartford, Conn.
54
ILLUSTRATIONS
PLATE i
Red oak stand, 41 to 60 years of age, with a mixture of red maple and paper
birch. Located in Compartment 31.
PLATE 2
Red oak stand, 61 to 80 years of age, with an understory of white oak and red
maple. Some trees felled by the hurricane still remain, although the larger trees
were utilized in 1944, six years after the blowdown. Two to three million feet of
scattered damaged timber still remain on the Forest. Located in Compartment 97.
PLATE 3
White oak stand, 41 to 60 years of age, with a sparse mixture of hickory and
black oak. Located in Compartment 175.
PLATE 4
Pure white ash stand, 41 to 60 years of age, with a 19-inch black cherry in the
foreground. An occasional variation of the general hardwood type. Located in
Compartment 3.
PLATE 5
Red maple with mixture of yellow birch, 41 to 60 years of age, covering advance
reproduction of white pine. The 31-inch pine in the background is one of the few
large trees not felled by the 1938 hurricane. Located on Myers' preserve, just off
Compartment 16.
PLATE 6
Paper birch stand, 40 years of age, a not uncommon component in the northern
part of the Forest. Located on Myers' preserve on the western slope of Coye hill.
PLATE 7
Sleet damage in hardwood type in 1921. A recurring form of damage, contribut-
ing much to the prevailing poor form of Connecticut hardwoods.
PLATE 8
Natural reproduction of white pine, 10 years of age, seeded in on former agri-
cultural land. Located in the northern part of Compartment 52.
PLATE 9
Advance white pine reproduction under mixed hardwood stand, 21 to 40 years
of age. The hardwoods are gray and paper birches, red maple, aspen, and red oak.
Located in Compartment 28.
PLATE 10
Natural white pine stand, 20 years of age, seeded in on former agricultural land.
Cleaning operations have removed all competing hardwoods. Located in Compart-
ment 122.
PLATE 1 1
Pure white pine, 61 to 80 years of age, in Compartment 66. One of the few small
stands of mature age undamaged by the hurricane. Located on the western slope
of Coye hill.
PLATE 12
Group of white pine, 61 to 80 years of age, at the edge of Bigelow pond, still
standing after the 1938 hurricane, having been protected by lying in the lee, or
under the western slope of Coye hill. Located on Myers' preserve.
PLATE 13
Complete destruction of a 40-year-old white pine stand by the 1938 hurricane,
followed by salvage cutting. The white pine seedlings have come in since the
blowdown. Located in Compartment 175.
PLATE 14
Red pine plantation, 25 years of age, in Compartment 115.
PLATE 15
Pine-hemlock-hardwood mixture, 81 to 100 years of age, a variation of the pine-
hardwood type. Red and white oaks and red maple constitute the hardwood com-
ponents. Located in Compartment 66.
PLATE 1 6
Uneven-aged hemlock-hardwood type, the hardwoods being chiefly red oak,
red maple, and paper birch. Located in Compartment 28 on western slope of Coye
hill.
PLATE 17
Mixed hardwood stand, 21 to 40 years of age, with a heavy understory of hem-
lock. The hardwoods are red maple, yellow and paper birches, red oak, and ash.
Located in Compartment 57.
PLATE 1 8
Swamp hardwood stand, 40 years of age, composed principally of red maple
on a swampy flat beside Bigelow brook. Located in Compartment 66.
PLATE 19
Former swamp hardwood type on Still River further flooded through the activity
of beaver in constructing dams and the diking of lowlands by a road crossing.
The flooding resulted in the killing of all trees. Located just north of Compartments
160 and 167.
iq. — The Eli Whitney Forest: A Demonstration of Forestry Practice, by Ralph C. Hawiey
and William Maughan. 1930. (Out of print.)
28. — Diameter Distribution Series in Evenaged Forest Stands, by Walter H. M yer.
1930. (Out of print.)
29. — Control of the White Pine Weevil on the Eli Whitney Fores", by William Maughan.
1930. (Out of print.)
30. — Trenched Plots under Forest Canopies, by James W. Tourney and Rayr.ond Kien-
holz. 1931. Price 35 cents.
31. — The Evergreen Forests of Liberia, by G. Proctor Cooper and Samuel J. Record. 1931 .
Price $1.00.
32. — Root Growth of White Pine (Pinus strobus L.), by Clark Leavitt Stevens. 1931.
Price 50 cents.
22- — The Yale Demonstration and Research Forest near Keene, New Hampshire, by
James W. Tourney. 1932. Price $1.00.
34.— Transportation of Logs in Chutes, by Alexander M. Koroleff and Ralph C. Bryant.
1932. Price $1.00.
35. — Selection Cuttings for the Small Forest Owner, by Ralph C. Hawiey and Allen W.
Goodspeed. 1932. (Out of print.)
36. — Some Aspects of an Early Expression of Dominance in White Pine (Pinus strobus L.),
by J. Lee Deen. 1933. Price 35 cents.
37. — The European Pine Shoot Moth (Rhyacionia buoliana Schiff.), by Roger B. Friend and
Allen S. West, Jr. 1933. (Out of print.)
38. — Ecological Relations in the Pitch Pine Plains of Southern New Jersey, by Harold J.
Lutz. 1934- Price 90 cents.
39. — Artificial Pruning in Coniferous Plantations, by Ralph C. Hawiey and Robert T.
Clapp. '935- (Out of print.)
40. — A Swedish-English Vocabulary for Foresters, by Joshua Lee Deen and Adolph Burnett
Benson. 193*;. (Out of print.)
41. — Factors Controlling Initial Establishment of Western White Pine and Associated
Species, by Irvine T. Haig. 1936. (Out of print.)
42. — Observations on Thinning and Management of Eastern White Pine {Pinus strobus
L.) in Southern New Hampshire, by Ralph C. Hawiey. 1936. (Out of print.)
43. — The Tympanis Canker of Red Pine, by John R. Hansbrough. 1936. Price $1.00.
44. — The Influence of Soil Profile Horizons on Root Dis;ribution of White Pine (Pinus stro-
bus L.), by Harold J. Lutz, Joseph B. Ely, Jr., and Silas Little, Jr. 1937. Price
$1.00.
45. — Disturbance of Forest Soil Resulting from the Uprooting of Trees, by Harold J.
Lutz. 1940. Price 50 cents.
46. — Asterolecanium variolosum Ratzeburg, A Gall- forming Coccid, and Its Effect upon the
Host Trees, by Thaddeus Parr. 1940. Price 75 cents.
47. — Penetration of the Walls of Wood Cells by the Hyphae of Wood-Destroying Fungi,
by Phimister Proctor, Jr. 1941. Price 50 cents.
48. — Growing of White Pine on the Yale Forest near Kee.ie, New Hampshire, by Ralph C.
Hawiey and Robert T. Clapp. 1942. Price 75 cents.
49. — Management of Loblolly Pine in the Pine-Hardwood Region in Arkansas and in
Louisiana West of the Mississippi River, by Herman H. Chapman. 1942. Price
#1.60.
50. — Decay of Western Hemlock in Western Oregon and Washington, by G. H. Englerth
1942. Price 75 cents.
51.— Yield of Even-Aged Stands of Loblolly Pine in Northern Louisiana, by Walter H
Meyer. 1942. Price 40 cents.
52. — White Pine Blister Rust in Western North America, by J. L. Mielke. 1943. Price
% 1. 00.
53.— Establishment, Development, and Management of Conifer Plantations in the Eli
Whitney Forest, New Haven, Connecticut, by Ralph C. Hawiey and Harold J
Lutz. 1943. Price #1.00.
54. — Volume Tables for Connecticut Hardwoods, by Walter H. Meyer and Raymonc
Kienholz. 1944. Price $0.50.
55. — The Yale Forest in Tolland and Windham Counties, Connecticut, by Walter H
Meyer and Basil A. Plusnin. 1945. Price $1.00.
THE YALE FOREST
TOLLAND AND WINDHAM COUNTIES,
CONNECTICUT
1945
SCALE- I INCH - 1320 FEET
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