Ss) a
ny fl

> —e
Ree 4181

 

 

Cornell Mniversity Libvarp

THE GIFT OF

 

 

 

Aassose I eferoy..

 
‘ornell University Libra

the forestry conditions of northern
WISCONSIN GEOLOGICAL AND NATURAL HISTORY SURVEY.
. EK, A. BIRGE, Director.
BULLETIN NO. 1. ECONOMIC SERIES NO. 1.

 

ON THE

FORESTRY CONDITIONS

OF

NORTHERN WISCONSIN

BY

FILIBERT ROTH,
Special Agent United States Depariment of Agriculture.

MADISON, WIS,
PUBLISHED BY THE STATE
1898.
Wisconsin Geological and Watural istory Survey.

BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS.

EDWARD SCOFIELD,
Governor of the State.

Joun Q. Emery,
State Superintendent of Public Instruction.

Cuares K. Avams, President.
President of the University of Wisconsin.

EpwWIN E. BrYAnt, Vice-President.
President of the Commissioners of Fisheries.

C. DwicHTt MarsH, Secretary.

President of the Wisconsin Academy of Sciences, Arts, and
Letters.

FE, A. Birce, Director and Superintendent.
With the Compliments of

The Commissioners of the Wisconsin
Geological and Natural History Survey.

E. A. BIRGE, Director.

Madison, Wisconsin.
EK, A. Brace, Director and Superintendent.
WISCONSIN GEOLOGICAL AND NATURAL HISTORY SURVEY.
KE, A. BIRGE, Director.
BULLETIN NO. 1. ECONOMIC SERIES NO. 1,

 

ON THE

FORESTRY CONDITIONS

OF

NORTHERN WISCONSIN

BY

FILIBERT ROTH,
Special Agent United States Department of Agriculture.

MADISON, WIS.
PUBLISHED BY THE STATE
1898
2
| He
W &

Ret

A. is3086

a 5
INTRODUCTORY NOTE.

In 1897 the legislature of Wisconsin passed an act for the ap-
pointment of a State Forestry Commission, charged, among other
duties, with that of formulating desirable forestry legislation for
the State. The Commission consists of Hon. G. B. Burrows,
Madison; Ernst Bruncken, Milwaukee; and H. D. Putnam, Eau
Claire. This Commission consulted with Dr. B. E. Fernow.
Chief of the Division of Forestry, United States Department of
Agriculture, who advised that a careful reconnaissance be made
of the present condition of the forests of the State. The Depart
ment of Agriculture offered to send an expert to make such ex-
amination, provided the expenses of the trip could be defrayed
by the State. Since the Forestry Commission had no appropria-
tion for this purpose, application was made to the Geological and
Natural History Survey for an appropriation of money sufficient
to defray the expenses of the proposed investigation, and the Sur-
vey gladly acceded to the request. Pursuant to this action the
Department of Agriculture appointed Mr. Filibert Roth as spe-
cial agent to make the reconnaissance desired, under the general
direction of Dr. Fernow, Chief of Division of Forestry. Mr.
Roth spent three months in the field and prepared the accom-
panying report. The report was first submitted to the Depart-
ment of Agriculture at Washington, by which it has been pub
lished as a bulletin, and a copy was transmitted to the Director
of the Geological Survey, with the accompanying letter from
the Secretary of Agriculture.

United States Department of Agriculture,
Office of the Secretary,
Washington, D. C., February 28, 1898.

Dr. E. A. Birce,
Director, State Geological Survey,
Madison, Wis.
Dear Sir:—I take pleasure in transmitting to you for such use
as you may desire to make of it, a report on the forest conditions
iv INTRODUCTORY NOTE.

of Wisconsin made by the Division of Forestry, the result of a
canvass in which your Survey co-operated financially and other-
wise.

I take occasion at the same time to express the hope that the
showing herein made regarding the conditions of one of the most
important resources of your state, will in this very jubilee year
of semi-centennial existence of the state, lead to a serious consid-
eration and inauguration of a more conservative policy touching
your forest resources.

The interests of agriculture, as well as of many other industries:
in your state, demand timely attention to this problem.

Respectfully,
James WILson,
Secretary.

In giving this report to the public the Geological and Natural
History Survey echoes the hope of the Secretary of Agriculture-
that the material here presented will aid in the formulation of
rational forestry legislation, and so will help to develop and re-
store the great forest resources of the State of Wisconsin.
TABLE OF CONTENTS.

Page.

TMTrOdUCtOry> fisia-cdtuss Gudcideiee Send akdgartnnrs Mouwies cyte ae 1
Physiography Of the: ALCOA: cic ccacea so hain dasieseswaiw caged eo satepeunse 2
Topography” ses nscaiss stiveaeae sigs veins seaaien eis ont e ches Bens 2
DOUS: ovsvaiere evsusiarsceet sd ost tisieeguccaunsaebeowia veo 8 sab areentelelagaonmeaas sactarneaeee 3
Climate and: Arana cee sc: crasotes siete teed S ocsidee opessncsecere 6 ted.d. eve Sonbuonesena 5
Ownership’ sacases siccti ientieaas ds eee ew Fee wdenakss oe id eens 6
Forest conditions of the past .........c cece cece eee e eee enone 10
Forest conditions of the present ..........c ccc s eee e eee e ewer eens 12
Coniferous supplies © 20% psdcerseiees dees caveeaae iene saiueeeeacads 14
WHIGE. PIM Ss is 3.<.22.5.5 casuslesesiesctesdi dso Sere. tueatA aceeaneldacac ar dsave cman veneets 14
Past ose ys sie oe goeeatee seh eeas eae GMa uate ERAS 9-H seas 14
PRESEN © ascse-irenaneniareniiee oeiee ciemuipong aia le eee Ea 16

WUDUT Ec sapeecgss cc tebs ae eainsee hance SES ah eekescaedisesereeeeee oo 8 used as 19

Red (Norway) pine: sucrose yesig isa a Shh teugeeeees s hace 20
Jack PINE ava agscens sealers DEsottei Nee saeco n4eaeae 21
Hemlock \asuasecesens cc pte tees Aes hire Rouen aes ob isetan 22
Arbor: vitze: (cedar). <sxsinsaaeiede eee sis ew ymaaauisagied aes o's 8 23
TRAMVAT ACK \ereseseiese creas 0 ast caxsinteiersuanciae-6-0-0:0'4 Ss hvaverSlotasevebeuth Baa Be aneree 24
SPLruce:: sscemeerss674 4 cia ste Ve eA Sete a ees Ree ee 26
Balsam. Bir scssscis is eves epee ewes skies es sew eee es See eres 26
Hard-wood supplies ........ ec ccc cece cece eet e eect e ret eeeeees 27
Present stand of hard-wood saw timber ...........:eeeeeeeeee 33
Summary’ Ofssupplies! «23522sfeasenuanes cdi ace mine cans Ck wees 33
Present accretion or increMent ......... ec cece eee cece eee eens 34
Communal interests in forest conditions ..........: cece eee eee 36
Forest, climate, and waterflow ...........e eee e eee cette cece ene 40
The outlook for the future .............-.000- Loi Reena eek E08 ate 42
Forestry or agriculture ........... ce eee e eee eee eee e eee e eee 44
Recovery and prevention of waste .....-...seeee eee e etree een ees 45
Forest fires ........ aise Sus bialandcntarsae-y APSE AAEM SA ORES See 45
Changes on cut-over lands .........-.ssee see e cece eect e eee eens 48
Sandy pinery lands ........-. se ee eee e eee eet eee e eens 48
Loam and clay lands ........ eee eee e eee cence eee tenes 50

Restocking .....cccs cece cence eee e ene een e ete e nett eene nes 51
vi TABLE OF CONTENTS.

Forest conditions of north Wisconsin, etc.—Continued. Page.
Forest conditions in the several counties ...... seorannamenere 2 Bete 56
Ashland ‘County sneer ersawecaews se sen casiess eiees 56
Barron: County c:saaresroccs sav acw aca revaresecqsevwie: o:srecateavenecaincece sai oaie 56
Bayfield County ........cccc reece cec secs eerste eesseecse 56
Burnett County ssicstessasssewdens asteieuine Sang ais eroresane 57
Chippewa County: ssaecvcce-acwernersies oavesiatavensiouusieie enieiare BT
CYAEIS COUREY® aicsscasssiace ¢.:8:4esaesveaueaisuad 08a wisn? + wees 58
Douglas: County cos sis. viniawensadsssssesawmeeens eee 58
WMT COUT YE wesavecs vic iecvosevannionsedefsvevtiatans torre petasSiak deowt anata aceveue 6 UaN ve 59
BIORENCE: COUDEY 2.02 civieaiicina dass S04 oR CERES ELE WRBSOTES 59
Forest: County’ cscs. ees raeesanass eee endne Vereeaeres 59
WOT COMMBEY a seieistiieies ode yecashGuedale lala tana dic ors vec eheleieiesete oun leaveuaecane 60
JACKSON COUNTY 2c.ssataweamiws res iateeeee ees 60
Langlade County ss scsisesacaces <p eeansmeween cia eeounns 61
Mota SO Tas COMTI ssh cio esse uensvnaeynstondbeld trecersne eo nwealagension eed wh oaareenats 61
Marathon County ......... PELE Sl Ra ROUS SSS Sc valaeS 61
Marinette: County ss¢s+.ewomessess oseeeeeaeas seusinins 62
OCOTEG) COMTGY soesccs ested ava sch conereuerwion/ ogee smiaaepancnayersniarerearatiovonsis 62
ONCIGS; COUDLY wz eeees.2.cssaie di eeca-scevecesssareaaigiania v dionesaaeeseant 62
Polls County secs ue csoms'csnieqies ccaseuarseee ns a aeomees 63
POTLAPE COUNCY cos ccs seconiee aise se mrarcamneaageateageya gaye’ 63
PICS COU Uy cos eidesstaceniceatvesaiesas a vera ayasarbaasaseiaun sine Alana bu bdegetasace 64
Sawyer County ys :ns memos es ees Gees west 64
SHaAWanG: COUNTY? cc-agsincmngaore weguwmmeniysoraeseneee is 64
PAV IOI COUNEY x s:cecessvsessssoisracarn dated Bdisonasoece 2 parasarennsiueeae 65
Vilas County’ ssissavacaoos es esas newer sees aaSeaenes cave 65
WaASHDUER COUNTY oycaccsceyer eeadeeeas sesamiae: oeees 66
WiGOG! SCOMMEG? “esses tie seis ab « ssa ianerouesasensvesavi-e xo hshcmtaroesimeia are econ 66
List of principal forest trees of north Wisconsin ............... 67
Sched mlecOf ANG Ure) cangiscvernstewrsis viouesleeeenled ss aweacen eee eee TL

Products of lumber and sawmills, 1890
Products of lumber and sawmills, 1895 ..............ccceeeeeeeee TS
FOREST CONDITIONS OF NORTHERN
WISCONSIN.

The preliminary forest survey of Wisconsin, the principal
results of which are here presented, was necessarily made in
the form of a census or canvass, collecting the knowledge of
the woods, and the experience in actual logging operations of
several hundred men, and securing a better interpretation of this
information as well as a proper insight into the forestal condi-
tions, not usually observed by woodsmen, by personal inspection
of typical localities in every county.

From this it follows that all estimates of areas and yields
represent the knowledge of the best informed men, and a fair
degree of correctness may be claimed for the same for the reason
that each district, at least every county, is represented by a num-
ber of competent men, the writer being enabled by personal
inspection to weigh, verify, or harmonize conflicting statements.
The greatest help came from the practical woodsmen, who, in
all parts of the territory, kindly assisted both by verbal infor-
mation and by the use of their exhaustive “minutes,” many of
which fill volumes, and represent an amount of detail infor-
mation such as exists for but few parts of our country.

In this connection it gives the writer pleasure to express his
sincerest thanks to all these gentlemen, whose help alone could
insure reasonable success to so hasty reconnaissance. The
journey through the State occupied over three months, involved
one or more trips over nearly every mile of railway passing
through this section, besides several hundred miles of travel by
wagon. The county-seat of every county was visited and no
county received less than two days’ attention.
2 FORESTS OF WISCONSIN.

During the first part of the journey the writer was accom-
panied and greatly assisted by Prof. L. S. Cheney, of the State
University.

Hearty thanks are due to J. T. Cleveland, Land Commis-
sioner of the Chicago and Northwestern Railway, W. H. Killen,
Industrial Commissioner of the Wisconsin Central Lines, and
especially to L. Jackson, Industrial Commissioner of the Chi-
cago, Milwaukee and St. Paul Railway, whose courteous assist-
ance did so much to facilitate this work.

PHYSIOGRAPHY OF THE AREA.

The territory covered is that part of the State lying north of
a line from Green Bay to the mouth of the St. Croix river,
with the counties of Portage, Wood, and Jackson as southern
projections; it involves 27 counties with a total land area of
about 18.5 million acres or about 53 per cent. of the entire
State, and contains almost all of the present supplies of lumber
sized timber of both pine and hardwoods remaining in Wis-
consin.

Topography.—Over 90 per cent. of this territory is a broad
slope, which rises gently from the southeast, south, and south-
west to a flat divide running near to and parallel with the south
shore of Lake Superior; about 9 per cent. is occupied by the
more abrupt slope from this divide to the lake.

In going from east to west, the divides between the several
large rivers which drain the larger slope, are very gradual, al-
most imperceptible, and in some cases are entirely lost in laby-
rinths of lakes and swamps. Hills over 300 feet high from
their base are scarce; a few “mounds,” or isolated steep hills
with extremely narrow bases, rise out of the sandy plains of
Jackson and Clark counties and a few larger, more massive
hills occur in the valleys of the Wisconsin, Chippewa, and St.
Croix rivers and a range of low, broad hills form the crests
of the Iron and Copper ranges. On the whole, however, the
hills and hilly tracts do not occupy over 5 per cent. of the total
area, while about 45 per cent. is level upland, and about 50 per
SOILS. 3

cent. is rolling country, of which a considerable portion’ is
steeply rolling, “kettle,” or “pot hole” land.

Soils.—The greater part of this area is covered by deep gray-
ish clay and loam soils, bearing everywhere a forest of mixed
hardwoods, or of hardwoods and conifers. A narrow belt of
fertile “red clay” lands skirts Lake Superior and is stocked
with a unique mixture of conifers and hardwoods, remarkable
in the species which are associated and resembling more the reg-
ular pinery of the sandy lands than the mixed woods of the
loamy soils. A very variable mixture of loam and sandy loam
overlies the land about Green Bay, also parts of Chippewa,
Dunn, Barron, and Polk counties. About Green Bay this land
bore a very heavy forest of pine with a fair mixture of hard-
woods; in, the western counties part of it was openings and part
bore heavy pine forests. Throughout this area the presence of
snd is indicated by the characteristic white birch. Sandy
lands, continuous with the sands of Waushara, Adams, and
Juneau counties, form the southern edge of this district through
Portage, Wood, Jackson, Clark, Chippewa, and Dunn counties.
These sandy lands are either oak and jack pine openings, i. e.,
brush prairies scatteringly covered by low brushy oaks and
dense groves of small jack pine, or else the were regular pinery
covered by a dense stand of valuable pine, without hardwoods.

Within the large loam land area there occur three islands of
sandy soil rather well defined, and in most places sharply
marked. One of these, the “St. Croix Barrens,” extends in a
belt 10-20 miles wide from the northwest corner of Polk county
to the peninsula of Bayfield; the other a V shaped tract with
its southern apex near the junction of the Tomahawk and Wis-
consin rivers and occupying the greater part of Oneida and
Vilas counties, and the third a broad belt like the first, extend-
ing from the Menominee river to about Lake Shawano and oc-
cupying the central part of Marinette and a broad strip through
Oconto and part of Shawano counties.

In the aggregate the four several sandy districts occupy over
one-fourth of the entire area under consideration; they are gen-
4 FORESTS OF WISCONSIN.

erally pine lands proper, being covered with dense and almost
pure forests of pine, both white and red (Norway) and only in
small part stocked with jack pine. The grayish to reddish-gray
soil and subsoil of these sandy areas are not generally differen-
tiated. They are usually of great depth, of medium to fine
grain and over more than two-thirds of the area contain suff-
cient clayey matter to deserve the name of loamy sand. These
soils support a luxurious growth of pine, but are unsuited to
hemlock and hardwoods, which latter are represented only by
the white birch, poplar, aspen, and some stunted maple. The
most characteristic plants of the cut-over lands of these sandy
areas are the jack pine, scarlet oak, and sweet fern, while the
white birch is common to all loamy sands but does not thrive
on the poorest soils.

The districts of sandy loam before mentioned occupy about
15 per cent. of the total area. They border, for the most part,
on the sandy lands fringing this territory on the south, and are
mere modifications of the same. The soil in these districts
though generally quite fertile is extremely variable, quite
heavy in places, often very sandy, and is covered in numerous
small and large patches by layers of black muck which greatly
increase their fertility. The soil and subsoil of the large body of
gray loam and gray clay lands are usually more or less well de-
fined and generally there is found a small amount of humus
cover. In most localities the subsoil, especially of all knolls,
etc., is mixed with gravel, which occurs either in layers of ir-
regular thickness and distribution or else is mixed promiscu-
ously through the ground. Generally, too, stones or boulders
of large size (4 inches to 50 inches) occur both on top and in
the ground, which though quite abundant in places do not on
the whole, interfere with agriculture, but are even regarded as
an indication of good land. The mixture of gravel and loam
or clay is extremely variable and in places sufficient sand and
fine gravel appears on the surface to make a soil classification
quite difficult.

These general outlines will require much modification in a
CLIMATE AND DRAINAGE. 5

detailed description. Strips of sandy land follow up the rivers,
especially the Wisconsin and its tributaries, small islands of
loamy soils occur in all three of the large sand districts, while
patches of heavy clays and lighter gravelly soils occur in all
portions covered by, gray loams. The swamps include all poorly
drained tracts, either stocked with tamarack, cedar, spruce,
or bare grass marshes and moss bogs. They occupy nearly 12
per cent. of the area. They have for the most part a clay bot-
tom, and furnish a good soil, especially suited to hay crops.*

Grouping the land from the farmers’ standpoint, it would ap-
pear that about 20 per cent. of the area is good farm land, about
40 per cent. medium, while nearly 40 per cent. is either not at
all suited to farming or only doubtfully so and should by all
means be left to forest. In such classification great divergence
of opinion naturally prevails. Most estimates increase the pro-
portion of good farm land at the expense of the medium land,
but we have preferred to adhere to the above conservative class-
ification.

Climate and Drainage.—The climate is cold, the winters
are long, springs almost wanting, summers short but warm and
the fall long, cool, and delightful. To illustrate the climate it
may be said that the black walnut and hickories are wanting,
the timber oaks, both white and red oaks, are replaced by birch
in all but the southern and southwestern part of this territory.
Corn is raised with difficulty except in the south and the drier
western part, while fruit trees, even apples, do not prosper in
the greater part of North Wisconsin. The precipitation
over the State is about 32 inches per year of which 60 per cent.
falls in summer and autumn. The territory under considera-
tion is well supplied with streams and has a far better drainage
than is generally supposed.

 

*¥For a fairly accurate account and map of the soils of this state see
the account by Prof. F. H. King in the Settler’s Handbook of North-
ern Wisconsin, by W. A. Henry, Dean of the College of Agriculture,
University of Wisconsin, Madison, 1895.
6 FORESTS OF WISCONSIN.

In this drainage the several rivers share as follows:

Per cent.
Chippewa river (with Red Cedar at 6.2%) ............. 28.4
WiISCODSIN: TIVER spews s Ss esaeeendd ase tates eee ees 21.0
St. Croix Tiver’ os vaccines cee sass seen ys awen ee waine calet 13.7
Wolf RIVER: esas cece genssin’s Ware ieee GAG Seo eeinaeoaees HN 7.4
Blake MAVEI 2 dss ips itesnatenele eee ete oa tielateicelauihred o2, < eyeleaubincss 6.8
Menominee river (Wisconsin side).............. cece eee 5.7
OCONtO: LIVED x ..c 4. seeeee Sasi yks Eee N KIO e sean es 3.4
Peshtigo! TIVer wiswie saciesc-seies das a deamlevenhs sas ae wsdetgles 3.2
Small rivers to Lake Superior.......... cc cece cece eee eens 9.3
Small rivers direct to Green Bay........... ccc cee eevee 0.9

Besides furnishing ample drainage, the basins of the Chip-
pewa, Wisconsin, St. Croix, and Black rivers, which drain 70
per cent. of the entire area, are covered with the most perfect
network imaginable of small streams especially suited for pur-
poses of driving timber. The rivers emptying into Green Bay
also “drive” quite well, but have required more improvements,
while those running into Lake Superior are in great part unfit
for driving.

Ovnership.—Of the 18.5 million acres of land contained in
this north half of Wisconsin a little less than 7 per cent. is im-
proved; 24 per cent. is held by actual settlers, the greater part
of which falls to the counties along the southern and south-
western edge of this district; the United States hold about 5
per cent. (2 per cent. being Indian Reservations), the State
holds less than 2 per cent., the railways little over 5 per cent.,
the counties about 1.5 per cent. in tax deeds, and about five
times this amount conditionally on tax certificates. Of the 63
per cent. owned by private non-residents, fully 80 per cent. is
held by lumbermen. This amounts to 50 per cent. of the total
area under consideration or 25 per cent. of the land of the en-
tire State.
OWNERSHIP.

“BPlOUO Ul Pepapouy oy “PUL[YSY Ul popnypouy, ‘fF UUINTOO UT UEAIT soINSyY oy} Ul Surypnsor syvjd uM0} oy JO osn Aq OpBUL SBA TOTSTA
-O1 THJoIBd B (soINSY snsusd oy} AT[BIDedsa) SI0I1e 10Y}0 10 [BOTAETO JO SUSIS E10G 4Nq ee1gB YOu ATWO 40U PIp Susued oY} puR soTYO puey [vroues oy} Aq wEATE
SOINSGY JO SJos OM} OT} 9Bq} JUCIBdde Fuleq 4T_ ‘POsN SBA AOAINS PUL] OY} JO BOE [BOTI}OMOET OY} YSTTA OJ ‘SOUT] UOT}OGIIOD UO SuTLep10g 10 SouTTINO

TTI ITA esouy qdeoxe drysuaoj youe OJ soroe OFO'EZ SUIMOTI® ‘s}UTA WAKO} OT} JO OSH OY] Aq POUTEIQO O10M UOATS eLoy SeInsy on, *“peystiqud ueeq

SOIBJINS IO}BA SUTPNIOUT ‘svorw [B}O} JO SOINSTY , "PouTeIqO eq 4OU plod s[Iejop Jnq ‘s1eyyO pue “YY ,,eYeUO,, emt Aq OS8[B PpeuAo s
OFveIO’ OTGVIOPISUOD ‘SPUBT ABATIEY UIOISOMIION PUB OSYOIYO PUL [BI}UOD UISUOOSTM APOIYO O1B CSOT TL » _ PTOS FuToq mou St OTA
PUL] YIU Jo sore OOO'LP C1 O19G} STG] SOpIsog , “TOILE [ROTYd BIF0d 44 & SIMEGS STH YB O8 ‘ONG'ez ATUO ‘10Y[}OS0} ‘WOIT PUB PUBTYSY 10J SOATs OyXT JO

BABY O} IGAVT TLGeS

SUIIA puke UOT

 

 

‘SO OY} ‘seroe 000'68Z SPATS susUGD O}EIS ONT, ‘JUNODSBIIA SopNpOUT, ‘4JUNOO UOIT MOT STIBYM Sepnpouy , “quMoUE yey} Aq Jey[ems eq prnoys 04
OS0Y) 3BY} OS ‘SUITA PUBLUPTOUG 0} UEATS Mou "| IT ‘Y Jo Javed oy} SepnpoUTy, “T@}0} OG} JO “4U90 Jad Of 19AO OYRVUL YOIYA ‘WOMBAIOSEI UBIPUT ATESICT y

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  

   

                       

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

862 606 00'S DOF eT ore Fe “me > aa Fe00 3 1e6'T | oye3s OIT}U0 10] [BIOL
oLS6 9°08 +198 OOF ‘+ 198 ‘BT ¥6S ‘ST 28F ‘ST 966 ‘ST T'26 F'¥EP PORT ate Rye dos
pak aa 9'0 30 #81 629 #Ig gig 629 LZ 9°12 "i777" pooM
Panag 7g 16 29 Le ogg ape 625 esa LO oF uanqyse
t 6% 0b z ot 1199 996 LLO UT Bee) | eae ie es ees SBITA
SL 2°0 g 2b £89 Te9 eo | 289 o'r ¥°8 * 1oTABT,
SI £3 +801 £82 Leh ee, LL OFL ge Gee “ourmeys
ean | 9 4 9L eb Su OLg 98 918 oT Le “TOAMES
6ST ¥'62 et L6 OL 028 sis Leg TT ab "01
eee ey (eaG 90 ore 90s FIs &2¢ 62g ge GkeG.: | Se ee ee “* eBByLOg
vaneeone | 0a8 L 82 119, 16S c6s st9 az TOT “1 od
g'Le 98 £% e808 ‘T 10L¢ 469 hh 62 OL” “1 Bpreug
08 0b LST Teh 20h Slt £2 Le £81 ****04M09Q
eat ¥ eee STL £88. 866 | 606, g's @ LZ ‘eqgeurTse AL
oF I ORE s10‘T $00 T L00‘T S10'T e's g 98 “woqI eI WL
F6L It 6F StF 186 @Ls OLS as LPL “7s upooury
Orr z @ 09s TLS egg 09s aT OvIL ‘ epepsaery
3's 6 682 169 ee9 99 ¥€9 ae LOL “Gosqoe st
26 +81 » 8 904 #08 ers es g's Tit dodgy
0°68 as + 1918 14668 189 90L oT aT 11 98ed0,7
: b gt gis TOE ale 618 OT ad " SoUeLOT
é SLE oss ars oss egg oF 0'S2
£9 6 ag ris 88 ge “Or 6°62,
I 802 €8L BLL BLL e8L eh £712
9 182 198 ‘T #92 'T £83 T 196'T Sib L'8%
QT cee OLS o9¢ Les Tg 9°0 3g
+91 is 668 656 $6 LL6 o's oar
I 49% OLS. 099 19g 9LS 61 10%
+201 6g 2FS0'T 819 89L9 2619 6s @ AT
‘i 4 ‘ ‘ ‘,|S9I08 QO0'T
*s0x08 000‘T|"sex9e 000 ‘T| "82498 000'T OGRE SMS esetee OOO T) «aa
‘seated | eg [PEBIMOD| se yyy “S023 yorqaloowyo Due] Jo [22108 90% “000 ‘000'T$ | "000°
s°o *peaosduit [e}0J, 7 WOTSTATT Seen Tyee &q wor *LENQOD,
— "SUIey UL vOly Ss aie ey eqexey, | -e—ndog
Ad G1INH SANVT ‘aovauag GNVT

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

‘diysiauno fo suownjay —] wavy,
FORESTS OF WISCONSIN.

‘oy BUITJSO ITey B PEIOPISUOD ATTBIOUOT SBA ‘UOT}OOMUOD STUY UT queq10durt 4SOul ‘ssB[9-p1Tyy Ot} OTIGA ‘puey

WA] ,,.pood, , oY} yooHeR AyTTeEnsa suotzoe1109 ITey} pue peydoesoe AT[BLOUGT SBA ‘SJUVUAIOJUT 4S0q OY} AQ WOISTASI 0} PoOq4IWAGnSs USA ‘UOTPBOBISseTO STaLy é
‘endy ATVB
qnq SI Gora ‘Tlos Apues & Sulavy se 1eedde Ao} pue styy ul popnpour Aj[duis ere svoie Apuvs oy} JO esoy} ‘eoueISUT IO} ‘peIOpTsUOD 4ou e1B sdaieag g
“1011104 OT]} JO S}zed [TB UT 4NO poj[No useq sey oUTd eoUTS 4SeLOJ UIFITA Aynqy 41ed ut ATU sIyy, ¢
‘OHS OOUGTUGAUOD IOJ HO popunol oie Somnsy [[e ‘seyeulT4se CYA UT i

 

 

 

 

 

 

          
  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

obs 80 Gea BS Le @ LE 9° cP our 8'S6 @ 86 “9 Lt Oot ‘T2709 Jo “49 Ig
003 ‘9 OOr‘L | OOT‘F | OST‘S os8‘9 | 009‘8 oor ‘2 0099 S22 ‘LT 182 ‘T 90S esr sE fc TeIoL
gst oot oot SCT Oot S8Z Orr i) cor §g 1 STS ieee is PoomM
996 Sst 08 002 G96 098 0s Oot bes g & 66S Tit st) mmMqyse Mm
00F OIT GG SGP OOF 08% SET 002 cog T Om gog Tir? SBTTA
oer 096 pe ae eee Ser STé 06. 00F L19 SI 9 ceo IOpABL,
Gia 008 026 OTT 022 02& oot Gta 8h9 ¥6 8 LEL ‘oueamegg
OSE Oze GOT os = | OFS STR OSs SLT Ost Seg BE8 & OF 968 . <7 TOAMES
ae Os Oot 002 G2e 008 SCT O8€ L08 8 er ST “** e0td
g12 022 oot 002 OTZ gga Oot 02 T8& GPT 9 feo + 95eq10g
FT oog | ocr | gs ost | OFE 02 Ost ais &8 02 6s cor Hog
OcP 006 OL 0c OST 068 OST ost 669 @ 09 FOR ae BpeuO
sie 09g OFT OFT GT@ 068 &8 O8T ggg 8¢ or eth “* 041090,
OSP GTS Gel OLF Ost O9F OIT 008 698 62 or 868 | “979,00TTe WL
Oot 009 00g gor oot OLE 0& 00g 806 FOr 9 L00°T “doy e1e Wl
as gce OLT Oot ia cor os SFE €9¢ 6 or GL 77 * Wpooury
Oor 08s SOT OF ost SIT OL Ose GE 02 Ss ggg ‘ epe[saey
ace 098 Oat oze =| ose | 89 yo ose Ocr $9 &% GIs ok = | eer 969 er HOS ORy
008 002 OOr OgT 00z OST OO 08 cOS @ ST 40S met woiy
0LZ OLe OFT OOT OLE OFT OFT OOF O39 T ge 139 "77" *-gsol0t
oot OST 0g 06 i oot Oot og oot Org 6 or Co Ne eousI0T
OFT ose oot GLI OIL OFT 06% ot Gb FLE 9LT ¥ oss “uuag
008 OLE SLT O6T 022 008 G96 oer OsP TFB ¥ a 8F8 sepsnog
002 OLE ors OOF Oa Pt 008 SGP OF 008 969 28 g SLL ATED
OSE 09g org | 08% Ser Oss 09s 09 oos eer 'T Tet gL £96 T s pseddtyO
SFE Sst 4g 02g ‘ SFE 0&8 08 oot LG 02 TE Lg * qqouing
00 098 Oot O86 O6T 00s O88 oot CLP 166 & Ge 666 pppseg
OFT OF Ost &8 ex ST S85 & OL cor 6L a ee HOdTe a
002 Ore 2 eee OLT 002 008 OL 007 899 8 g 9L9 sotesessss puRTysy
“saL0P PUDSNOY TL,
- ‘sttos “pues ssaur {99° ‘yoed “(OBST

ysor0y | ‘unt | -pogn | (dood) | ‘meoT] meor |,-seT9 |: “odo | (earea | mie ingatoi |eureonis!|

“ot | -papy | P°°9 [pe pues] cpueg Tle ARTO oeuen ose piel TBpCO | ,-yseI0J hee Ao os qesect eoeyans ;

‘100g sue0rT qqta =| pex{904s ae oigie ae purely KINQOQ

qseq_ | 93StM | pueT TOM. P ye4s) | P TeqOL,
puey | puey Sore qsei0g jpuet pe3| sexe y
19A09TO | cqures: ~BAT}ND
yONVYT WAVY 10 KTAGIHO TIOG VY BLIM ANVI 8

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

psaungoaf sovfung— TI Tay,
STANDING TIMBER.

IOJOWMIVIP Ssi[OUT F AGAO [RTIE} BUI IO POOMOIY JO SP109 OT [[1}S 018 OI0T]} "poo

+te7t SIT] JO TOTyeIOPISUOS OFUt 104110 OSTe eset} ‘4sixe spoom Pee Jo svo1
MEI 618 SOT MLS OY} TOYA 4B} TOT4duUIMss¥ OF
“eINSBEUI PILOg OUT pey1eA0d e10y o1v SuTTId pus ‘setod 'sqsod ‘sery, 1

W 49) “WT = Spr00 oa, ,

@ eS1vy e1oqA pus ‘eroe s0d
UO PeyeUIT}SO ST STULL ¢

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

          

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

gio eee emt es  |ucor orez  foreg |ure_—_oor, vise sees cetesseseesesee sees sereseer ess o+ssgpooaprug JO "9100 red WT]
ge9  |see‘z joss jena‘ jostb = jora"® = jzse‘T 080 ‘oT sot 962° OOL'TT LTE |880'ST (SLT s[eIOL

(6 7 & ai ag a -[peeevees o[eeee sees fice tee] eraree[ives rare

wee ieuns ME Ge ahs OF Gentle. Bestia Ube ciate Pa en an ‘ og og

2 [09 og 0g oe [oh ch [oe ole 86 oor
“tT loe fe fet oe 001 cet, love... lowes fooe'r

‘7 joer OF ost = ors Ss (Qo =f 82 oos‘t |""*"*"*"l00z ——foog
3 (Ser OF cut loor, = [OST foe 08 oso faa 2, 1008,

ee) ost 00g ~=—s loo SSF Ser 006, = 00g. == fO0L‘E = foo0'z

‘> Oor_~— sus oct = foze-—«S «jd Sf o oot fit: 002 =‘ jo0g

TST g ST 02 ce OL ASE. 0s. 08 id
co jo fe fe ee fe cor oz fove foot face's

‘30 OF 0s oct = orf se gos = fOr gg ch

Flo SI OF g9 0s OL oor Or, |ooe = = fo0g‘T loos ‘T +7" 'eqqeuTIe AL
gs jose: | s jose = OSs ST oos‘t = |g ser 002 woy 810,
se  joor —los LT = ose «= fOOR fe a 000‘T — joz ez jose
ae ee ie eo eeslge’ “Ip ie COO Beas eee, vase

3 lOL ST ce set oor: Ss a) ose fos jose = |00F

‘e¢ joer Sh cut joo oor oo9 = fog osr —foos
@T  joor ~— faz og oor © ser. |S, fooe, St. get fost

So Oe OB be de ot cle Ble a

$ loee foo Ost doe fore at 08 0g “foo Joe “-ewodarag
sy joer —‘ fog ost = josef) T

; ¢ (is 06 02 SF 09 "108 ers 002 “ qjourng,
E 06 02 CF Gut 00T 02 Ost oor {00s oos‘e jooo‘e = |° “prepseg
gt lor OL OF 0s 09 0g See neat SUSE SI (OST UIE wore g
€ foe jos oer = jooe. = s*f0s =f 08 00. = [SF ez |ooe puergsy
g‘Spr0o Rei
worn : "0}0 | : r0990q | 177090 |. “requaTg), aan

poos |-orden) “usy | “ma | wong} Roos | 120 |spooa|-mer | Ging [dma | Pee | -werp| Tous t| ses (US) Drs

ae reves, | Sark (BRITE pares dex | dup | "A20L'| few | soma | e1ge,

ou your -emey, | epep HH} -zoyy | OFFA | FORT
-paeH “4aquy mos fo qaaf UOT TROL

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

“2unsDaUL PLNog Jaaf UONIIWUW UL Laquing Buspunzg — TI] TIAVL
10 FORESTS OF WISCONSIN.

FOREST CONDITIONS OF THE PAST.

An uninterrupted forest, extending from Michigan through
Wisconsin into Minnesota, originally covered almost the entire
surface of these 27 counties. Along the southern and south-
western border, this forest faded into oak and jack pine “open-
ings” and in places gave way to regular prairies. It was gen-
erally a mixed forest of white pine and hardwoods on all loam
and clay lands; it approached to the regular pinery on the tracts
of sandy loam and the red clays of Lake Superior, and on all
sandy and loamy sand districts, it was invariably pinery proper,
generally a mixture of white and red (Norway) pines. This
great forest changed in character along a line extending approx-
imately through Range 7 W. from Lake Superior to Town 31
N., from here to the southwest corner of Marathon county
and thence east to Green Bay.* To the east and north of this
line the hemlock joined the hardwoods and pine on all gravelly
clay and loam lands; the birch (not white birch) disputed prec-
edence among hardwoods, so that we may designate the forest
as birch forest with admixtures; the red oaks were thinly scat-
tered and the white oaks practically wanting. To the south
and west of this line, the hemlock generally did not grow at
all, the birch became scattering, white oaks were abundant, and
the oaks gave character to the hardwood mixture, making the
bodies of pure hardwoods distinctly oak forests. These bodies
of hardwood were much more common on this side of the line.

Along the edge of the forest to the south and west the dense
cover of a variety of tall hardwoods and conifers gave way
rather suddenly to monotonous brushwoods, composed of scat-
tered, bushy oaks, either alone or mixed with jack pine. (Port-
age, Dunn, St. Croix, Polk counties.)

In almost all parts of the mixed forest of the loam lands, the
hardwoods formed the body of the forest and the conifers the

 

* The lines of distribution as here laid down refer only to the occurrence

of trees as timber of economic importance, and not to their botanical dis-
tribution.
PAST CONDITIONS. 11

admixture. The hardwoods were represented by trees of all
sizes, from the seedling or sprout to the mature timber tree.
They formed nearly all of the undergrowth and this hardwood
forest showed every indication of thrift and permanence.
The white pine (red or Norway pine did not grow on these loam
lands) and hemlock were represented almost entirely by mature,
old timber, standing isolated among the hardwoods, or at most
growing in groups or small bodies. Saplings, bushy young trees,
and seedlings, were comparatively scarce. Active reproduction
was evidently not going on, and there is every reason to believe
that both pine and hemlock were losers in a long-fought strug-
gle for possession of the ground, in which a change in the gen-
eral conditions of moisture probably had something to do with
their defeat. As regards white pine this was most conspicuous
in the southern counties and on the heaviest soils (Marathon,
Langlade, and Dunn counties), where in many places the hard-
woods had succeeded in crowding out the pine entirely, but
wherever sand or gravel discouraged the hardwoods (Wood,
Barron, Price and Sawyer counties), the pine held more nearly
its own, and formed a fair proportion of the sapling timber.

The thinly scattered balsam and the less frequent spruce ap-
pear to be in the same position as the pine and hemlock, but
they were much less important trees and naturally their sparse-
ness was less conspicuous.

In the regular pinery of the sandy soils the pines predomi-
nated, the hemlock was entirely wanting and the hardwoods
were scantily represented by small white birch, aspen, and maple,
which were mixed with the young pine. In the dense stands
of mature timber these deciduous trees were killed out but reap-
peared where the superannuated pines were dying off and the
cover of their shading crowns was broken. (Oneida, Vilas,
Marinette, and Bayfield counties.)

On the better loamy sands the pine forest was a mixture of
white and red (Norway) pine, with occasional patches (perhaps
temporary) of jack pine (Vilas, Oneida counties) but on the
poorer sands the red (Norway) and jack pine often stood alone
12 FORESTS OF WISCONSIN.

as a pure growth. Either one or both together formed forests
of considerable extent, usually with hardly any undergrowth
and mixture save some scattering scrub oak. (Barrens of Bay-
field county and in Douglas, Marinette, and Portage counties.)

The greater part of the swamps in North Wisconsin were
well stocked with dense thickets of tamarack, cedar (arborvitz),
and some scattering spruce. The cedar (arborvite) prevailed
in those of the eastern part, especially the swamps of the sandy
loam lands along and near Green Bay, the tamarack had undis-
puted possession of those of the southern and southwestern part
and also covered part of the swamps of the openings. The
swamps of the central, northern, and northwestern part were
stocked without regularity, some with tamarack, others with
cedar, and in many of them both trees occurred together. The
spruce as a very runty shrub or half tree covered many open
bogs and otherwise occurred scattered in the swamps, especially
within the moister hemlock area.

FOREST CONDITIONS OF THE PRESENT.

At present these forests are materially changed. More than
one million acres have been cleared and put in cultivation. Dur-
ing forty years of lumbering nearly the entire territory has been
logged over. The pine has disappeared from most of the mixed
forests and the greater portion of pineries proper has been cut.

There is to-day hardly a township in this large area where no
logging has been done. In addition 1o this, the fires, following
all logging operations or starting on new clearings of the settler,
have done much to change these woods. Nearly half this ter-
ritory bas been burned over at least once: about 3 million
acres are without any forest cover whatever, and several million
acres more are but partly covered by the dead and dying rem-
nants of the former forest. .

In the better hardwood areas (Taylor, Marathon, Langlade
counties) the least change has occurred; the former existence of
the pine is scarcely noticed and the forest is damaged by fire
only where it borders on “pine slashings” or spots where quite a
PRESENT CONDITIONS. 13

body of pine occurred and has been removed. On the lighter,
gravelly loam and sandy loam soils, where the pine formed a
heavier admixture, the remaining hemlock and hardwoods are
badly damaged and often entirely killed over extensive tracts.
(Parts of Price, Chippewa, Sawyer, Washburn counties.) In
most of the pinery areas proper, the repeated fires have largely
cleared the lands of all the heavier debris in slashings. (Oneida,
Marinette, Washburn counties, near Lake Superior at Ashland
and Bayfield and in Douglas counties.) Here are large tracts of
bare wastes, “stump prairies,” where the ground is sparsely cov-
ered with weeds and grass, sweet fern, and a few scattering
runty bushes of scrub oak, aspen, and white birch. These al-
ternate with thickets of small pine (often jack pine) which in
spite of repeated fires have escaped destruction or have re-estab-
lished themselves. Nor have these changes beeen restricted to
the upland forests. The swamps, too, of every county have suf-
fered from fires. Some of the worst forest fires have started in
the dense tamarack and cedar swamps of the sandy areas, where
the most complete destruction has taken place. (Oneida, Price,
Chippewa, Marinette counties.)

In the accompanying map an attempt is made to show the
present forest conditions as well as to give some notion of the
former extent and character of these woods. The areas of pin-
ery proper, distinguished by red color, represent the pine forests ,
of almost pure growth, without merchantable hardwoods and
hemlock, covering the sandy districts of this region. The island
tracts of mixed forest on heavier soil are not shown and in the
same way the numerous small tracts of regular pinery scattered
through the great body of mixed forest, particularly along the
rivers, were left out for sake of clearness and partly because
their exact limits were not ascertained. The hardwood mixed
forest, distinguished by green color in three shades, to indicate
differences of density or yield, is divided by a red line into two
parts, the hemlock and birch area on the north and east of this
line and the oak woods west and south.

The existence of pine is indicated by red signs, the plus sign
14 FORESTS OF WISCONSIN.

(+) being used where it still exists in considerable quantities,
the minus sign (—) where it has been cut out.

Where pine predominates, the signs of the red circle with
and without a cross, denoting present and former conditions are
employed.

Where the hardwoods are largely cut, culled, or destroyed by
fire, the minus sign in black is used, while jack pine and jack
oak are in all cases indicated, the one by red and the other by
green V sign.

CONIFEROUS SUPPLIES.

The conifers, particularly the pines, formed solid, almost pure,
forests over more than 30 per cent. of the area under considera-
tion besides hundreds of groves of smaller extert scattered
throughout the entire area of mixed forest. In addition, they
formed the most conspicuous part of these mixed forests them-
selves so that the name of “pinery” was applied to the entire
forest once covering this area. The conifers covered especially
the poorest land, stocked the barrens, the light sands, the
toughest gravel lands, and clothed the swamps wherever these
permitted of any tree growth. Besides forming the bulk of the
forest growth, the chief conifers, white and red (Norway) pine
and hemlock grew to larger size and better shape than the hard-
woods; they yielded more material and were easier logged,
transported, and sawed, and their product found a much more
extensive market. In total amount of saw timber the conifers
originally excelled the hardwoods about as five to one, but at
present all the conifers combined furnish only about twice as
much material as the hardwoods.

WHITE PINE.

Past.—The white pine occurred in nearly all parts ofthis
area; in most counties it was found in every township, on almost
every section, and though checked at the “openings,” apparently
by a lack of moisture, it followed all the streams (the Wisconsin,
Black, Chippewa, St. Croix, ete.), for a considerable distance be-
WHITE PINE. 15.

yond the limits of the forest. Generally it seems quite inde-
pendent of the quality of the soil; it grew as fast, as steadily
and to as large proportions on the sandy and gravelly lands.
along the Flambeau, Chippewa, and Wisconsin as on the heavy-
ier soils of the divides and the famous Wolf river basin.

The yields varied with the size and number of trees per acre.
It is naturally largest in mature stands of pure growth, such
as may be seen in parts of Oneida and Vilas counties, where
as much as 2 million feet are cut from 40 acres and where
single acres might be selected cutting 100 M. feet B. M. The
yield is smaller in very old timber, even in the pinery, where
the stand is broken, and still more so in the old and scattered
timber of the mixed forest where often but one or two trees.
were found to the acre. A cut of one million feet per 40 acres,
or 25 M. feet per acre was and is considered a very good yield
and generally the cut is less than half this amount. Since in all
these wild woods the ground is irregularly covered and almost
every 40-acre tract has its bare places without merchantable
timber, all figures of yield per unit are somewhat misleading.
Entire townships (23,000 acres) are known to have cut over 400
million feet per town while 200 million per town have been ac-
counted for in the output of the several mills for the entire
area of Wood county, and a cut of about 125 millions per town
is recorded for the Wolf river above Shawano. For comparison
with present supplies an attempt is made in the following table
to estimate the original stand of pine for the several river basins.
The figures are by no means high, and have been verified at.
least, for portions of every basin as explained further on.
16 FORESTS OF WISCONSIN.

Original stand of pine in north Wisconsin.

(Only the 27 counties visited are involved here.)

 

 

Yield per] Yield |Yield for
Number |" ‘town- per river] river as |. Present

 

 

 

Name of river | of town-| ship, basin. |per cent.| Stand.
basin. ship Million | Million | of total | Million
stocked. ft. ft. |per cent.) ft.
Black sce sessnes 40 225 9, 00U 7.0 250
Bh Crole. cxsese 100 125 12,500 9.7 3,500 | Considerable jack
pine barrens.
Red Cedar ...... 40 200 8, 000 6.2 475
Cuaippewa....... 175 200 35, 000 27.0 3,500
Wisconsin ...... 172 175 30, 100 23.1 2,800 | Much hardwood area.
Wolf cece siaca ects 60 125 7,500 5.8 475 | Much hardwood area.
Oconto .........- 28 125 3,500 2.7 150 | Much hardwood area.
Peshtigo ... 27 150 4,050 3.1 500
Menominee...... 47 150 7,030 5.4 1,500 | Only Wisconsin side.
Rivers to Lake
Superior ...... 16 150 11, 400 8.8 4,200
Rivers to Green
Bay) nae iveunwre 7 200 1,400 BSL lls cescestie
Total........ 712 |....-.62.{ 129,400 100 17,400

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Of these 129.4 billion there is approximately:
Standing at present........ 17.4 billion feet.
Cut between 1873 to 1898.... 66.0 billion feet,
Probable cut 1840 to 1873... 20.0 billion feet.

Accounted for........... 103.4 billion feet.
Leaving about 26 billion feet as probably wasted; chiefly destroyed by fire.

Present.—In considering the present supplies of pine, both
white and red (Norway) pine, of which fully 80 per cent. is
owned by lumbermen, it must be borne in mind that in spite of
many years of logging, but few townships of the better stocked
regions, outside of settlements, have been logged clean, and
counties like Chippewa, Clark, Marathon, and even Wood, still
continue to furnish large quantities of pine logs of all sizes. It
is also interesting to note in this connection, that it is not so
much a lack of good logs, but the fact that of late everything is
cut clean, which has reduced the average size of logs to half of
what it was twenty years ago. But it is especially the fragmen-
tary or culled condition of the forest which makes general or
WHITE PINE. . 17

wholesale estimates difficult, and causes the opinions on pine sup-
plies to vary within such wide limits. “Most men know little
about what their neighbors have,” and “the man whose pine sup-
ply is nearly at an end, and who finds it difficult to buy more
stumpage thinks that everybody shares his trouble.” These
two statements, variously expressed, may be heard in many
places, are readily verified in every county and fully indicate
the difficulty.

The figures in the following table represent the results of a
diligent and careful inquiry into the present condition of sup-
plies. It is believed that though somewhat higher than those of
the majority of estimators they are still quite conservative in
the aggregate and justly apportioned among the several counties:

STANDING PINE IN NORTH WISCONSIN.

 

Million Million

County. feet B. M.| County. feet B. M.
Ashland ..... aS arerngeunesers «.. 3850] Marathon ..........ceceeeee 200
Barron ........ bac hails 150 | Marinette ..............00. 1,500
Bayfield ...........eeseeeee 3,000 | Oconto+ ....... Peowundnaden 75
Burnett: viersidisicis es esac adie 200 | Oneida ........ cee eeeeseees 1,200
Chippewa ........... eee eee 500" Rolle oseccievessece sess 6 siesmerernieree 240
CONAN ccsieserey cesaeets 30 Be Secon 200 | Portage ........ ingen 20
Douglas: gsinse vets xe weacwins 3,500 | PLIC® 22445 6010s eoiewwewde 200
TOG «6 ev aoueueteses x e405 aa 25 | Sawyerd .......cecccecccons 2,000
Bau Claire* ..............6.. 50 | Shawano .........e.eeeeeee 300
Florence .... cece cette cece 150: | Taylor ersvess se eeiencene's 6 200
MOrest? iisisasianess4s4sawes 500) | Vilas) asec cairncadeiesetass 1,500
TRO 6.533 seein ee see hase 400 | Washburn ...........e.e eee 350
PACKSON: « dcicisrejsinress eas aieinio's 100) | W000 civ cs ce sca cus titedeic 100
Langlade .........-2eeeeee 150 :

DAMGOIM, 2 ioispese soe.9 3-0. 44 Stee 250 Potal: sissies sviccsewisess 17,355

 

The estimates here given are not calculated but simply based
upon estimates of different men well informed with regard to
certain parts; they were critically examined by comparing them

 

* Canvassed only for its pine.
+ Probably too low, but left so in deference of good authority.
t Believed to be 2,500 by good authority.

F.W.—2 ae
18 FORESTS OF WISCONSIN.

with those of other men, and also by comparison with results of
calculations based on probable cut per 40, or per town and the
area supposed to be still covered with timber. Moreover, the
probability of the correctness of the various estimates was sub-
jected to scrutiny in various ways and tested by personal inspec-
tion of the field.

Upon such basis, utilizing partial and imperfect estimates,
checked and counterchecked, the attempt was made to approach
as near the truth as was possible by such methods. After the
writer had made up his own estimates he once more submitted
the same to his informants and their divergence of opinion,
wherever essential, will be found noted in the part of this report
which refers to conditions in each county.

The white pine appears to seed heavily and quite regularly;
the trees in all parts of North Wisconsin were laden with cones
in the fall of 1897. The seedlings thrive best on sandy soils,
but grow on loamy soils almost as well; the young growth forms
dense thickets, grows very fast in height (1 to 2 ft. per year)
as well as in thickness (often one-half inch and more) and the
sapling timber cleans itself quite well of its dead branches,
though not as well as red (Norway) pine. In Wisconsin, the
tree is normally over 50 feet high at the age of 50 years, attains
a height of over 120 feet and a diameter of over 30 inches, and
continues its growth in thickness with a most remarkable stead-
iness to a great age, 200 years and more. White pine as a ma-
ture timber has more faults than red (Norway) pine, bears
more large dead stubs, disfiguring its trunk, is prone to fork,
three and even four large forks often springing from the same
stem, and is much more unsound, old timber being frequently
defective by decay. Both white and Norway pine find a ready
market in every locality, and are sold as stumpage, logs, and
lumber. Fully 90 per cent. of the present cut of over 2 billion
feet (about 3.5 billion in 1893) is logged on a large scale with
heavy equipment and is sawn in large mills. All cutting is ex-
tremely close; in most camps everything is taken “that will
make a 2x4,” so that even sapling thickets are no longer spared,
WHITE PINE. 19

and the milling, driving, grading, etc., are done with remarkable
care and economy. Ordinary mature timber yields about 4 to
4 1-2 logs per tree, where 5 to 7 logs cut 1 thousand feet B. M.
The general average diameter of the pine logs is at present only
about 14 inches and it takes 10 logs to make 1000 feet B. M.
Where much red (Norway) pine is cut, the size is even smaller;
large quantities are logged today where 15 to 20 logs are re-
quired to make 1 M. ft. B. M.

Future.—The future of pine supplies necessarily depends on
the amount of growing timber and its chance to grow. Through-
out the hardwood districts there is no young growth of pine of
any consequence. Some groves of young pine occur on many
old and burned over slashings on the sandy loam and loamy
sand districts, where settlement has put a stop to the fires. In
all pineries proper many thickets of young pine occur which
have sprung up during the last 25 years, but most of these are
on land either never logged before or else but lightly culled.
If protected, these groves could soon furnish a considerable
quantity of merchantable timber, but under present conditions
most of them will be crippled or entirely killed by fires or else
cut into cord wood for shook purposes. By far the best ex-
ample of thrifty young white pine on old burned over slashings
may be seen at Shawano; other fine groves occur abundantly
near Grand Rapids, and other places on the Wisconsin river and
also on the Chippewa and its tributaries. These groves of pine
have sprung up so gradually that in many cases persons familiar
with the place are astonished when the young pine are pointed
out to them. After the first fires the land is covered by fire-
weed and aspen, then it is usually burned over a few times more,
until the bulk of the débris is consumed, when the aspen is given
a chance to form thickets of greater denseness. The common
notion is that this is the end, that the land is now to continue in
aspen and that aspen is the alternate in a “natural rotation” of
pine and hardwoods. If, however, there are any survivors of
pine near by—a common case, especially on slashings of former
years—young pine seedlings will soon make their appearance
20 FORESTS OF WISCONSIN.

among the aspen. But these pines require about five years be-
fore they are a foot high and so, even though numbering 500-
600 per acre, they escape for years the notice of most. people.
Before long, however, the gray of the aspen thicket changes to a
mixture of gray and green, and in a few more years the aspen
grove is transformed into a pine thicket with the aspens feebly
struggling or dying out. There are many of these groves of
young pine in every county visited; their aggregate area is safely
estimated at about 200,000 acres, and they are able to furnish
within 50 years’ time, if protected, a yield of more than a billion
feet of marketable material. But while the ability of white
pine to reproduce itself is thus amply demonstrated in every
county in North Wisconsin, the fact still remains, that the great
body of cut-over pine lands have not and do not at present re-
cover themselves with young pine, but that more than 80 per
cent. of the bare, burned, cut-over lands are practically devoid
of any valuable forest growth whatever.

RED (NORWAY) PINE.

The red or Norway pine occurs in every one of the 27 coun-
ties here under consideration, but is abundant only in those
which contain sandy districts of greater extent. This pine does
not occur on the loam and clay soils, except on the slopes along
Lake Superior. It generally grows mixed with white pine on
the loamy sands (Oneida, Vilas counties, ete.), and, alone or
mixed with jack pine, occupies the poorer sands, as the barrens
of Bayfield, Marinette counties, etc. The red pine grows quite
rapidly when young and up to the age of about 100 years, grow-
ing as fast or faster than white pine on the same poor soils. It
grows very slowly when old, generally forms a more slender
stem than white pine, and does not attain the same dimensions,
especially in its diameter. It seeds heavily and reproduces well;
it shares in covering pine slashings, forms dense stands, cleans
itself well of limbs, makes a straight, clean stem, is more sound
than white pine, and yields very heavily. Originally it formed
but a very small part of the entire stand of pine, but today about
JACK PINE. 21

18 per cent. of the remaining supply is red pine. It is treated
like white pine in all branches of exploitation but brings a
smaller price and is more extensively cut into dimension stuff.
Its frugality, rapid growth, fine dimensions, and heavy yield
highly recommend this tree in considerations of reforestation.

JACK PINE.

Jack pine, in Wisconsin, generally takes possession of all the
poorer sands, where hardwoods and even white pine no longer
thrive. Nevertheless, it is also found on sandy loam areas (Sha-
wano and parts of Marinette counties) where better trees have
grown, and it appears that its presence in these localities is due
to large fires which many years ago completely consumed the
former forest and so reduced the fertility of the soil that none
but this most frugal of conifers could reclothe the land. Jack
pine forms characteristic dense thickets and even forests of many
miles in extent, mixes frequently with red pine, less frequently
with white pine and still less often with hardwoods except the
scarlet and other scrub oaks and to a less extent the white birch,
which are its normal companions.

In Wisconsin it is always a small tree, generally less than 10
inches in diameter and below 60 feet in height; frequently
groves of several hundred acres consist apparently of trees of
nearly one age and size. The tree reproduces well, grows quite
rapidly, but only while young, and is generally short lived,
reaching its best growth before the 80th year. At present it is
not used to any extent, neither stumpage nor logs having real
commercial value except in parts of the jack pine and oak open-
ings, where it is used as fuel and for farm purposes. The total
stand of this pine if taken down to 4 inches diameter is about
3,500 million feet, of which about 1,700 million might well be
used for dimension stuff while the rest could be employed as
pulp wood. Its great frugality, ease of propagation, rapid
growth, and large yields will recommend the jack = for the
purpose of restocking all poorer sands.
22 FORESTS OF WISCONSIN.

HEMLOCK.

Hemlock is confined to the gravelly loam and clay lands of
the more humid half of North Wisconsin and shares some of
the peculiarities of the white pine growing within these limits.
It is generally old timber with little indication of active repro-
duction. Over wide areas only large old trees occur, and in
many localities even these are gradually dying out. Wherever
the forest is partly cleared, where considerable pine is removed,
the hardwoods cut out, clearings and roads opened, and also
where fire has run, the hemlock with its shallow system of roots
at once shows its great sensitiveness to any interference in the
moisture of the soil, and all or at least most of the trees succumb.
In this way a large proportion of the hemlock on the lighter
gravelly loams of Price, Sawyer, Chippewa, and other counties
has been killed. Much of the timber on heavier lands in the
vicinity of pine slashings, etc., has also died and now furnishes
great quantities of dead and fallen material for future fires,
which in turn will decrease the supply of the much underesti-
mated material.

There is apparently no lack of seed, for like pine the hem-
lock in 1897 was full of cones, and yet there is but very little
reproduction of this tree. For miles no young growth of any
size is seen, and the small trees, often mistaken for saplings, gen-
erally prove to be runts,—suppressed individuals, often 150 and
more years old. The only places where this tree still seems to
hold its own are some of the wet “half-swamps” of the eastern
part of this area. The young hemlock stands a great deal of
shading and close crowding, but grows slowly both in height and
thickness. The tree does not clean itself well of its branches,
rarely forks, forms a more tapering trunk than the pines and
does not attain their dimensions. In the southern part of its
area and on the heavier soils it grows to a height of 85 to 100
feet, with a diameter of 24 to 30 inches; in the northern counties
and on the lighter gravels it is usually both shorter and smaller,
frequently not over 60 feet high and under 20 inches in diameter.
ARBORVITAE. 23

Hemlock is generally quite sound but much of it is claimed to
be shaky at the butt. In all better localities it cuts about three
logs per tree, and farther northward about two. Being generally
mixed with hardwoods in very variable proportions, the yield
of hemlock varies within wide limits. Mature stands of pure
growth yield 500 M. feet and over per 40 acres. To cut 200 M.
feet requires good hemlock land and generally where large areas
are considered, and the hemlock forms 40 to 60 per cent. of the
total cut (pine having been removed), yields of 100 to 150 M.
feet per 40 acres may be expected. The present supply of hem-
lock is generally much underestimated. This is partly due to
the fact that large quantities have been killed by fire and ex-
posure to wind and sun, and partly to market conditions which
prevented a proper appreciation of this product. Hemlock was
ordinarily not estimated at all or only the largest and best trees
were considered. According to the best informed persons,
there are standing at present nearly 12,000 million feet of hem-
lock saw timber, an estimate which, in the opinion of the writer,
is still 25 per cent. below the real truth. The distribution of this
supply over the several counties is given in the general table,
and whatever may be said of the total, the figures are believed
fairly to represent the relative proportions. In places hemlock
is extensively peeled for its bark; considerable quantities are cut
into lumber, chiefly dimension stuff, and some of it is used as
pulp wood. In general, however, it is not yet appreciated, so
that neither stumpage nor logs can readily be sold and millions
of feet are wasting in the woods. The ability of the hemlock
to endure crowding and shading is more than offset by its slow
growth and its demands on the soil, so that this tree deserves but
a secondary place in the forest of the future.

ARBORVITAE (CEDAR).

Arborvite or cedar in Wisconsin is practically limited to the
moister hemlock area, but unlike this latter, continues through
Douglas county into Minnesota, where it is a common tree
throughout the humid forest region. Generally the cedar
24 FORESTS OF WISCONSIN.

(arborvitz) is limited to the swamps, but as in parts of Minnesota
and Michigan, it also invades the ordinary forests. In many
swamps it is wanting, frequently it is sole occupant; more com-
monly, however, it is mixed with tamarack, some spruce and
often a few scattered hardwoods; it forms dense thickets, repro-
duces well, grows rather slowly, is generally under 18 inches in
diameter at four feet from the ground, and is less than 60 feet
in height; the older trees are normally defective at the butt.
The yield of cedar is extremely variable and difficult to estimate.
As it is saleable down to 4 and even 3 inches diameter the yield
is generally great wherever the swamps have not been burned.
A total of 1,300 million feet B. M., the equivalent of 2,600,000
cords, may be regarded as a very conservative estimate. Cedar
(arborvite) is cut for posts, poles, both telegraph and telephone,
ties, and shingle timber. Wherever it is near highways, cedar
finds good market; the logging is generally done on small scale,
and exact figures for the total cut are therefore not accessible.

TAMARACK.

Tamarack, like cedar (arborvite) grows chiefly in the
swamps; only in some of the moist and cold localities, especially
along Lake Superior, does it invade to a small extent the upland
woods. Unlike the arborvite the tamarack inhabits the
swamps quite to the western and southern limits of the district
under consideration, and even stocks part of the swamps of the
adjoining oak and jack pine openings or brush prairies. In
these drier localities it remains small, but within the more humid
parts it attains commonly to 12 cr 16 inches in diameter, reach-
ing a height of 70 to 80 feet with a most remarkably small taper.
It reproduces well, grows quite fast, forms very dense thickets,
often entirely covering the swamp with poles of nearly one age
and size, but also often occupying merely its edges or the center.
It may be practically alone, i. e., form groves of pure growth,
but quite often it is mixed more or less with cedar, spruce, and
some hardwoods. The former condition frequently or nearly
TAMARACK. 25

always obtains in the drier western or southern parts. Being
saleable only as tie and pile timber, tamarack under 10 inches is
not merchantable; and many swamps, though densely stocked,
contain not a cord of marketable material. The older stands
are generally more open, many of the trees having fallen prey
to age and weather. These, with the tall marsh grass and the
large masses of dead and fallen timber form, during dry seasons,
most favorable starting points for fire. For this reason many of
the swamps, in some counties the majority, contain no green tim-
ber and continue to be for years a serious menace to the sur-
rounding country. The standing merchantable tamarack is es-
timated at about 1,600 millions of feet or 3,200,000 cords, to
which would have to be added at least an additional 3 million
cords, if pulp wood down to 4 inches is included.

In estimating the amounts of swamp timber, both cedar (ar-
borvitee), tamarack, and spruce, the area of the swamps is esti-
mated in lump for some counties, but more commonly by going
over the minutes and maps for each township with some well-
informed person. The area of burned-over and open swamps
was then deducted, and finally a yield per acre for the wooded
swamp area settled upon. This latter is generally about 3 thou-
sand feet or 6 cords per acre, and though apparently low, is not
far from the truth when compared with estimates of large areas
which have been examined in this connection. In the propor-
tion of cedar (arborvite), tamarack, and spruce, locality and
market conditions are considered. For some localities, upland
cedar and spruce are also estimated.

Though many of the tamarack and cedar swamps will, in
time be converted into hay marshes and even fields, both cedar
and tamarack could well continue to produce large quantities of
useful material. At present but little tamarack is cut. Some
is sawn into dimension stuff, little of it is used for piling and
poles. Strangely enough, the poor sappy poles of red (Norway)
pine are preferred to it in the market, and tamarack, even for
ties, has such a poor rating that most of the ties of these sections
are either shipped in or made of hemlock.
26 FORESTS OF WISCONSIN.

SPRUCE.

Spruce occurs scattered throughout the moister loam land
districts, especially of the northern and eastern part of this terri-
tory, but is more commonly restricted to the swamp and semi-
swamp areas. On many of the poor moss bogs it forms the only
tree growth. It is nowhere abundant, form no solid bodies, in
a mere runty shrub or half tree on the moss bog and even on the
better soils attains a diameter of only about 12 inches with a
height of 50 feet. Trees over 12 inches are the exception, trees
18 inches and over are rare. It seems to reproduce fairly well,
endures shade but seems sensitive to changes in soil moisture,
thriving only in very moist localities. Being scattered, spruce
is logged only in a small way, though altogether considerable
quantities are being cut for pulp and an increase of this cut may
be expected.

The total stand of spruce in North Wisconsin may be placed
at about 1,200,000 cords, including all wood down to 4 inches.

BALSAM FIR.

Balsam fir is thinly scattered in most forests of the more hu-
mid loam and clay lands. Like spruce it is often wanting over
considerable tracts, but few large districts are entirely without
it. It reproduces well, stands crowding, and endures shade;
grows fairly well when young and favorably situated, remains
small, but is never as shortlived as is often supposed. It is gen-
erally less than 12 inches in diameter and below 60 feet in
height. It never forms large bodies of forest, is little used as yet,
rarely cut for logs, occasionally for temporary buildings, and of
late, to some extent, for pulp wood. Being usually left out of
timber estimates, the amount of standing balsam is not easily
ascertained. In all forests where balsam fir occurs in commer-
cial quantities the yield per acre was placed at from 2 to 4 M.
feet B. M. or 4 to 8 cords per 40 acres, an estimate which agrees
with some estimates made by the Chicago & Northwestern Rail-
way company in Forest and adjoining counties. This figure will
HARDWOOD SUPPLIES. 27

generally prove considerably below the truth, but it seems de-
sirable to have at least some estimate, however crude, of this
material, especially as it is already beginning to have a market
value as pulp wood. Including everything from 4 inches up
there are probably about 800,000 cords. ‘The balsam fir has no
future, the ground it occupies is largely farm land, its growth
is too slow, its size too small to commend it to future operations.

HARDWOOD SUPPLIES.

No sharp limits of distribution or composition of the great
hardwood forest are possible, aside from the general outlines of
the part which bears hemlock and birch as differentiated from
the oak forest. Basswood, maple, elm, and ash, the principal
hardwoods aside from oak and birch, all entered into the com-
position of the hardwood forest in nearly all parts of this area,
though in widely varying proportions. Thus in one locality
elm forms 30 per cent. and more of the woods, while in another,
but few miles distant and with soil, drainage, etc., alike, the elm
is nearly replaced by basswood or birch. Nor is it easy to draw
lines with reference to size and quality of development. Good
timber on good soils passes by easy stages into inferior timber
on poorer soils, and it is but fair to say that some good timber
grows in every county. In general it is an unquestionable and
well recognized fact that the hardwood timber becomes smaller
and scrubbier toward the north; and, when the extremes, as for
instance the hardwoods of Dunn or of Shawano counties are
compared with those of Iron and Douglas counties, this truth
is quite apparent, but the transition is gradual and any apparent
lines of demarcation are generally explained by differences in
soil rather thar effects of climate. In the southern portion of
the area under consideration, the hardwoods attain considerable
dimensions. Oak, basswood, and elm 90 to 100 feet high and
over 30 inches thick are nothing unusual. In general, how-
ever, the mature timber is under 30 inches in diameter and under
75 feet in height, and on large tracts shorter than 60 feet and
under 20 inches.
28 FORESTS OF WISCONSIN.

Generally the hardwoods are “short bodied” as compared to
conifers; they furnish per tree about 2 1-2 logs and in the north-
ern counties scant 1 1-2 logs, of which it takes 7 to 10 to the
thousand feet B. M. Of the different kinds, basswood and elm
are tallest and longest in body, the former quite commonly cut-
ting 3 and even 3 1-2 logs per tree, and the latter often furnish-
ing ship timbers 60 to 70 feet in length. Birch is generally the
shortest, and large trees often furnish but a single log. As
might be expected, much of the older hardwood timber is in all
stages of degeneration and decay, so that much of it is defective
and the cut consequently wasteful. The oak, being naturally
the longest lived and having the most durable wood, is least af-
fected, “it cuts sound;” basswood, birch, and ash are about alike
and quite defective when old; while of all hardwoods the maple
is the worst in this respect. With this tree especially, the fault
is not entirely a matter of age but seems largely due to injury
in consequence of frost; “frost cracks” with their peculiar ram-
part-like thickenings or ridges along their edge being very com-
mon. ‘These cracks admit fungi and inseets and thus introduce
decay. This evil in maple is most strongly complained of in
the central and northern parts and least in the southeast and
southwest, where a great deal of fine maple occurs.

Concerning the yields in hardwoods, opinions differ widely;
the estimates are generally +oo low and are commonly deficient.
The reasons for this are several. Lack of experience both in
estimating and milling of hardwoods is a chief cause, the men
being used only to pine but not to hardwoods. To this must be
added, lack of time, the work usually being too hurried, and
also the fact that most of the work is done for certain kinds of
timber only, oak, basswood, elm, etc. Such estimates usually
include only choice material, the peculiarities of the hardwood
market reacting even on the matter of estimates. Generally
the yields are estimated at from 80 to 150 M. feet per 40 acres,
or 2 to 4 M. feet per acre for fair to good lands, and from
25 to 50 M. feet per 40 acres for the poorer lands and the
northern lake districts. Some townships in Wood and Marathon
HARDWOOD SUPPLIES. 29

counties are known to have cut over 100 million feet per town
or nearly 5 M. per acre for the total area, swamp and all.
Smaller districts, as some forests in Shawano and Langlade
counties, cut from 10 to 15 M. feet per acre, but these must be
regarded as exceptions.

The standing hardwood and hemlock was determined by as-
certaining the area of fairly stocked woodland, excluding swamp
lands, then settling on the yield per acre, or 40, and finally
estimating their relative proportions. The determination of
the area is the weakest point in the estimates. The yields for
all principal localities are based on wholesale estimates and re-
sults of actual operations. Thus the cut per township, or the
cut for a number of sections, was considered, as also the esti-
mates of lumbering and railway, companies, besides the detailed
experience of several hundred men, and the results weighed by
comparing the growth in different localities. ’

The proportions of hemlock and hardwood and the different
kinds of hardwoods among themselves, is also ascertained in
the same manner. There exist for cll principal localities, ex-
tensive detailed estimates; those of the Chicago & Northwestern
Railway, :and also those made for several years by Mr.
Ben. Hall of Marinette, are models of this kind. Of these,
a number were examined, and in addition the views of different
operators compared. To most men the figures of yield will
probably seem high, and in truth 6 M. feet per acre, or 240 M.
per 40, does appear like a large amount even for the best
counties. But it must not be forgotten that here all kinds
of timber, birch, maple, elm, ete., are considered merchantable,
and also that all sizes above 12 inches diameter, and for oak
and hemlock even tie sizes are included. Waste and swamp
areas are excluded and thus only the acres of well stocked land
enter into consideration. Those who consider the yield as
taken too low (and there will be many of these) will bear in mind
that merchantable saw timber in hardwoods and hemlock, is at
present quite a different thing from pine, and also that both
hardwoods and hemlocks are short-bodied, have been injured by
30 FORESTS OF WISCONSIN.

fire, and involve in all old stands a heavy per cent. of defective
material.

Present stand of hardwood saw timber.

 

 

 

 

 

 

. Kind of wood. anion th, pee oe ros Percentage.
Oakes da caciec sack wasn aaneene ents = 1,400 8.6 75 per cent red oak.
BassS wOod wisioaisicscar estes elvis saasicisiecs 4,600 29.0
Bitch acscoccieecs oid jas seraereneiss 4,150 26.0 Yellow or red birch,
ELM bcicaenenivanen teas erates 2,650 16.5 30 per cent. rock elm,
WSs 55s eeex pees ees ee sete 900 5.6 Mostly black ash.
WORDS ciaacesacsndeaiisneicnne niece tiki 2,300 14.3

POCA 2 cisco sesinaciessiestinnds viele ddae 16,000

 

 

 

The hardwoods are cut in all parts of this territory, they are
generally logged in a small way and most of the lumber is cut
in smal] mills, with a yearly output of 1-2 to 5 million feet.
According to a masterly canvass conducted by the Northwest-
ern Lumberman of Chicago, the results of which are published
in its issue of January 22, 1898, the total output of hardwood
lumber amounts to about 275 million feet B. M. To this must
be added large quantities of mining timber used in the mines
of Florence, Iron, and Ashland counties, railway ties, piling
and construction, and ship timbers; and also considerable quan-
tities of cooperage material and wagon stock, which in the ag-
gregate probably bring up the total cut of hardwoods to about
500 million feet.

The most valued and therefore the most culled of the hard-
woods is the oak, particularly white oak, the exploitation of
which was begun in Wood and Clark counties more than 25
years ago. Of the other hardwoods, the basswood is most ex-
tensively cut and finds the most ready market, followed in this
respect by elm, particularly the fine rock elm. Birch, though
the prettiest wood of the region, is much underrated, owing to
fashions which prejudice the market. Nevertheless, large quan-
tities are cut every year and the same is true of maple, which is
HARDWOOD SUPPLIES. 31

generally the least estimated of the hardwoods. Owing to its
irregular distribution, ash is of local importance only, though
in some places it is claimed that ash logs are as easily procured
as almost any other. (Oconto county.)

Among trees of secondary importance aspen (poplar), white
birch, butternut and beech may be mentioned in order of their
economic value. The aspen (poplar), both the common aspen
and large-toothed aspen are found in all parts of the area, but
are conspicuous as timber trees only in the northern forests,
especially of Douglas, Bayfield, and Ashland counties. These
aspens (poplars) take possession of all burned slashings, but
aside from their value as nurse trees to pine and better woods
the aspens on the slashings of North Wisconsin have generally
been of no value so far, and it appears doubtful if they ever
will be except in a few localities, chiefly in the better sandy
loam districts.

The white birch is best developed near Lake Superior, but
never grows large, generally remaining a mere sapling, com-
monly less than 12 inches in diameter and 50 feet in height. In
this territory it is almost always a member of mixed woods,
often joining the white pine, and rarely forms thickets by itself
(on some burned areas in Forest county.) It is cut for chair
stock, etc., but 90 per cent. of all white birch is too small for
present markets.

The butternut is sparingly scattered over the better loam
lands as far north as the Iron Range. It occurs isolated, rarely
in small groups, and though it grows to good size its distribution
here seems uncertain and accidental.

The beech is restricted to the sandy loam lands of the Green
Bay region, and invades only the edges of the real loam or clay
lands of northern Oconto and Shawano counties. Wherever
seen, it appears to thrive, is abundant in all sizes and evidently
reproduces well.

Throughout the hardwood forests all stages from the seed-
ling to the old and decaying timber trees are represented. In
some cases the stand of old, mature timber is quite heavy, and
32 FORESTS OF WISCONSIN.

undergrowth and sapling timber are restricted; but more gener-
ally the mature trees are in the minority, and are scattered
about, standing 10 to 20 per acre, and the greater part of the
ground is occupied by young trees, small saplings, and bushy
or withy beginners. The undergrowth is generally composed
of the young forest trees, and distinct kinds or species perform-
ing this function are few, often wanting. All kinds of hard-
woods reproduce actively as is well illustrated in numerous
windfalls and abandoned clearings, where dense thickets of
mixed hardwoods occupy every foot of the ground. Abund-
ance of seed and ability to stand shade enable the maple to pre-
dominate among the young growth even where it holds but
third rank and less as a timber tree. Conspicuous among the
young growth, without ever attaining the size of log timber,
are the blue beech, bush or striped maple, and, somewhat less
abundant, the hop hornbeam. As a common underbrush
proper, on both loam ard sandy soils, can be mentioned only
the hazel. The dogwood (cornel) and wild red (pin) cherry
are much less abundant; the latter becoming really conspicu-
ous only on the burned lands. The willows are quite abundant’
as scattering brushwood in open places, and occur on the dry
sandy soils as well as on clay lands. Alder replaces the large
willows along many of the streams and in some swamps. It is
never more than a bush, but as such forms characteristic alder
brakes.

The scrubby hardwoods of the openings consist almost exclu-
sively of oaks. A variety of both white and red oaks (partic-
ularly bur, white, and red oaks) grow here into bushy dwarfs,
15 to 25 feet high, 4 to 12 inches in diameter and branching
out almost from! their very base. These scrub oaks occasionally
form thickets but generally stand too far apart to prevent a
ground-cover of grass and weeds.

Since the hardwood forest occupies the better soils, its area
will necessarily continue to be diminished as the country is set-
tled, and the present supply of timber will be reduced at a rate
quite independent of hardwood lumbering. Nevertheless, the
SUPPLY OF TIMBER. 33

difficulty of clearing the land, the comparative safety from fires,
and the abundance of young, well growing stock all combine to
prolong the supplies. The outlook for the hardwoods is far
brighter than for the much more valuable pine.

TOTAL SUPPLY OF TIMBER.

In the following table the entire supply of timber is arranged
according to the uses that might be made of the same:
Classification of wood supplies.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

ConIFERS.
I. Saw Timser. As per cent. of
ape feet
wd Conifers. oes
White Pine........... 0... cece eee 15, 000 52 33.3
Norway pines... s.s6scseisawees ees 2,300 8 5
Hemlock scc.86'22s49505-auetenid 28 11, 700 40 26
NOTA IS so Gensdn dees Gees eietaaies Bees 29,000 100 64.3
Harpwoops.
I. Saw Timper. As per cent. of
Million feet
B. M. All hard-| Total saw

woods. timber.

Oale >. sceatlunaes ce ewanndinete 1, 400 8.6 3.1
Bassw00 vo jg3 20 hate Gees 4,600 29.0 10.2
Bin Gls accnuuscuies sos ae eeu enaais oS 4,150 26.0 9.3
Wo ectvicicie 28 haa ees tees 2,560 16.5 5.0
RSD 2avacissgiitscareieasrtemedse ees 900 5.6 2.0
Ma plese ciais's's ge ceiewl te deesgals Se 2,300 14.3 5.1
Totalers sis ssuyeiasse tet enres 16, 000 100 35.7

 

 

 

 

 

Total of saw timber, 4,500 million feet.
F, w.—3
34 FORESTS OF WISCONSIN.

Classification of wood supplies — continued.

 

 

 

II. Poxzs, Princ, Tres, Posts, Ero. MnO H ave
Cedar ose 225 054.0 tacua fe ieee ssh ceeds DENeGe eee 1,300
Tamarack (Over-Siin):o.cniiiie esac sca aaa tae as ae aku ame 1,600
Jack pine (OVEF BAN.) siinsiowan dete sia anim saiioncoswew spe eee 1,700
TO tall shonaaiee nes eres een ohGo See Aaa eG 4,600

 

 

III. Corp Woop For Potp, Furr, CHarcoat, Ere. | 1,000 Cords.

 

 

 

Hemiloe les. oss isiicecaea ice eng Relea Sone dG HR wadeS 5, 500
Jack pine (under 8 in.) ... 0... 0c cee cece eee eee eens 3,600
Tamarack: (under 810.) 0 so.esccennann ss eides vetannn ese: 3,000
OPLUCOsis cides oy ee dewer ce ese Sess oe eee 1,100
BAIS ATU 12.35.7221 2.208 Sustscsrantvassoarw eer At oad caseh a Mancigtect ui sect eye hoard 800

Totals for conifers.............. 0 0c cee eee eens ae 000
All kinds of hard wood). ji. 560:500s0-cocwraeie seen ase Edsel neida 60, 000

 

 

IV. Sappiinc PINE UNDER 8 INCHES aBouUT 5 MiLuion Corps.

It will be observed that an enormous amount of coniferous
material exists which under present conditions possesses hardly a
market value. Most of this material is good both for lumber
and pulp and it is to be hoped and expected that its loss by fire
and otherwise will be averted.

PRESENT ACCRETION OR INCREMENT.

In North Wisconsin a grove of well grown sapling timber
60 years old, of pine, may be assumed to cut at least as much
as 15 cords of bolt size material, or about 6 M. feet B. M. per
acre. In the old woods as they stand, the trees above sapling
size represent. the great mass of the wood material and therefore
the growth of wood is largely on trees nearly or quite of log
size, so that the same amount of growth per acre here adds
ACCRETION OR INCREMENT. 35

more saw timber than in the young grove above considered.
For this reason, a good thicket of pine 60 years old may not cut
much more than 6 M. feet per acre, since much timber is under
sized, but the same stand at 120 years old would easily cut 15-
20 M. in spite of the fact that over half the trees that were
found in the 60 year grove have died before this age is reached.
From this it would appear that 100 feet B. M. per acre and year
on sapling timber is probably a safe estimate for the growth
in this region. About the same conclusion will be reached if
a grove of old hardwoods is considered. Such a grove, which
may cut say 6 M. feet per acre, will be found to consist largely
of young trees, and among these 20-30 good sized older trees.
If examined, it will be found that the age of the oldest is not
over 150 years, so that here about one-third or legs of all the
trees standing on the acre have produced in 150 years the 6 M.
feet B. M., which we are taking for lumber. The whole acre,
therefore, may well be assumed to be able to produce this quan-
tity in one-third this time, or in other words the same acre might
be logged over for 6 M. feet about every 50 years. Such an
assumption is fully supported also by comparing the cross-sec-
tions of the pine and hardwood. ‘These show that, though the
rate of growth of hardwoods in Wisconsin is rather slow, yet
thegrowth of oaks, basswood, etc., equals and excels that of pine.

If, then, 100 feet B. M. per acre and year, be assumed as an
average estimate of growth for this region, the total annual
growth over the whole may be set at about 900, million, feet B.
M. and is distributed among the different kinds according to
their ascertained acreage as follows:

Million feet. Million feet.

White and red (Norway) pine.. 250] Cedar............ 0.2.0... 0 cee 20
JACK DINGe scene ceverameresess 30} Spruce and balsam............ 10
Hemlock ..........- Scechlncoae tits 15} Hard woods eiadcc eee sarnsca ay 500
Pamarack:: csca.cccn24si esas 30 —_—
915

Of this growth the greater part is balanced by decay or nat-
ural waste, which in all wild woods necessarily equals growth
when large areas and long periods are considered. For white
36 FORESTS OF WISCONSIN.

pine, red (Norway) and jack pine, also tamarack and cedar (ar-
borvitee) in Wisconsin, nearly half the present growth takes
place in young, immature timber, since this largely prevails.
With pine in the hardwood forest and still more with hemlock,
decay proceeds faster than growth; for spruce and balsam an
increase is doubtful, and with the hardwood forests in general,
growth and decay seem in a condition of equilibrium. This
growth is of course reduced by all operations reducing either
the forest area or the growing timber; by clearing, by logging
sapling or growing timber, and most of all by fires.

COMMUNAL INTERESTS IN FOREST CONDITIONS.

Forest and Wealth.

The importance of the forest to the State of Wisconsin as a
factor of wealth is very great. The statement that “the wood
industries have built every mile of railway and wagon road,
every church and schoolhouse, and nearly every town, and that
in addition they have enabled the clearing of half the improved
land of North Wisconsin,” is by no means extravagant exagger-
ation. Between 1873 and 1898 more than 66 billion feet of
pine alone were cut, from this forest and even then the lumber
industry was in a flourishing condition on all the streams and
had built up La Crosse, Eau Claire, Chippewa Falls, Grand Rap-
ids, Wausau, Fond du Lac, Oshkosh, Green Bay, and many
other places. The output of the lumber industry alone for the
year 1897 is illustrated in the following table, taken from the
Northwestern Lumberman, whose excellent canvass has before
been referred to:
CUT OF LUMBER. 37

Total cut of lumber in Wisconsin for the year 1897 (taken from the
Northwestern Lumberman, January 22, 1898.

 

 

 

 

 

Million Feet B. M.
Name of district. White and
nous ¥ | Hemlock. |Hardwood.
Gonads
“Below Minneapolis,” i. e., on

Mississippi Riverl............ 0... .cceceee eens 284.3 3.8 7.1
Bie Cres Valley. cc occucnuesensns coda sanncson MOBO) © Spoite Rocdtetienellrerarcis Grape ciuneie
Chippewa Valley 274.3 18.8 ee
“Omaha” Road (Ch., St. P., M.&O.R. RD] 185.2 |... eee
Wisconsin Valley..... 0.2.0... c000 cee cece eee 398.7 23.6 60.6
Wisconsin Central Road. scccccasys cveveee| B41 24.8 84.5
Lake Shore (Ashland Branch)...............] 126.5 18.9 61.1
Ashland disthittwicius ceniescscas cosy axeaves 265.3 26> | aaecdeaa
“Soo” Line (N. St. P.& S. St. M. R.R.)...} 50.2 2.6 TA
East Central Wisconsin..............6.00 eee 36.6 9.9 6.9
Souther Wiens itive vecwwriiwkx cee Ueda ginal enemas eeseaslneeey 10.3
MiscellaneGus cccazesscsacnes crns was tees eee ewe be ceases 2.7
Duliih Distittccixenanwsex 2 noe coewsvcs BAO! <> | f saseretesciescc eine baste ny eleieten ators
Green Bay Shore (a) below Menominee ?.... 129.0 ro 6
Green Bay Shore (b) on Menominee......... 167.0

Total ciscsicce cars ariniaponrctnsdenisemercinde teas 2190.7 116.4 273.0

 

 

 

 

 

1QOnly ¥ of the original item is supposed to be cut on Wisconsin soil,

2 Only % of the original item is supposed to be cut on Wisconsin soil.

3 Only % of the original item in Menominee is supposed to come from Wisconsin, but
the part ‘“‘below Menominee” is all credited as cut in Wisconsin.

The following table, the data for which have been taken from
the annual statements of the lumber cut, as given by the
Northwestern Lumberman represents chiefly the output of
pine. Since in the original statements Wisconsin was not clearly
separated from Minnesota on the one hand and Michigan on the
other, it was necessary to modify some of the original figures.
The “Duluth District” was entirely left out as being supplied
from Minnesota although West Superior is included in this
item. This latter item could be segregated and added to the
38 FORESTS OF WISCONSIN.

data given below, only for the cut of 1897. Of the “St. Croix
River” and “Green Bay shore” only one-helf is credited to Wis-
consin; and of the “Mississippi River” only one-third.

Cur or Lumper, (CHIEFLY PINE) IN WISCONSIN DURING THE 25 YEARS ENDING 1897

 

 

 

 

  

Lumber cut Lumber cut

Year. mon Fee Year. Se Pee
1,240 DS ciavadnssd Migs tenants 2,710
1,200 A oS al em Rw eR 2,680
1,250 BOD Pacha neha suas nee dew deee 2,890
1,340 1888... sae 3, 210
1,000 FO8O os cecakinauuaus +324 peecae® 3,270
980 OG ca ss cakes wares a ee eg ee 3, 660
1,470 TN ok cs eacensan Lees eS 3,010
1,920 Us ss Sista bac ceaies: ut ok bam 4,010
2,190 SI cis heca/ietoslnetchoovies en Wei seasons 3,490
2,580 38,100
2,750 2, 800
2,950 1896 ssc stromeratnnce able sammie 2,080
WOOT seepnaes ace sae TR 2,430

TOGA LOL: 2O°V, GATS isio.sci | eisisce dseiers nis! oe5isicics| aawiedaare SMA oad memes a Maes iol 60,210

 

 

 

 

 

 

To this must be added about 10 per cent. for shingles, lath, etc., so that the total saw
mill output for the period was about 66 billion feet B. M. In this amount insignificant
quantities of hardwoods and hemlock are included, while in earlier times probably a
considerable amount even of pine cut is not represented, the earlier figures being less
accurately ascertained.

To this enormous amount of marketable material must be
added large quantities of cedar timber, ties, poles, posts, piling,
etc., also ties, piling, and construction timber of hardwoods and
hemlock; ship timbers, the exploitation of which has brought
special crews from Quebec and other points to these woods;
large quantities of cooperage and wagon stock; many million
feet of mining timbers; besides many more millions of feet of
material for home use, fuel, and charcoal. The value of these
materials according to the State Census of 1895 exceeded in
that year the enormous sum of 53 million dollars for “lumber
and articles of wood” alone. This sum amounted to more than
VALUE OF LUMBER. 39

one-third the entire value of the products of agriculture. Be-
sides these materials there were large quantities never recorded.
by the census and still larger amounts were used in home con-
sumption as fuel, fencing, construction material, etc., which
may safely be valued at 10 million dollars.

In 1890, according to the very incomplete federal census of
that year, the value of the rough lumber, cooperage, and wagon
stock, ties, poles, posts, piling, and all products of the wood in-
dustries as they leave the first hand, amounted to 40.4 million
dollars. If to this is added the value of pulp and tanning ma-
terial, of mining timber, and that of the large home consump-
tion, it brings up. the total to fully 50 million dollars for these
products at first hand and shows them, like the census figures of
1895 to exceed one-third of the value of all farm products of
the state. And to these farm products alone are the simple
forest products comparable, for in most other industries the
same article often highly finished and costly, appears with little
or no modification as a product of several branches of the same
industry. Thus for instance, the same piece of costly wrought
metal is.first credited to the rolling mill, then appears with lit-
tle change as a product of the boiler maker, and reappears with-
out change as part of a distilling outfit, or a steam engine. It
thus occurs three times as a product of the iron industry, besides
perhaps swelling the output credited to a shipbuilding estab-
lishment.

Besides their own value, the products of the woods stimulate
secondary manufacturing industries, supply planing and pulp
mills, furniture, cooperage, and wooden-ware establishments,
wagon and car shops, whose aggregate output in wooden articles
amounts to over 20 million dollars.

In 1890 there was invested in the saw milling industry alone,
according to the census of that year, fully 84.5 million dollars,
or a sum equal to one-third of the assessed value of all land in
the state, or about one-sixth of the value of all real estate and
over one-eighth of the assessed value of the entire wealth of
Wisconsin. Of the 84 millions over 18 fall to the milling
40 FORESTS OF WISCONSIN.

plants and machinery, 11 millions to logging equipments, log-
ging railways, etc., including also logs on hand at the time, and
over 31 millions to timberland, tributary and belonging to the
saw-mills, These same establishments paid during that year
nearly $700,000 taxes, a sum equal to the total state taxes of
Wisconsin; they paid over $3,000,000 for running expenses
aside from wages; about 15 million dollars for wages and log-
ging contracts and over $700,000 for the keep of animals alone.

The lumbering industry gave employment in a regular way
to over 55,000 men (not women and children), besides purchas-
ing several million dollars worth of logs. .Of those persons em-
ployed in these operations a large per cent. are settlers who
through this industry alone are enabled to support themselves
until their slowly growing clearings furnish sufficient harvest.
It is the taxes on timber land (not waste land, however,) and its
industries which furnish the “road money” and it is this same
fund which builds, equips, and largely maintains in the thinly
settled backwoods of Wisconsin, schools equal if not better than
those of the country districts of any other state. It is this same
industry which for years has made farming in the backwoods
more profitable, and the farmers more prosperous than those of
some other states with milder climates and equally fertile soil.
Nor is it the pine alone which has done and is doing so much
for this country. For owing to an unnecessary and injurious
competition in the exploitation of the pineries there has result-
ed a concentration of milling and logging operations which in
many cases deprived the particular counties in which the pine
supplies were located, of much of the benefit which otherwise
would have accrued to them from this resource. It is therefore
to be expected that to counties like Langlade, Shawano, Forest,
Lincoln, Taylor, and others, the standing hemlock and hardwoods
promise to be of greater value than was their former stand of
pine.

Forest, Climate, and Waterflow.

It is conceded by all that the forest exerts a beneficial influ-

ence in tempering the rigors of a cold continental climate with
FOREST, CLIMATE, AND WATER FLOW. 41

its sudden changes and severe storms. What share the forest
has in the general changes of humidity is not so apparent. It
seems quite certain that a general and very gradual change from
a moister to a drier condition has been going on for a long
time over the entire Lake Region. The behavior of hemlock
and even of white pine in the matter of distribution is probably
in part due to this change. How much the forests have done
to retard the progress of this desiccation can only be inferred.
On the other hand there are striking changes in the drainage
conditions which have required but a short time, have taken
place within the memory of many of the residents, have fairly
forced themselves on the attention of all experienced and ob-
serving people. These are all too intimately connected with
the changes in the surface cover to leave in doubt the influence
of the forest upon drainage.

The flow of all the larger rivers has changed during the last
40 years; navigation has been abandoned on the Wisconsin,
logging and rafting have become more difficult on all rivers,
and, what is even a far better measure of these important
changes, the Fox river is failing to furnish the power which it
formerly supplied in abundance. On all smaller streams simi-
lar observations have been made. The “June freshet,” which
in former years could be relied upon in driving operations, has
ceased on most streams and is uncertain on the rest of them.
Of the hundreds of miles of corduroy road a goodly per cent.
has fallen into disuse, the ground on the sides has become dry
enough for teams, many swamps of former years are dry, and
hundreds of others have been converted into hay meadows and
fields without a foot of ditching. Tamarack stood on parts of
the present site of Superior, and both cedar and tamarack were
mixed through the forests in many places where the mere
clearing has sufficed to dry the land for the plow. Many of the
smaller swamps are changed before actual clearing takes place.
Where the fires following the logging operations have cleaned
out the swamp thicket, aspen followed the fire exactly as in the
upland, and though in some cases many years have elapsed, the
42 FORESTS OF WISCONSIN.

places have not reverted to swamp timber. The ground is too
dry, the hardwood thickets have come to stay. These things
are well known, especially to the woodsmen of the region; they
are in all cases referred to the removal of timber, and there is
probably no locality in the world where this subject could bet-
ter be studied than in North Wisconsin. A drive with some
old resident through the settled parts of Shawano, Marathon,
Taylor, and other counties and the rehearsal of his memories pre-
sent matters of the utmost interest in this connection, and will
hardly fail to convince even the most skeptical of the decided
changes in drainage and soil moisture which have occurred here:
and are still in progress.

THE OUTLOOK FOR THE FUTURE.

It is impossible to foretell how long the, pine is likely to last.
As stumpage increases in price and the opportunity to buy it
decreases, one mill after another drops out. Half the mills of
20 years aga are no longer in existence, not because they failed
to pay but because their pine supplies gave out, and this same
process will continue. The output, already on the decline, will
grow smaller, and the exploitation of the 17 billion feet of stand-
ing timber is likely to be drawn out over a period far greater than
would seem possible with the present rate of cutting. Never-
theless, the experience of parts of Michigan and also of Wood,
Portage, and other counties in Wisconsin indicate that cutting
will go on without regard to the end, and its rate depends
merely on considerations of market conditions and facilities for
handling timber, so that the end of the greater part of pine lum-
bering is likely to be quite sudden, and its effect correspond-
ingly severe.

The cut of hemlock, though still small, may at any time take
on considerable dimensions. There are several good reasons
which make this desirable. The wood is much better than is
commonly assumed, and it is mere prejudice—and more the
prejudice of the carpenter than of the consumer—which pre-
fers poor pine to good hemlock. For some time the old hem-
THE FUTURE. 43.

lock has been dying out quite rapidly in most parts of this area;
this process will certainly continue and unless the old stands.
are cut, much valuable material will be lost.:

Hardwood lumbering will continue for a long time, though
probably at a very variable rate. As things are now, the pres-
ent cut of 4-500 million feet per year can be continued for
more than 50 years unless settlement and consequent clearing
should progress at a very unusual pace.

The outlook for the forest itself has been indicated in the pre-
ceding. The hardwood forest is being reduced by. logging and
clearing, the pineries are disappearing and fires assist the de-
struction of both besides burning out the swamps.

As pointed out, both white and red (Norway) pine are per-
fectly capable not only of continuing as forests but of reclothing
the old slashings, but are generally prevented from doing so by
fire.

The hemlock is in a process of natural degeneration and even
the hardwoods, though thrifty and intact as forests, seem to fail
on most cut-over lands wherever fire has run. Thus about 60
per cent. of the burned over lands are today devoid of any val-
uable growing timber; producing firewood at best. Another 40
per cent. of the 8 million acres of cut-over lands are entirely
bare. And this unproductive area is rapidly increasing in ex-
tent under present methods.

Counting that 100 feet B. M. could be grown as the possible.
annual increment per acre on lands which are left entirely with-
out care, save the protection against fire, the State of Wisconsin
loses by this condition of affairs a round 800 million feet B. M.
of a marketable and much needed material. This loss is pri-
marily a communal loss, a damage to county and state, for the
individual owner does not suffer; the land is bought for the
timber and when this is cut the land is only held if it appears.
that, a low tax assessment and opportunities to sell, etc., will
promise more profit in holding than in abandoning it.
”

44 FORESTS OF WISCONSIN.

FORESTRY OR AGRICULTURE. -

The point is raised that this land is needed for agricultural
purposes; that all of it will soon be settled since even on the
poor sand lands improved methods and potato crops have proved
a success. While the statement is certainly true of all good |
clay or loam lands, it applies but doubtfully to over half and
certainly not at all to nearly 40 per cent. of this area. How
long it takes to improve a territory, how much unproductive
waste remains even in the older so-called “well settled” counties
appears from the following concrete cases.

Of old Sauk county not one-half is improved land; the five
counties of Adams, Waushara, Juneau, Marquette, and Mon-
roe, with an aggregate area of over 2 million acres of uncom-
monly level land, have 30 per cent. improved land, or over one
and one-half million acres of waste and brush land, most of which
is not even serving the purpose of pasture. Adams, Marquette,
and Waushara counties with their 800,000 acres of waste land,
instead of having 80 million feet of pine to sell which might be
growing every year on its non-productive area, supported in
1895 a wood industry whose product. amounted to the pitiful
sum of $13,000 and probably the material for this was imported.

But even where the land is good and might all be farmed it
remains doubtful whether the forest can entirely be dispensed
with. Experience in older countries and the Eastern States
speaks against this; the farmers of the fertile prairies are plant-
ing trees for the sake of wood, on land of unexcelled fertility.
Some of the farmers of Trempealeau and other counties who go
20 and more miles, invading jack pine groves for their fuel, find
that wood is both too necessary to do without and too bulky to
haul far; and valuable as pasture land is to the thrifty farmer
of southern Wisconsin, the great importance of a convenient
wood supply has led to an actual increase in wooded area in
most of the southern counties of the state.

How soon the 17 million acres of wild land of North Wis-
consin will be settled no one can tell; the likelihood is that over
WASTE, 45.

10 million acres, and among these much of the best land, will
still remain either woods or unproductive brush land in 50 years.
to come. What advantage it is to a county and to the state to
have poor, unproductive sand lands <cettled by poor and igno-
rant people, and support farms “without barns,” cannot here be
discussed. In the same way, it is not here contemplated to en-
ter into the question of communal property, i. e., whether it
might not be well for a county, which can get land for the
mere taking, to hold a few townships in county forests and
have these county forests at least defray the county expenses,.
and give work to many people. If not the counties, certainly
the state can afford to acquire and hold for the future all cut-
over lands. Such communal properties have been mainstays
of European states in all financial crises and have been eagerly
sought and, guarded by all European governments as well as by
towns, counties, and cities. With a county holding 100,000
acres of good forest land, every citizen becomes part owner, his.
store or shop is valued in proportion as it shares these advant-
ages, and instead of hindering the development of a county, as
is often claimed, such a forest property would stimulate im-
migration and help to develop both directly and indirectly all
the resources of the county.

RECOVERY AND PREVENTION OF WASTE.

What can be done to save the enormous loss to the state is
clear: The land must be restocked and the young timber must
be given a chance to grow on all lands which are essentially
forest soil and not desirable for agriculture.

Forest Fires.—What the fire has done to the pine supply is
apparent from the conservative figures of original stand of pine.
Besides this injury to pine, the fire has killed more than 5 bil-
lion feet of hemlock, at least 1 billion of cedar and several bil-
lions of hardwoods besides large quantities of tamarack. In ad-
dition fire has killed stands of young and sapling pine (under
8-inch diameter) covering many thousand acres, which today
46 FORESTS OF WISCONSIN.

would furnish 5 billion and more of merchantable material.
This same work of destruction continues; this very fall (1897)
many hundreds of acres of young sapling pine were ruined by
fire, and it will require many years before the opening of set-
tlements and roads suffices to suppress the fire fiend. From this
it is clear, and the fact is fully conceded by all persons convers-
ant with the conditions of these woods, that the first and most
important step in the right direction consists in the organiza-
tion of an efficient fire police.

That a diversity of opinion should exist on this subject, is
but natural. To most people the entire subject is foreign, the
problem too large. To many even well informed and experi-
enced men the forest fire is an enormous affair, a calamity
which man is entirely unable to combat. Nevertheless, the
best informed men, nearly all woodsmen (‘‘cruisers” and log-
gers), whose opinion was sought in this connection expressed
themselves in favor of such a police and felt certain of good re-
sult. In considering this important subject it may be of in-
terest to point out a few fundamental facts which may help to
shape a policy.

1. All fires have a small beginning. The Peshtigo fire, by
far the most terrific ever experienced in Wisconsin, was known
to be burning and gathering head for fully two weeks before it
broke out in the final and then perfectly unmanageable form.
The Phillips fire was heard and the smoke seen and felt in town
for days before it reached the village and converted it into
ruins.

2. All fires stop of their own accord after they have run for
but a moderate distance, evidently finding obstacles which gradu-
ally reduce their power. The Peshtigo fire did not involve the
fourth part of Marinette county; the Phillips fire not a fourth
of Price, and a most intense fire in northern Chippewa county.
which when at its best sent fire-brands across a lake over half
a mile wide, did not keep on running, but stopped without
going much, if any, beyond the county line.

3. The majority of fires are small fires. When the “whole
WASTE. 47

country is on fire” it is not one fire but hundreds of separate
fires, all or nearly all of which have had their origin in careless-
ness.

4. It is carelessness and not malice, and it is more careless-
ness of letting fires go than of starting them which has resulted
in the enormous losses.

5. Forest fires are diminishing in number as settlement. pro-
gresses; every road, every clearing, helps to supply barriers, in-
creases the number watching and fighting fires, and assists in
the work of control.

6. Forest fires are both prevented and fought in the wild
forests of India and in all parts of Europe; in localities where
hundreds of acres of the young sapling pine with their fine
largely dead and dried up branches (along the lower part of the
stem), stand so thick that it is difficult to pass and where in ad-
dition poverty and chagrin among a dense population living
close to the confines of the woods furnishes wilful and malicious
incendiaries.

To the greater part of the opponents of such enterprise it
may also be pointed out that for this country experience is as
yet almost entirely wanting; that in New York, in Maine, and
in Canada the fire police has done well and that it is impossible
for anyone to say at present, just how successful the fire police
of North Wisconsin will be. Even the little which has of late
been attempted to educate, remind, and warn the people in
matters of forest fires has already produced good results. The
placards sent out by the State Land office, practically without
cost to the state, have been extensively and judiciously placed,
the people read them and mind them. In this connection it is
to be regretted that the good attempts which have been made,
especially by the lumbermen of the Menominee river, to in-
troduce the burning over of the “works” or choppings through-
out the woods, has not found favor and was abandoned. This
process, experience shows, costs only 3 to 5 cents per thousand
feet of logs and would practically put an end to the regular
slashing fires. In the light of past experience it is clear to all
48 FORESTS OF WISCONSIN.

that not only 5 cents but even 50 cents per M. feet could prof-
itably have been devoted to the suppression of fire.

Changes on Cut-Over Lands.—The condition and character
of the aftergrowth on cut-over lamds is quite variable, since
changes occur in the plant cover as well as in soil conditions az-
cording to original condition and subsequent treatment. These
conditions and changes have a bearing on the question of the
future of these lands, whether they be left alone or be restocked
with timber, so that it appears desirable to give a description at
least of the more frequent types.

Sand Pinery Lands.—1. When a clean dense stand of ma-
ture pine timber is cut, and the fire gets into the slashing late
the following summer after all the limbs and tops on the ground
have had a chance to dry, the ground is fairly cleared by the
fire, the bulk of the tops are burned, a “stump prairie” remains.
On the poor sandy soil whose small humus cover has been thus
destroyed, there comes first a crop of fire weeds, then aspen and
sweet fern, with other weeds, and some grass and isolated
bushy scrub oaks (often some willows) cover the ground
sparsely. As soon as enough dry leaves and other material have
accumulated the fire recurs and the small aspen and other growth
are killed. By this time the ground is much reduced in fertility,
aspen is slower to return and the ground is largely taken by
weeds and grass. A few repetitions of fire change the ground
sufficiently to prevent the further growth of aspen for years
and there are many areas where this tree has given up all effort
to restock the land.

This seems to be the common form of slashing in heavy pine.
Such areas furnish little foliage for live stock, they are naturally
poor, and this condition is much aggravated by repeated fires
and exposure to wind and sun. To an attempt at restocking
with timber they offer no obstacle, save their poverty, which
would soon be changed by growing timber.

If the fire is not repeated in such a slashing the aspen forms
dense thickets in which pine, birch, and maple gradually find
suitable conditions for their growth. For years the detrimental
SAND PINERY LANDS. 49

effect of the fire is visible in the stunted growth of the young
trees; aspen, which in the original forest grow often several feet
a, year in height, remain short runts and it is not until ten and
more years of rest from fire have permitted the accumulated
litter to improve the soil, that a more vigorous growth becomes
apparent. Tracts of this kind occur in every county, but they
form only a small percentage of the total area of cut-over lands;
they are troublesome to clear after the thickets once have at-
tained considerable height and they furnish no good pasture.
To continue them as woodlands they require merely protection
from fire, and for their improvement pine should be supplied
either as seed or plants wherever it is wanting.

2. Where the old stand of pine was broken, and a consid-
erable mixture of small pine and hardwoods existed, there re-
mains after the first fire a large amount of scorched and charred
standing, dead and dying material. In this, as in the following
form of cut-over pinery lands, young growth readily succeeds
provided fires are not repeated. But this happy accident does
not generally occur; the great quantity of dead material, most
of which does not fall during any one year, keeps the ground
furnished for several years with débris and thus invites the re-
turn of fires, which continue to come until the ground is largely
cleared. The area now resembles the case first considered; it
is a stump prairie, though usually: not as clean. Here, too, the
return of tree growth is very slow and often discouraged alto-
gether for years.

3. Where groves of sapling pine have been culled of their
larger timber and are then fired, the greater part of the remain-
ing growth is injured and much of it is killed. These injured
groves are generally of little promise in themselves; their growth
is hampered, their scorched butts doomed to decay; but they are
valuable in so far as they readily restock the ground with young
timber, providing this is not killed by fire. If fire occur, which
is the more common case, the entire grove is either gradually
burned and killed, or if the fire gets in during a very dry season

BF, W.—4,
50 FORESTS OF WISCONSIN.

and attains considerable proportions, the entire grove is changed
at once into a tangle of scorched and charred poles, which require
for their improvement either a great amount of labor and ex-
pense or else the starting of more fires to first get rid of the
débris. Where fire runs through slashings (in large timber) too
early in the season when the ground is still wet, and also where
no fire occurs for several years after logging, so that the leaves
have become litter, and the small twigs are decayed, then the
slashings, even of wasteful operations where large amounts of
heavy tops and much dead and down material exists, are often
not burned clean and the ground is strewn with scorched logs
and tops, and many cases exist where settlers are logging today
on old slashings of this kind although not a living pine occurs.

Tt is but natural that these several forms grade into each other,
and that nearly every slashing, especially during the first few
years, markedly changes its complexion. In general the bare
land form predominates in all pinery areas and occupies today
probably about 70 per cent. of the cut-over lands.

Loam and Clay Lands.—4. <A greater admixture of hard-
woods, due to the presence of a larger amount of clay in the soil,
materially affects the condition of the cut-over land. If pine
was predominant and the hardwoods scant, as on the red clays
about Lake Superior and on the poorer gravelly loam, the re-
moval of the heavy stand of pine commonly involves almost a
total destruction of the hardwoods just as in the case of the regu-
lar pinery; the ground is soon cleared by a repetition of fires, the
aspen ceases to return. Unlike the sands, however, these loam
lands soon produce a fair amount of grass and the land is con-
verted into pasture.

5. Where the hardwood is heavier, and especially where
hemlock enters into the composition of the forest, the dead tim-
ber remains standing for years. A forest of dead trees and often
400-800 cords of timber per acre may be seen after repeated and
often severe fires have swept over the ground. Such areas are
not rare; the fires of 1894 created quite a number. They are
RESTOCKING. 51

undesirable pasture lands, difficult to clear and still largely too
good to be restocked with timber, which in such places would
require considerable labor and expense.

6. Where the heavy hardwoods and hemlock predominated
and the pine was a mere scattered admixture, the ground and
litter are usually damp, and fires run only during exceptionally
dry seasons (as in 1894). The removal of the pine from these
areas is not followed by fire; the lands are left densely timbered,
so that they hardly seem to deserve the appellation of cut-over
lands. Nevertheless, even in these forests fires have run, never
far, to be sure, but still strips five miles and more in length are
seen, where the fire has left a dense, heavy cover of dead and
dying, scorched and charred trees of all kinds. Fortunately
these tracts are not very numerous; their only hope lies in clear-
ing them for farm purposes, for which nearly all of this heavier
land is eminently well suited.

Restocking.— What may be done to restock the land will vary
from place to place, according as the land is well under way to
reclothe itself, or is a bare waste, or is a tangle of débris or cov-
ered with worthless thickets of fire damaged woods. This work
may be done at once or by piecemeal, it may be done thoroughly
or roughly, it may assist nature to a small or large degree.
Where scattered saplings and defective trees have been left in
logging and have survived the fires, these trees continue to seed
the ground, around each of them a little crop of seedlings springs
up after good seed years (every 3 to 5 years), and, if protected,
these grow and in about 20 years, by the time the mother trees
are gone, bear seed themselves and then really the process of
restocking begins. Thus much valuable time is lost and the
ground remains exposed too long to wind and sun and is thereby
reduced in its fertility.

In many districts seed trees are wanting; repeated fires have
killed both mother tree and seedlings, and nature must be as-
sisted if anything is to be accomplished in reasonable time. In
most sandy pinery lands where the fires have made a clean sweep,
the work does not require much preparation, and a very cheap
52 FORESTS OF WISCONSIN.

beginning can be made by planting a much smaller number (say,
500 per acre) than is really needed to make a satisfactory stand.
These plants, together with the poplar, birch, and other brush,
would soon make a cover for the ground, the young pine would
rapidly be growing into marketable wood and at the age of
twenty years and less would begin to shed abundance of seed so
that before the first trees are ready to cut every foot of ground
would be covered by a promising pine thicket.

Fire may have to be resorted to as a cheap and rapid means
of clearing the ground where it is covered with large quantities
of dead and fallen timber, and especially where dense thickets
of fire-killed brushwood offer serious obstacles to any sylvicul-
tural processes. The outlay for all work of this kind need be
made but once; the forest once established will be permanent
and by judicious logging and adequate protection against fire
will renew itself indefinitely.

Of equal and perhaps greater importance than the choice of
proper methods will be the selection of the proper kinds to plant.
Among the native growth the pines are preferable to the hard-
woods, and the white pine is foremost here as in every other re-
spect. Nevertheless, red (Norway) pine and even jack pine will
prove of great value and may often have to be resorted to. The
value of these pines lies in part in their frugality, since they are
perfectly satisfied with poor soils, really unfit for farming.
They are still more valuable in their gregarious habit, thriving
in great numbers together and thus facilitating exploitation, and
in their capacity of developing a large number of trees on a
small area. These powers, together with the great length of
their trunk, causes them to produce large yields, and, finally,
the character of their wood ensures for their product an almost
unlimited market at all times.

The white pine will thrive on 90 per cent. of all sandy areas
of Wisconsin and on, all loam and clay lands, grows fast and in
very dense stands, is useful for pulp at 30 years, for box boards
at 50 and makes lumber at 80 to 100 years. According to the
experience in Massachusetts and New Hampshire, groves 60
RESTOCKING. 53

years old cut over 30 M. feet shook boards per acre, and furnish
trees 12 to 20 inches in diameter and over 70 feet in height.
These New England groves, which have largely sprung up on
old abandoned farmlands and are generally without any particu-
lar management, are reported to furnish in the aggregate from
380 to 50 million feet per year.

Red (Norway) pine is even more frugal than white pine and
there is no sandy area in northern Wisconsin which this tree can
not cover with an abundant growth of fine timber. The jack
pine is the most frugal tree of all and though of small stature
and short-lived in Wisconsin, will prove a valuable aid in con-
nection with the other pines and especially as nurse tree on the
poorest sands.

To encourage the hardwoods will not be necessary except in
some localities. | Wherever abundant now they are growing
well and are likely to be continued in the wood lot of the farmer
on all clay and loam soils. It may safely be predicted that the
hardwoods in the better hardwood counties will be abundant for
many years. The hardwoods do not thrive on most of the land
here considered “forest land,” they refuse to grow on the sands,
yield light and cut wastefully. They furnish a product, which
however valuable intrinsically, will for a long time have to be
contented with a limited and exacting market.

To those who are frightened at the mere idea of planting for-
ests and who scorn European methods as impracticable in this
country, the example of Saxony may be of interest. In that
country the most intensive kind of forestry is carried on, so that
an area of 400,000 acres (about 2-3 as large as Lincoln county)
brings the state a net income of nearly 2 million dollars, and
furnishes regularly to its consumers about 20 million cubic feet
of wood per year, so that pulp mills and saw mills have long be-
come permanent institutions.

The forests in this state are largely planted with nursery stock,
yet the sylvicultural work of planting, sowing, etc., all told,
amounts, on an average for the entire woods, to 10 cents per
54 FORESTS OF WISCONSIN.

acre a year. This sum is only 6 per cent. of the total forest
expenses, which include all logging operations.

We can not here consider whether all these efforts will pay
as long as the land is held by private owners whose fortunes are
only of today and whose heirs will prefer to parcel the land out
to inexperienced settlers. The experience abroad and also in
this country indicates that the state must undertake at least the
most difficult and unprofitable parts of the work, and that the
greatest good to the greatest number lies in state ownership of
forests. New York waited a long time to see private owners
manage rationally in its woods, but has found itself compelled
at last to buy the land and to establish a forest organization to
keep its mountains from being converted into desert brushlands
and its streams from being alternately dry branches and mud
torrents. A similar undertaking in Wisconsin would, at pres-
ent, be greatly facilitated by the present conditions of owner-
ship. The land is still held in large bodies and by men actively
engaged in a business quite distinct from speculation and dealing
in real estate, and therefore a transfer could in most cases very
easily be effected and at prices (25 to 50 cents per acre) which
would seem to guarantee financial success to forestry even in the
backwoods of Wisconsin.

RESUME.

Briefly stated, the present conditions are as follows:

The State of Wisconsin, with a population of ebout 2 million,
a taxable property of about 600 million dollars, has a home con-
sumption of over 600 million feet B. M. of lumber, besides
enormous quantities of other wood material, which, if imported
would cost the State over 25 million dollars. Of its northern
half, a land surface of over 18 million acres, only 7 per cent.
is cultivated, the rest forming one continuous body of forest and
wasteland. From this area there have been cut during the last
60 years more than 85 billion feet B. M. of pine lumber alone,
and the annual cut during the past ten years exceeded 3 billion
feet on the average per year.
RESUME. 55

The industries exploiting this resource represented in 1890
one-sixth of the total taxable property in the State, paid to over
55,000 men the sum of over 15 million dollars in wages, and
the value of their products was equal to more than one-third the
entire output of agriculture. Of an original stand of about
1380 billion feet of pine, about 17 billion feet are left, besides
about 12 billion feet of hemlock and 16 billion feet of hard-
woods. The annual growth, which at present amounts to about
900 million feet and of which only 250 million is marketable
pine and over 500 million feet hardwoods, is largely balanced by
natural decay of the old, over-ripe timber. In almost every
town of this region logging has been carried on and over 8 mil-
lion of the 17 million acres are “cut-over” lands, largely burned
over and waste. The wooded area proper is steadily being re-
duced by logging and to a smaller extent by clearing.

At present nothing is done either to protect or restock the
denuded cut-over lands of which fully 80 pen cent. are now un-
productive wasteland and probably will remain so for a long
time. This policy causes a continuous and ever growing loss to
the commonwealth, which at present amounts to about 800 mil-
lion feet per year of useful and much needed material, besides
gradually but surely driving from the State the industries which
have been most conspicuous in its development, depriving a cold
country of a valuable factor in its climatic conditions and affect-
ing detrimentally the character of the main drainage channels
of the State.

To remedy this matter and stop the great loss, it will be neces-
sary to adopt active measures both to protect and restock. Both
these processes are adaptive and may be done with a variable de-
gree of thoroughness and consequent outlay.
56 FORESTS OF WISCONSIN.

FOREST CONDITIONS IN THE SEVERAL COUNTIES.

Ashland.—The northern one-fifth was formerly a pinery on red clay
soil with a thin sprinkling of inferior hardwoods, some hemlock and
occasional cedar and even tamarack on the more level areas. South
of this a mixed forest of hardwoods, hemlock, and pine on gray loam
and clay lands stocked both slopes of the range as well as nearly all
parts south of the range. In places, especially along streams, pine
was predominant, as was also the case on the small sandy tract
along the Flambeau river in the southeast corner of the county. The
pine timber along the lake, except that of the Indian reservation, is
cut and the pine has been culled from most of the mixed forest and
is estimated, all told, at only 300 million feet. Small patches about
the mines have been cut clean of all timber. Generally the hard-
woods and hemlock are culled and with a yield of 4 M. per acre
amount to about 700 million feet of hemlock and 900 million of hard-
woods, of which birch and basswood form fully 60 per cent., while
oak is hardly of economic importance. Fires have injured Ashland
county only in the pinery along the lake and thus even the swamps
are fairly well stocked with cedar, tamarack, and some spruce.

Barron.—The northern one-third, a gray loam and gravel land, was
stocked with a mixed forest of pine and hardwoods, the pine prevail-
ing, except on the ridges of the northwestern part of the county. In
the central part on a variable sandy loam, was a pinery with a thin
mixture of hardwoods and occasional better hardwood bodies. (See
“Soo” Line from Cameron west.) The southeastern one-fifth of the
county was sandy and bore jack pine and oak openings. The pine
is cut, except in the northern and northeastern towns; the hardwoods
are culled and in nearly all parts of the county damaged by fire. The
standing pine is in isolated bodies and is estimated at 150 million
feet. The scattering bodies of better hardwoods are believed to repre-
sent a stand of about 250 million feet in which oak, basswood, birch,
and maple enter in nearly equal proportions. The few swamps of
this county are reported bare of merchantable timber in larger quan-
tities. Large tracts of cut-over and burned land occur in nearly all
parts.

Bayfield.—A belt of red clay, 6 to 10 miles wide, skirting the lake, is
pinery with a light mixture of scrubby hardwoods and some hemlock.
The southeastern one-third, occupied by the basins of the Nemakagon
and White rivers, is a mixed forest of pine, hardwood, and hemlock
CONDITIONS IN COUNTIES. 57

‘on a gravelly gray loam; and the central and western part, a broad
belt extending from T. 50, R. W. southwest into Douglas county,
is a sandy jack pine and Norway pinery, with considerable white
pine in places. The timber along the lake, except that of.the Red
Cliff reservation, is generally cut; it is also heavily cut into on White
and Nemakagon rivers and along the Northern Pacific Railway. The
present stand of pine is about 3,000 million feet, of which a large part
falls to the regular pinery lands. In addition, there are about 400
million feet of hemlock and an equal amount of hardwoods, most of
which is birch, basswood, and maple; the oak, though abundant as
scrub wood, being scarcely represented as a real timber tree.

On some of the “barrens” or jack pine and bare sandy lands, no
timber existed when logging began, but there is evidence that in for-
mer times they, too, were covered by a forest of larger timber.

The numerous swamps of the southeastern part of this county are
fairly well stocked with both cedar and tamarack and also some
spruce. The swamps of the estuaries along the lake are generally cov-
ered by heavy growth of cedar. Bare wastes of great extent occur in
all localities where pine logging has been going on.

Burnett.—Nearly the entire county is a sandy jack pine and Norway
pinery, dotted with regular “barrens” and island patches of better
loam lands. In the northwest corner, north of the St. Croix river,
is a tract of gray loam lands stocked originally with pine, lightly
mixed with hardwoods. Along the south line of the county extends
a body of loam lands covered in part by heavy and almost pure
stands of hardwoods, only the sandy depressions bearing pine. The
pine in this county is largely cut, the little hardwood damaged by
fire and only jack pine occurs in extensive woods. The scattering
pine is estimated at about 200 million feet and about 200 million feet
of hardwoods are believed to occur in this county, besides some 300
million feet of jack pine, which sooner or later must become of value.
The swamps are largely bare or else covered by a light growth of
tamarack. A large part of this county is positively bare land, being
devoid of any forest cover.

Chippewa.—The southwestern and south central one-fifth of the
county is oak openings and prairie (extensively settled) in its west-
ern, and jack pine woods in its eastern part; the remaining four-fifths
of the county are forest. Of this, the part east of the Chippewa
river and small tracts along the river on the west side, are covered
by a mixed forest in which hemlock and birch are abundant, except
on the southeastern part of the county, where the birch and hem-
lock forest merges into an oak forest. In the timbered part of the
county west of the river the hemlock is missing and birch much less
58 FORESTS OF WISCONSIN.

common. Though the pine has been cut in all parts of this large
county, there is still a considerable amount scattered and in isolated
bodies which is estimated at about 500 million feet. The hardwoods.
have been cut into in the southeastern and also in the northwestern
part and large tracts have suffered heavily from the fires of the large
pine slashings following all the streams; the hemlock has been cut
but little, but like the hardwoods, has been damaged by fire. The
standing hardwood and hemlock yield about 5 M. per acre, the yield
in the pure hardwoods of the western part being lighter. About
800 million feet of hemlock and about 1,100 million hardwoods are be-
lieved to exist in this county. In the hardwoods in the western and
also the southeastern woods the oak is predominant, but on the whole
forms little over 10 per cent., while basswood and birch form over
half the total supply.

The swamps, extensive only in the northeastern part of the county,
have been much run over by fires and are, therefore, very poorly
stocked. Large areas of burned-over wastes occur along all the
streams.

Clark.—The greater part is a level loam land area, formerly cov-
ered by a forest of hardwoods, mixed with a remarkably heavy stand
of large white pine. Hemlock occurs only in the northeastern por-
tion. The western and southern part is invaded by the sandy area
covering Jackson and Eau Claire counties, and was formerly covered
by a pine forest without hardwoods. The pine has nearly all been
cut and was sawed at La Crosse and Eau Claire, and only about 20¢
million are believed to be still standing. The hardwoods are culled
especially for oak and have suffered from fires. The remaining sup-
ply is estimated at only about 650 million feet, of which oak is still
nearly 30 per cent., the remainder being chiefly basswood and elm.
Clark county has few swamps and these are poorly stocked.

The greater part of the county today is still covered by culled hard-
woods, much of it is settled and only the sandy pinery presents tracts
of bare waste many miles in extent. :

Douglas.—The northern one-third of this county is red clay land
with pinery in which is found an unusual mixture for this State of
pine (chiefly white pine), white and yellow birch, and other hard-
woods commonly with more or less cedar and tamarack. South of
this and extending south to the St. Croix river and east to the Brule
river is a similar forest of pine with a somewhat heavier mixture of
hardwoods, heaviest on the range, growing on gray loam land. The
southeastern part, south and east of the St. Croix, is a sandy jack
pine and Norway pinery with large jack pine woods following the
river into Burnett county. The pine has been cut along the lake and
CONDITIONS IN COUNTIES. 59:

also along the St. Croix river and the railways, but there is still a
great deal of standing timber in large and small bodies, estimated to-
cut about 3,500 million feet. ‘he hardwoods have been little invaded,
but since they form here but a secondary mixture, they are largely
killed by fire when the pine slashings are burned, as is well illustrated’
by the country about, and south of Superior. On Maple Ridge con-
siderable hardwood is cut, and strangely enough, oak forms often as
much as 25 per cent. of the yield. Scattering as they are, the hard-
woods are still believed to be about 700 million feet.

Dunn.—Of the sandy eastern half the northern portion is jack pine
woods and openings, the rest oak openings with real prairies. Of
the western half the clay and loam land ridges were covered with al-
most pure hardwoods and the more sandy valleys were stocked with
a mixed growth of large pine and hardwoods, the former often pre-
vailing. The woods on Hay river partook of the regular pinery form
and merged into the jack pine woods of the northeastern towns. The
pine is practically all cut, though the scattering patches still amount
to several million feet. The hardwoods are much interrupted by
clearings, many tracts have been culled and even cut clean. The iso-
lated tracts of hardwood, with a yield of about 4 M. per acre, are es-
timated to cut 400 millicu feet of which oak is 25 per cent., and bass-
wood and maple form 50 per cent. The few swamps are generally
bare of merchantable material. Large areas of bare wasteland occur
in the jack pine district and may be seen along the railway between
Wheeler and Summit. Many groves of fine young white pine are fast
growing into timber about Menomonie.

Florence.—The greater part of this county was a mixed forest of
pine, hardwoods, and hemlock on a gray loam, with smaller tracts of
regular pine land, especially along the streams, and a larger tract
in the northeastern part, where even jack pine woods covered con-
siderable ground. At present the pine is largely cut, and only about
150 millions of feet are believed to exist in this county. The hard-
woods and hemlock have not been cut except small patches about the
towns, but have been injured in places by fire. With 4 M. feet per
acre of both hardwood and hemlock, the cut of the latter is about
300 million feet and that of the former about 400 million feet, of
which basswood, birch, and maple form 75 per cent., while oak
searcely occurs. The swamps are generally covered and swell the en-
tire cut of timber by over 100 million feet. Burned areas occur in
every town of the county, occupying 20 per cent. of the entire land
surface. Here, as in other counties, they form a far’ greater propor-
tion of the area than is usually supposed.

Forest.—The northwest quarter of the county is largely a flat,
60 FORESTS Of WISCONSIN.

swampy pinery, the rest is a forest of mixed hardwood, pine, and hem-
lock, generally on gravelly gray loam. This mixed forest is inter-
rupted and dotted with numerous bodies of pine lands, where the
hemlock and hardwood almost disappear. The pine is mostly cut. It
is claimed that about 500 million feet arestill standing. The hardwoods
and hemlock are unculled and but little hurt by fires except about the
pine slashings. With 4 M. feet per acre of well stocked woods there
are about 500 million feet of hemlock and 1,000 miilion feet of
hardwoods, of which birch and basswood form about 60 per cent. As
in the neighboring counties, a little red oak occurs in Forest, but is
thinly scattered over the entire county and would hardly form more
than 2 per cent. of the cut. Many of the swamps are open bogs, the
rest are generally stocked and the swamp timber, cedar, tamarack,
and spruce, amount to fully 300 million feet. Nearly all pine slash-
ings are burned bare, so that a considerable amount of waste land
occurs,

Iron.—The southern one-fourth is a flat, loamy sand pinery of the
same nature and continuous with that of Vilas and the northeast cor-
ner of Price counties. The rest is a loam and clay area with a mixed
forest of hardwoods, pine, and hemlock. On the range the hardwoods
and hemlock predominate and pine is scattering, otherwise the pine
forms a heavy mixture everywhere. The numerous swamps, espe-
cially abundant in the southern half of the county, are generally
stocked with cedar, tamarack, and some spruce, and these woods also
invade more or less the low, flat portions of the ordinary woods,
which are not really swamp. At present the pine is cut from parts
of all townships, some of them being pretty well cleaned out, and the
standing pine timber is estimated at only about 400 nfillion feet.
‘The hardwoods and hemlock have been cut clean on a small area about
the mines, but otherwise remain unculled and not badly hurt by fire.
The standing hemlock is estimated at about 350 million feet, and the
hardwoods at about the same. Of these birch, basswood, and maple
predominate.

Jackson.—The western half is a sandy loam district almost entirely.
occupied by oak openings, mixed with some tracts of better soil with
bodies of better hardwood timber. The eastern half is a level, sandy
pinery with many swamps and no hardwood timber. This area fur-
nished considerable pine, but is now largely cut and burned over, and
only about 100 million feet of pine is claimed to be standing. Nu-
merous smal] and large bodies of young sapling pine and also of jack
pine interrupt the extensive bare wastes. The swamps which are
generally bare of merchantable material, were formerly stocked
chiefly with tamarack, but have been cleaned out by repeated fires.
CONDITIONS IN COUNTIES. 61

Langlade.—This county is covered by a continuous mixed forest of
hardwoods and hemlock in which pine occurred both scattered and
in denser bodies in patches and belts, which unlike those of Mara-
thon county, do not always follow the drainage courses. The pine ig
practically cut, though the scattered material is still estimated at
about 150 million feet. The hardwoods are dense and heavy; their
cutting has hardly begun, and fire has injured them but little, nor is
it likely to do so in the future. The standing hemlock amounts to
about 1,000 million feet, the hardwoods to 1,100 million feet. Birch,
basswood, and elm in nearly equal proportions form about 80 per
cent. of the hardwood, followed by maple and ash, and a very small
quantity of oak. The swamps are generally stocked with cedar,
tamarack, and some spruce. Larger bare areas occur along the Wolf
river, and include in all parts only the pine slashings.

Lincoin.—A mixed forest of hardwoods, hemlock, and pine covers
the clay and loam lands, or about 80 per cent. of this county. A
small strip along the Wisconsin river and a broad V shaped tract
spreading northward from below the junction of the Tomahawk and
Wisconsin rivers are sandy pinery. The pine is generally cut, only
about 100 million being in larger bodies, but there is a great deal of
seattered pine which will bring up the total cut to at least 250 million
feet. The hardwoods are as yet unculled, have suffered little injury
from fire, and with the hemlock will cut 6 M. feet per acre of all well
stocked land. This means a total cut of about 1,000 million feet of
hemlock and an equal amount of hardwoods, in which birch, bass-
wood and elm represent about 70 per cent., oak only about 3 to 5 per
cent. The swamps are largely stocked with both cedar and tamarack
and a little spruce, but many of them have been burned into or were
entirely cleaned out. Cut-over, burned, or bare lands exist wherever
pine was dense and in the aggregate amount to many thousand acres
of the very kind of land least desirable for farming.

Marathon.—This county was a continuous mixed forest of pine, hard-
woods, and hemlock, except the narrow border along the larger
streams where pine prevailed. The pine is nearly all cut; the pres-
ent stand is estimated at about 200 million feet, much of which is
thinly scattered through parts of the mixed forest. The forest of
hardwoods and hemlock has been heavily cut into for more than ten
years; it is interrupted by large clearings, but has not been injured
much by fire. The standing hemlock is estimated at about 1,500 mil-
lion feet, the hardwoods at about the same amount. Of the latter,
birch and basswood in nearly equal amounts, form 60 per cent., elm
20 per cent., and oak only about 5 per cent.

Marathon has little swamp, most pine slashings have been burnt
62 FORESTS OF WISCONSIN.

over and since so much good land exists all about, they are generally
wastes. Many groves of young white and Norway pine may be seen
along the Wisconsin river. Though well settled and stocked with
hardwoods which do not encourage fires, even this county in the dry
season of 1894 suffered considerably from fires, a fact which empha-
sizes the need of organization for their prevention.

Marinette—The greater part of this county is a pinery. Its terri-
tory is slightly invaded by the mixed forest of Florence and Forest
counties along the county line. Isolated bodies of pine slightly mixed
with hardwood and hemlock are scattered in parts of the pinery, par-
ticularly in the towns along the Menominee river. Formerly, a
heavy stand of pine mixed with hardwoods occupied the part next to
Green Bay. This latter area was burnt over during the Peshtigo fire
-of 1871 and is now bare or brush land with some settlement. Pine
has been cut in every town in the county; the present stand is esti-
mated at about 1,500 million feet. The light mixture of hardwood
and hemlock is largely fire-killed wherever the pine has been cut;
the green timber remaining is estimated at nearly 500 million feet,
half of which is hemlock. Of the hardwoods, maple, birch, and bass-
-~wood predominate, oak as timber being very scarce. In the brushland
along the Bay, the white cedar is disputing the ground with poplar
and white birch. Extensive tracts of jack pine occur in the central
-and southwestern part. Large burned-over wastes exist in all parts
‘of the county.

Oconto.—Over nearly half of this county next to Green Bay, the
variable sandy loam land was covered by a heavy forest of pine, mixed
with hemlock and hardwoods. The central part of the county is a
ssandy belt of pinery land, continuous with the sandy pinery of Mari-
nette and Shawano counties. The loam and clay lands of the north-
ern one-fourth was stocked with a heavy mixed forest of hardwoods
and hemlock, with pine either scattering or in small bodies. At pres-
ent the lower part of the county is cut over, much of it bare and a
large part settled. The pine is cut in nearly all parts, and only 65 to
75 million feet are claimed to be standing. The hardwood forest, in
which the beech is conspicuous only on the lower sandy loam lands,
still covers a quarter of the county and is estimated to cut about 500
million feet of hemlock and 400 million of hardwoods, principally
birch, basswood, elm, and maple, considerable ash and little oak. The
swamps of the lower part are burned over and extensively drained
and utilized. Those of the north half are generally stocked, the cedar
prevailing. Fine groves of young white pine are abundant in the
‘southern towns.

Oneida.—Almost the entire county is a loamy sand pinery, in which
CONDITIONS IN COUNTIES. 63

good hardwoods and hemlock are practically wanting. A few iso-
lated island-like bodies of mixed forest on heavier soil, a small tract
in the southwestern and larger ones in the southeastern part of the
county disturb the general uniformity. The pine has been cut along
nearly all streams and railways, and the remaining timber occurs in
interrupted stands and is estimated at 1,200 million feet, of which
a considerable part is red (Norway) pine. Of about 60 million feet of
hardwoods 40 belong to birch and basswood, the rest being elm and
maple and very little oak. The hemlock is believed to cut about 20
million feet and is too scattering to be considered at present. The
numerous swamps, formerly stocked with tamarack, cedar, and some
spruce have suffered much from fires. Large tracts of burned over
and bare land occur in all parts of the county and of the numerous
pine thickets, which occupy thousands of acres, a great many have
‘been injured and killed by fire.

Polk.—The northwestern corner from Wolf creek to the St. Croix
river is sandy jack pine woods, which continue into Burnett county.
The remainder of the northern half is generally a hardwood forest,
quite pure on many of the ridges, mixed and often entirely displaced
by pine in the sandier depressions and valleys. The southeastern
portion, about two tiers of towns along the east line from the south-
ern boundary northward, was pinery with light mixture of hardwoods
and better bodies of hardwoods in places and the southwestern por-
tion was jack pine and oak openings. The pine is mostlv cut, the
standing timber is in isolated bodies and is estimated at about 240
moillion feet. The hardwoods have been extensively culled except in
the northern townships, where a stand of about 600 million feet is be-
lieved to exist. Of this, oak and basswood form over half, while
birch is comparatively scarce. Polk county has few swamps and no
large quantities of merchantable timber are claimed for these. Cedar
is practically wanting. The jack pine woods are quite extensive and
will yield a heavy cut. Bare areas are common here as in other coun-
ties. A few of these tracts are stocked with fair-sized p-plar which
‘on this sandy loam seems to thrive better than elsewhere.

Portage.—The southeast quarter is oak openings with groves of jack
pine, especially in the western part. The southwest quarter is jack
pine woods and in the southern portion, a marshy pinery, forming
part of what is known as “Little Pinery.” The northern half,
‘broader on the western side, was a mixed forest of pine and hard-
woods with some hemlock and was divided by strips of sandy pinery
following up the Wisconsin and Plover rivers. Both pine and hard-
woods have been cut in nearly all parts of the county, but there are
‘still smaller bodies and scattering timber to warrant an estimate of
64 FORESTS OF WISCONSIN.

about 20 million feet of pine. The hardwoods and hemlock, of which
some fair bodies exist in the northeastern part of the county, repre-
sent a probable cut of about 150 million feet, 50 million being hem-
lock. The extensive and dense jack pine woods will furnish 150 mil-
lion feet of material for special mills or pulp purposes and will in
time prove of considerable value. The swamps, of which a large part
are open marshes, have suffered much from fires. Large tracts of
burned-over pine slashings exist throughout the lumbered part of
the county.

Price.—The entire county is a level loam and gravelly loam area,
formerly stocked with a most luxuriant mixed forest in which pine
prevailed in most of the northern two-thirds and the hemlock and
hardwoods in the rest. On a few small tracts, in the central part and
also along the Oneida county line in the northeastern part of the
county, a sandier soil gave rise to almost a pure pinery form of for-
est. The pine is generally cut, about 200 million are still believed to.
be standing, but most of this is scattered and not over half in large
bodies. The hemlock and hardwoods in over half the county have suf-
fered seriously from fires and over large areas have been killed en-
tirely. Nevertheless, there are nearly 400,000 acres of wooded area
which are believed to cut about 1,000 million hemlock and 900 million
feet of hardwoods. In the latter birch and basswood predominate,
with elm and maple following, both ash and oak being rather scarce.
Price is one of the counties in which fire has done unusual damage
and large areas are entirely bare of growing material.

Sawyer.—A mixed forest of pine and hardwoods covered nearly the
entire county, with two exceptions: (1) a narrow strip along the Ne-
mmakagon river, which is a sandy jack pine and Norway pinery, and
(2) a sandy pinery area south of Round lake from the Chippewa river
west to the county line. The pine prevailed over considerable areas,
as for instance, along the Chippewa and Flambeau rivers. Hemlock
occurs only in the eastern two-thirds of the county, being rarely
found west of Range 7 W. The pine has been cut along all the rivers,
but there still remain large quantities, which in the aggregate are
estimated at 2,000 million feet, and by some even at 2,500 million.
The hemlock amounts to about 900 million feet, the hardwoods 1,000
million, of which fully half is birch and basswood and about 10 per
cent. is oak, this latter occurring chiefly in the western part of the
county. The 12 per cent. of swamp lands are generally stocked,
though extensive damage has been done to those in the vicinity of
pine slashings. Even in this county with little settlement, large
tracts of burned-over lands are abundant.

Shawano.—The southeastern one-third of this county, with its var-
CONDITIONS IN COUNTIES. 65

jable sandy loam and loamy soil, was formerly covered by a heavy
forest of pine, mixed with hardwoods. The country about lake
Shawano and north to the county line is part of the sandy pinery
district extending from this lake to the Menominee river. The north-
western two-thirds was a very heavy mixed forest of hemlock, hard-
woods, and pine, growing on a good, though in places very strong,
loam and slay soil. The pine is cut, except in the Indian reservation,
where about 300 million are still claimed to be standing. The hard-
woods and hemlock of the southeastern two-thirds are culled and
damaged by fire, those of the northwestern half are largely intact
and have been injured only about pine slashings. The standing hem-
lock is estimated at 650 million feet, the hardwoods at 700 million
feet, of which basswood, elm, and maple form over 70 per cent., and
oak only about 5 per cent. Beech occurs only in the sandy loam area.
About 30,000 acres around Shawano are covered by young white pine,
which has sprung up on old slashings. The extensive swamps of the
southeastern part have all been burned over and many of them are
being drained and cultivated. Those of the western half are largely
stocked with cedar and tamarack, some of them yielding 15 M. feet
and more per acre. Bare “stump prairies” occur in all parts of the
county.

Taylor.—A continuous mixed forest of pine, hardwoods, and hem-
lock on a loam and clay soil covered the entire county. The pine
has been cut, except small bodies in the southwestern fart, estimated
at about 200 million feet. The remaining forest still covers more
than 60 per cent. of all wild lands and cuts about 6 M. feet per acre.
In this forest hemlock is predominant, is estimated at about 1,500
roillion feet, some good authorities placing it at 2,000 million. The
hardwoods are about 1,000 million feet, of which 70 per cent. is bass-
wood and birch and only about 5 per cent. oak. The few swamps are
generally stocked with tamarack, some cedar, and spruce. Owing to
the dense, damp cover of the mixed forest, Taylor county has suffered
but little from fires, and large areas of bare land are comparatively
scarce.

Vilas.—A mixed forest stocks the better soils of the northern one-
fourth of this county and forms some scattering island tracts; else-
where it is an uninterrupted pinery, principally white pine with lit-
tle Norway and hardly any jack pine, covering a rather level, loamy
sand area dotted with several hundred lakes and numerous swamps.
Pine lumbering began here along the Wisconsin river over 25 years
ago, and the pine forest is cut into in almost every township. The
present stand of pine is estimated at about 1,500 million feet, besides
many thousand acres of sapling and young pine thickets which might

F. W.—5-
66 FORESTS OF WISCONSIN.

soon grow into valuable timber. Both hardwoods and hemlock are
rather scattered, except in some of the northern townships. The
hemlock is estimated at about 120 million feet, the hardwoods, of
which birch, basswood, and maple are most important, at about 150
million feet. Of the numerous swamps, which form over 20 per cent.
of the area, many are open bogs, but the majority are stocked with
tamarack and cedar and some spruce. Both in the swamps and the
pine slashings, fire has made much havoe and large areas of bare
stump wastes are abundant.

Washburn.—An area involving the northwestern one-third of the
county with broad arms extending up the Totogatic and Nemakagon
rivers into Bayfield and Sawyer counties is sandy pinery with large
bodies of jack and Norway pine, mixed with white pine. The rest of
the county, generally a gravelly gray loam, was covered by a heavy
stand of white pine with a light mixture of hardwoods. The pine is
generally cut; the present stand is estimated at 350 million feet. The
hardwoods have suffered much from fires and over large areas not a
foot of merchantable timber exists. The standing hardwoods are
estimated at about 220 million feet, of which basswood, maple, oak,
and birch in nearly equal proportions form about 80 per cent. No
swamp woods of commercial importance are reported. Some of the
largest areas of perfectly bare, cut, and burned-over lands in Wiscon-
sin occur in this county.

Wood.—The north half of this county was covered by a heavy stand
of white pine with a mixture of hardwoods, to which was added a
sprinkling of hemlock along the north line. South of this the sandy
loam and loamy sand area was covered by regular pinery, which gave
way on the west side of the river to an extensive open marsh and
eranberry bog dotted by sandy, pine covered islands. Extensive
podies of jack pine follow up the river into Portage county.

The pine has nearly all been cut, and the 100 million feet of stand-
ing pine assumed for this county are mostly scattering and sapling
material. The hardwoods have long been culled in all parts of the
county and not over 12 per cent. of the area, with a prcebable stand of
of about 300 million feet is believed to remain. Of this hardwood over
half is oak and basswood. The hemlock is confined to the northern
towns and will cut about 50 million feet. Aside from the large open
swamp in the southwestern part, there are comparatively few swamps
in this county. Large cut-over and burned-over areas are numerous,
and much land is stocked with culled woods furnishing ample fuel, etc.
Some fine groves of young white pine may be seen along the Green
Bay and Western R. R. near Grand Rapids.
PRINCIPAL TREES. 67

LIST OF PRINCIPAL FOREST TREES OF NORTH
WISCONSIN.

(Arranged according to economic importance in the region.)

I. CONIFERS.

1. PINES.

a. White pine (Pinus strobus) occurs in all parts of the territory,
as scattering mixture in the better hardwood mixed forest of the
heavy soils, predominant on lighter sandy and gravelly loams and as
pinery proper on the extensive loamy sand areas. It is the largest
and most valuable tree of the region.

b. Red pine (Norway Pine) (Pinus resinosa) grows on all sandy
pinery areas, scatteringly in the southern, abundant in the northern
counties. It does not mix with, the hardwoods on clay land except
near Lake Superior, is generally mixed either with white or jack pine,
but in places forms pure stands of considerable extent. In value it
ranks second among the forest trees of North Wisconsin.

ce. Jack pine (Pinus divaricata) is a small tree, grows generally in
thickets, either pure or mixed, stocks all poor sandy lands and unlike
the other pines, it also occupies part of the openings. It is of limited
economic value.

2. HEMLOCK.

Hemlock (Tsuga canadensis) grows on all clay and loam lands of the
eastern half of North Wisconsin; is either mixed scatteringly or evenly
with the hardwoods or else predominates in bodies of variable extent.
The hemlock is a large tree, grows slowly, is easily killed, even by
mere exposure, and is not reproducing itself well in most parts of
this region. It is of greater economic value than is generally be-
lieved.

3. CEDAR.

Cedar—This tree, commonly called white cedar or simply cedar,
should receive the name arborvite (Thuya occidentalis) to distinguish
it from other cedars. It is a medium sized tree of the swamps and
the moist portions of the upland mixed forests. It occurs in most
counties and prevails in the swamps of the Green Bay region; a tree
of considerable value.
68 FORESTS OF WISCONSIN.

4, TAMARACK.

Tamarack (Lari« laricina) is the common swamp tree of North Wis-
consin; it forms dense groves of pure growth, mixes with arborvite
and spruce, remains small in the swamps of the “openings,” but
reaches a fair size (80 to 90 feet in height) in the swamps of the for-
est region proper; of secondary value.

5. SPRUCE.

Spruce—White spruce, cat spruce (Picea canadensis) and black
spruce (Picea mariana) are small shrubby half trees on the moss-
covered bogs, and small to medium-sized trees on the better timbered
swamps and the more humid portions of the loam and gravel land
mixed forests. No distinction of species is made in using the wood,
the logger’s distinction of white and black spruce referring to qual-
ity of wood merely. The spruce occurs in all parts but is most
abundant in the northern and eastern counties.

6. BALSAM.

Balsam fir, commonly called balsam (Abies balsamea), is a small
tree growing scattered in nearly all parts of the mixed forest.

II. BROAD-LEAVED TREES (HARDWOODS).

1. BASSWOOD.

Basswood (Tilia americana) is a rather tall, long-shafted tree, com-
mon in all hardwood forests; one of the most useful and best devel-
oped.

2. BIRCH.

a. Yellow birch (Betula lutea) (also called erroneously “‘red birch,”
“black birch” and ‘‘white birch” when in the log to distinguish char-
acter of wood), is predominant in the hardwood forest within the
hemlock area, grows on all loam and clay lands, but rarely enters the
regular pinery. Though it is here assumed that the birch generally
pronounced yellow birch is truly the Betula lutea, this cannot be con-
sidered as settled, since the imperfect botanical distinctions between
Betula lenta and Betula lutea render it difficult, if not impossible, to
distinguish these two species in the field.

How far the true sweet (or red) birch (Betula lenta) replaces the
yellow birch is as yet not certain. The woodsmen do not distinguish,
except by the wood, and thus their classification is mainly one of qual-
ity of timber and not of species.

b. Paper birch (Betula papyrifera), commonly called white birch, is
PRINCIPAL TREES. 69

not to be confounded with the true white birch (Betula populifolia)
which does not seem to occur in this region and is a much inferior
tree. The paper birch is the characteristic hardwood tree of the
fresher sandy soils, is always small, grows best in the northern coun-
ties, does not thrive on the poorer sandy “barrens,” occasionally
forms small thickets, is generally mixed with pine and along Grecn
Bay with arborvite. Like aspen, it enters extensively in the brush
cover of many cut-over bare lands, but thrives only where consider-
able sand is present in the soil.

3. ELM.

a. White elm (Ulmus americana) is a tall, long-shafted tree common
in all hardwood forests.

b. Cork elm (Ulmus racemosa), commonly called rock elm, replaces
to quite an extent the preceding species in many localities, and prob-
ably forms near 30 per cent. of all elm of the region.

A “bastard” elm, with the foliage of white elm and the bark of cork
elm, is often noted by the woodsmen.

c. Slippery elm (Ulmus pubescens) occurs sparingly in parts of this
region.

4, MAPLE.

a. Sugar maple (Acer saccharum) is a common tree of all hardwood
forests, and, to a very considerable extent invades with aspen and
paper birch the regular pinery. Among the small, young growth of
most hardwood forests it predominates in number.

b. Silver maple (Acer saccharinum), often called soft maple, is quite
generally distributed throughout the mixed forest, as is also the

Red maple (Acer rubrum). The bush maples, spiked and striped
maple (Acer spicatum and Acer pennsylvanicum) form a considerable
part of the undergrowth in the mixed woods of the clay land.

5. OAK.

a. Red oak (Quercus rubra) is the common timber oak of the region
and occurs in all counties, and on both sandy and clay soils, but is
abundant only in the western and southern counties, and makes a
good tree only on the heavier soils.

b. White oak (Quercus alba) occurs quite abundantly in the south-
ern and southwestern counties, but is very scarce, in any form, in
the greater part of the region. This is also true of the

e. Bur oak (Quercus macrocarpa). In the north central and eastern
parts, in the upper Wisconsin, Menominee and Peshtigo basins the
scarlet oak (Quercus coccinea) is generally the only “scrub oak”; it is
scattered here over extensive tracts of sandy cut-over lands as a bushy
70 FORESTS OF WISCONSIN.

tree or shrub. The “scrub oak” of the openings, along the southern
and western edge of the region is formed of a variable mixture of all
species of oak of the territory.

6. ASH.

a. Black ash (Fraxinus nigra) and

b. White ash (Frazinus americana), the former by far the more
common, are found in every county, are generally restricted to the
swamps and on the whole form a very small portion of these woods
either in number of specimens or as saw timber.

7. ASPEN.

a. Aspen (Populus tremuloides), very commonly called poplar.

b. Large-toothed aspen (Populus grandidentata) is very common in
all parts of north Wisconsin; it is much more conspicuous on the
cut-over lands as brushy cover, in the sandy pineries as scattered mix-
ture, and also in the mixed forests of the Lake Superior region than
in the better hardwood forest, where it forms but an insignificant
proportion of the merchantabie material.

Of the less conspicuous or less important forest trees must be men-
tioned:

Butternut (Juglans cinerea) scattered throughout the better hard-
wood forest.

Blue beech (Carpinus caroliniana) and hop hornbeam (Ostrya vir-
giniana), both of which occur quite abundantly in all hardwood for-
ests without ever forming merchantable timber.

Hickory, chiefly pignut, bitternut and mockernut (Hicoria minima,
glabra and alba) occur in the southern districts and occasionally reach
timber size.

Black cherry (Prunus serotina) rarely occurs on the better lands and
cannot be considered as an important tree.
SCHEDULE OF INQUIRIES.

71

SCHEDULE OF INQUIRIES ON FOREST CONDITIONS

OF WISCONSIN; LINCOLN COUNTY.

[Filibert Roth, 1897.]

[References: H. W. Wright, John Woodlock, Herm. Rush, William
Bradley, J. J. Hoffman, C. D. Clark, L. N. Anson, N. Emerson, and

George Langley.]

I. OWNERSHIP.

Total area ios cweses.ac ve's s New slaHoeue ea os a AGENDUS eee
Total area (Forestry Division) ........cscesceeceecceeeeece
Land surface (Forestry Division) ...........ecececeecsceees
Land surface (U. S. Land Office Rept.) .........ceceeeeeeees
Land surface (chief geographer, U. S. Geol. Survey in Cen-
Bus: Bulls; 1890): ied siaetucsces sis <eowiGaciaiewe ves Vasewaniowasena
. Actual settlers, farmers, CtC....... cece ccc cece ccc cecceee
Private owners not occupying land............cccseeeeeee
. Of this is owned by lumbermen 60 per cent.

Railway companies (Wisconsin Central Railway) ........
TOWDSHIP yds seni sesndts vue ee edelendeaees Ves wham

. Of this in bodies over 160 acres 66 per cent.
» United States lands: s4sre iv essaeiendee clues sveeaeiiaeane

Cor enrewenp

ll, GENERAL SURFACE CONDITIONS.

Acres.
Cultivated: land 5. s.sicsciecieiecs cess oa eblawaveweeiers +9,000
. Forest and waste lands ............eeeeeeeees 553,000
s Vitgin, Torests: acsucsausnes os 54s ceheiemies eas 345,000
Virgin forests in tracts of over 160 acres...... 345,000
GCut-over lands: scienreivivccsass te aieaawateleis ewes 158,000
SWAMP ..cccccccccccsacccncceesseessseconceces 50,000
WEIS Si gop e SeS5 se sexe a sevoreterepee id wie eraaveeieioaieitie ie Oa 10,000
. Land best to be left as forest .........seeeeee 145,000

SPT k wp

Acres,
576,000
576,000
572,000
581,000

448,000
#49 ,000
447,000

eeeeee

11,200

Per cent.
of total.

97
60
60
28
9
2

 

*The U. S. Census, 1890, gives 63,481; the above is figure of state cen-

sus, 1895.

+U. S. Census of 1890 gives this at 10,500; the above is State census.
72 FORESTS OF WISCONSIN.

Ill. CONFIGURATION AND WATER COURSES.

1. Of total area, 20 per cent. long slopes; 10 per cent. hilly land;
55 per cent. rolling; 15 per cent. low flats.

Note.—No hills over 300 feet high; most large hills have long slopes;
considerable “pot hole” land exists both in loam and sand land area.
The entire county is drained by the Wisconsin and its tributaries,
the Prairie, Pine, Spirit, Somo, Tomahawk, New Wood, and Copper
rivers, all of which furnish good driving facilities.

Iv. SOIL AND DRAINAGE.

1. Strong clay, 20 per cent. of area; depth, great; color, gray;
grain, fine, mixed with gravel and large stones. Loam, 60 per cent.
of area; depth, great; color, gray; grain, fine, mixed with gravel and
large stones. Loamy sand, 20 per cent. of area; depth, great; color,
reddish gray; grain, medium, with little fine gravel.

2. Good farm land, 30 per cent. of area; drainage, good. Medium
farm land, 45 per cent. of area; drainage, good. Forest soils proper,
25 per cent. of area; drainage good.

Norre.—Many of the marshes make fine farm land.

1. Railways (names), Chicago, Milwaukee and St. Paul; Chicago
and Northwestern; ‘Soo;” Wisconsin and Chippewa. Miles, com-
plete, 82.

Vv. FACILITIES FOR TRANSPORTATION.

2. Roads in good and bad condition, about 300 miles; roads not yet
opened, about 1,500 miles.

3. Streams large enough to float timber, over 200 miles; useable,
six months per year.

VI. WOOD INDUSTRIES.

1. Pine mills cut in 1897, 120,000,000 feet; saw little hemlock or
hard woods.

2. Tan bark, 30,000 cords hemlock.

3. Other woodworking establishments:

Merrill was the head of raft navigation, and lumbering began as
early as the fifties. \

In 1895 the product of the wood industries of Lincoln were valued
at $2,350,000.

(To be amplified by census. statistics.)
SCHEDULE OF INQUIRIES. 73

VII. MARKET. (g=unlimited; l—limited; n=none at all.)

White Pine stumpage, g; logs, g; lumber, g; firewood, l-n; mill
‘refuse is used.

Norway stumpage, g; logs, g; lumber, g; firewood, I-n; mill refuse
-is used.

Hemlock stumpage, 1; logs, 1; lumber, 1.

White Cedar stumpage, 1; logs, g.

Tamarack stumpage, n; logs, I-n.

Oak stumpage, 1; logs, 1; lumber, g; firewood, 1.

Elm stumpage, 1; logs, 1; lumber, g; firewood, 1.

Basswood stumpage, 1; logs, 1; lumber, g; firewood, I.

Birch stumpage, 1; logs, 1; lumber, g; firewood, 1.

Ash stumpage, 1; logs, 1; lumber, g; firewood, 1.

Maple stumpage, 1; logs, 1; lumber, g; firewood, 1.

Poplar stumpage, 1; logs, 1; lumber, g; firewood, 1.

Chiefly Birch and Maple is sold for fuel.

Hemlock bark, good; Oak bark, none to be had.

Note.—Stumpage of hemlock and hardwoods has no ready market;
‘it is sold for the labor of clearing, ete.; hemlock stumpage is being
‘sold for bark purposes to a limited degree.

Two principal areas must be distinguished:

(1) The level and rolling clay and loam lands occupying about 80
per cent. of the county, and stocked with a mixed forest of hard
woods, hemlock, and pine. The soil is generally a gray loam on a
deep gray clay and loam; subsoil more or less mixed with gravel, and
some stone of larger size. In places, as on nearing the rivers and
also along the sandy area in the northern part, the soil becomes a
sandy loam, usually with much gravel, and in other places, particu-
larly the southwestern and western part, it is a heavy loam and clay.
‘These differences in soil are reflected in the forest cover, almost pure
hard woods occupying the heaviest clays and most fertile loams, a
hemlock forest stocking the lighter gravelly loams and the pine pre-
dominating on the sandy stretches.

The pine is cut from nearly all parts of this area, but its removal
has left the woods generally an undisturbed, dense, unculled, mixed
forest of hard wood and hemlock, in which the former existence of
pine is hardly noticed, since the humidity maintained, prevented
both the starting and running of fires.

Narrow belts of sandy gravel and sand, along the Wisconsin and
some of its tributaries, formerly stocked with heavy pine forests,
now all cut and the slashings burned and largely waste. On some-of
these old slashings pine groves of young white pine may be seen.
74 FORESTS OF WISCONSIN.

2. A level sandy pinery area, occupying the northern part of the
county east of R. 5 E., forming a broad V-shaped body, rapidly widen-
ing from its apex, below junction of Wisconsin and Tomahawk rivers,
and extending into Oneida.

The soil and subsoil here is a light loamy sand of great depth, me-
dium grain, and generally a reddish gray color, more or less mixed,
locally, with a fine gravel. This area was densely covered by a forest
of white pine, with about 20 per cent. Norway, and, locally, some
jack. pine. This is now practically all cut, and repeated fire have
cleared the greater part of all forest cover, leaving the ground cov-
ered by brake, sweet fern, and bushy scrub oak and poplar, neither
of which seems capable to form a tree under these conditions. A
number of fire-damaged groves of sapling and small pine interrupt
these tracts of barren lands.

VIII. FOREST GROWTH.

A. Timber lands, i. e., from which little or no timber has been
taken.

(a) Originally: Mixed forest, 75 per cent. of area, in which Pine,
40 per cent.; hard woods, 30 per cent.; Hemlock, 30 per cent. Pine
woods, 14 per cent. of area; swamps, 9 per cent. of area; lakes and
rivers, 2 per cent. of area.
woods, 14 per cent. of area; swamps, 9 per cent. of area; lakes and

(b) At present:

1. Hardwoods:

Of these, proportion in mixed forest— u

Oak, 3 per cent., nearly all Red Oak; Elm, 20 per cent., nearly half
Rock Elm; Ash, 5 per cent., nearly all Black Ash; Maple, 15 per cent.;
Basswood, 25 per cent.; Birch, 30 per cent.; White Birch and Poplar,
2 per cent.

Size and quality vary with the soil. Maple is very abundant, but
much is defective. Hickory, Blue Beech, Hop Hornbeam, and Butter-
nut occur.

The standing pine suitable for ordinary logging is placed at about
75,000,000 feet. To this must be added large quantities of scattered
material which is being logged, chiefly by farmers, in a small way,
and which will swell the total cut easily to 250,000,000 feet B. M.

2. Mixed conifers, with or without hard woods, 345,000 acres; yield,
6,000 feet per acre; Hemlock, 50 per cent.; quality, good; diameter,
18 inches; height, 85 feet; hard woods, 50 per cent.; quality, common;
diameter, 18 inches; height, 70 feet; Hemlock is good, cuts 2%4-3 logs
per tree, 10 logs per 1,000 feet; hard woods, short-bodied, 2 logs per
tree, 6-8 logs per 1,000 feet; White and Norway Pine mostly cut.
SCHEDULE OF INQUIRIES. 75.

Undergrowth and soil cover: Humus, not deep; moss, bare. The
undergrowth is formed of young trees, Bush Maple, Hazel, Dogwood,
also small Blue Beech, Hornbeam, and Balsam.

3. Swamp forests, 30,000 acres; yield, 3 M. feet, or 6 cords; Tamar-
ack, 50 per cent.; height, 80 feet; diameter, 12 inches; White Cedar,
40 per cent.; height, 50 feet; diameter, 16 inches; Spruce, 10 per
cent.; height, 50 feet; diameter, 12 inches. The swamps are gener-
ally stocked, many have suffered from fire, and many have trees of
“all one size,” and all too small to use, so that the yield, when large
areas are considered, is not very great.

B. Cut-over lands, i. e., where most or all valuable timber has been
removed.

1. Total, 158,000 acres.

2. Tracts owned in quantities of over 160 acres.

8. Land not burned over, but no merchantable timber left,
100,000 acres.

4, Land burned over recently and waste, 58,000 acres.

5. Land stocked with young growth of Pine, 10,000 acres.

Of this—

White Pine, 80 per cent., with Poplar; Norway, 20 per cent., with
Poplar; Birch and Poplar found on all slashings, but of no promise.

White Pine is 1 to 20 feet high, grows thriftily. Norway Pine is t
to 20 feet high, grows thriftily. Some very promising little groves
occur about Merrill.

6. On these lands there is generally much fallen timber of all
sizes; the humus is burned off. The soil is covered with débris, pop-
lar brush, and on sandy land by sweet fern and cherry. The chance
of seeding is poor, often wanting over large districts. Danger of
fire very great during every dry season. Help to fight fires is inade-
quate where most needed.
‘76 FORESTS OF WISCONSIN.

Products of lumber and saw mills of Wisconsin.

[From Federal Census of 1890.]

 

 

842 ESTABLISHMENTS REPORTED.

 

{

 

 

 

 

 

Cass or Propucts. Apreblaehs
reporting Quantity. Value.
respective
items,
Aggregate value of all products (a) ......... GAZ lteter eccrine $51, 908, 767
Forest Propvucts:
‘Saw logs for eee oon on scaled

measure)........ aaeeinee! seatsin aie etoeeeae 137 289, 226, 998 $2, 153, 154
‘Telegraph poles (number) .............0000 006 sree 123 5,189 3, 706
Fence posts (NUMbEL).... 0... cee eee ee eee cere nee 155 509, 453 29, 454
Bailway ties Gimiber) 2... iscccavesnone onan teneawee 174 353, 139 52,272
Piling (Pieces) acsjeseucicnsewainoaneedeaemsexavsouisar 70 13, 938 20, 128
Hewed timber (feet, board measure)............-- 1 40, 000 600
Round timber, for export (feet, scaled measure).. 2 390, 000 2,691
All other products ameb have: not penone the

material of the mi ae Siederojnyacsio ainijegatecsis Mae eaeetecearcaraninss 99, 352

DOtal secanes seesnalasavoterinaehs tad aueseadelasess aceite eens $2, 361, 357

LUMBER-MILL AND SAW-MILL PRODUCTS:

Sawed lumber (feet, board measure) .........2 0665 657 | 2,212,564,872 | $31,873, 910
Bobbin and spool stock (feet, board measure)....|-.-- sees cece [sees cece cece cece | eeee cece cers
Furniture stock (feet, board measure)............ 152 11,039, 772 129, 976
‘Carriage and wagon stock (feet, board measure).. 152 4,171, 461 52, 436
Agricultural implement stock (feet, board meas-

ULO) .......- rasdiSihas ai iaiefe niateacectar core slate Wevarolastaanes 127 855, 632 10, 936
Pickets or palings (feet, board measure) ......... 116 82, 885, 699 150, 818
Shingles (number) ........ 0... .0cc cece eecee cece cues 871 | 1,366,022, 000 2, 186, 643
Staves (pieces) ........... Seeistes grees dae ene tins 38 58, 187, 022 363, 714
Headings (sets)............ 266. sadddgausaneawereies 41 7,818, 755 312, 135
oi ee | ieee: 3,029, 103

TOtAhionssies ve ocltccesisumucsnsawcs sacs jamemnsall Setersie Ate eaietaiesineit ogi sie $38, 109, 671

PLANING-MILL PRODUCTS AND REMANUFACTURES 193 |... eee rere eee $11, 437, 739

 

 

a The value of peer is the net value at the mill, exclusive of expenses of sell-

ing. The cost of t)

-should not be cousidered as a charge on the cost of manufacture.

is item is stated under the head of “Annual expense charges,” and
 

 

 

 

 

 

PRODUCTS. VT
Number of |_ Receipts
HEADING ; Custom SAWING, DETAILED. establish- |from custom
ments. work,
Total resend hands side atnatseedisinaw onde tanunsenaubenneatties 525 $823, 079
Establishments engaged exclusively in custom sawing....... 94 $430, 847
Establishments engaged partially in custom sawing.......... 431 392, 232
Value of
SPECIAL INDUSTRIES AND By-PRODUCTS. product,

TP otallio.c 2 scseeuee sav gacsmaaesslsw ebaketeavertas wadacudenend 45 2, 206, 024
Handles, chair stock, and similar turned and shaped goods.. 13 41, 884
Tubs, pails, churns, packages, miscellaneous, wooden ware,

BD VORGELS wie :sfayeiciae: ccteis. cierei sista (ern siaidiaslo s1a-a)cibe ‘wnlale 80 aistale snaichoteln leis 999, 738
WOGCGS 2% ccoe- oss eee eeeseones Ma AreRy Pag aes 28, 655
Paving blOCKS so. saccacees eshs ca cgneeheesceseened tea oes d ances! a dascewarciaw dasa nejeiscrebenevaed
Hubs, spokes, and similar wagon stock, in shape........ aiiete il 380, 240
Agricultural implement stock, inshape........-.e0seeeeneneee 1 5, 700
Miscellaneous secisasie eosin waccisciseceuiie cide ais cid steavoutee Vice ee eee 8 74, 244
Estimated ‘value Of Laths vic vce sesucsaievias's oes aciyel quien westertuea |eewchc ease x 550, 000
Estimated value of other by-products......... cece cece eee cece leeee teen eeeeee 125,563

 

 

 

 
78

FORESTS OF WISCONSIN.

Value of products of wood industries in the several counties of Wis-
consin.

[From the State Census of 1895.]

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  

 

 

 

   
 

Wag-
Wagons, ons,
cae Articles |carriages eon Articles iiseas
Name of Jjand lath| of wood Ans and lath! of wood | and’
county. |manuf’d,/manuf'd. REE PAL Name of county. |manuf’d./™42Uf'd./sleighs
man-
uf’d.
1,000 dollars. 1,000 dollars.
‘Total for 115 2 1
state....] 34,487 19, 234 5,300 ne 105 21
toe eae ae a
Ashland.... 1/380. i aaset esau 3 OMe cece Fac sisiedeaiaseitvawass
‘Barron..... 575 50 32 351 5 5
Bayfield.... 1,714 8 1 702 41 1
Burnett.... 13 B Vasrecuseesaress 656 1 6
Chippewa.. 317 239 5 Be F caletesnunwttvncend sates
MOG Avcaaayenede| even ane
941 272 7
Total for tim-
bered counties} 24,568 3,612 386
1,227 277 24
2,170 230 12
137 2 a
2,113 54 109
237 2 4
Outagam 8&3 260 14
Waupaca.. 998 56 9
Winnebago.. 1,082 3,920 349
Total for coun-
ties directly
dependent on
the Wisconsin
forests......... 8,047 4, 801 528
Other parts of the
SURES vdseaew we 1,822 10,821 | 4,386

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
Missing Page
The Wisconsin Geological and Natural History Survey was established
by act of the Legislature in 1897. Its publications are issued as bulletins,
which are numbered consecutively, and each bulletin is independently
paged and indexed, no attempt being made to group them in volumes.
The bulletins are issued in three series:

A. Scientific Series.—The bulletins so designated consist of original
contributions to the geology and natural history of the state, which are of
scientific interest rather than of economic importance.

B. Economie Series.—This series includes those bulletins whose in-
terest is chiefly practical and economic.

C. Educational Series.—The bulletins of this series are primarily de-
signed for use in the schools, and discuss the subjects of which they treat
from this point of view.

The first bulletin to be issued belongs to the Economic Series, and is
entitled: On the Forest Resources of Northern Wisconsin. F. Roth,
Special Agent, U.S. Department of Agriculture. Pp. 78. 1 map.

The second economic bulletin is ready for the press, entitled: The Build-
ing Stones of. Wisconsin. H.R. Buckley, Assistant Geologist on the Wis-
consin Geological and Natural History Survey.

In the Scientific Series one bulletin has been issued (No. II.): The
Jnstincts and Habits of the Solitary Wasps. G. W. Peckham and E. G.
Peckham. Pp. 241. 14 plates, of which 2 are colored.

A second bulletin of this series (No. IIT) is in press.

A Contribution to the Geology of the Pre-Cambrian Igneous Rocks of
the Fox River Valley, Wisconsin. Samuel Weidman, Assistant Geologist
Wisconsin Geological and Natural History Survey.

In the Educational Series three bulletins are in preparation:

The Physiography of Southern Wisconsin. G. L. Collie, Professor of
Geology, Beloit College.

The Physical Geography and Geology of the Dells of the Wisconsin and
Devil’s Lake. R. D. Salisbury, Professor of Geographic Geology, Univer-
sity of Chicago.

The Forest Trees of Wisconsin. L. S. Cheney, Assistant Professor of
Pharmaceutical Botany, University of Wisconsin.

All correspondence relating to the Survey should be addressed to
E. A. Brrez, Director,
Madison, Wis.