Happy 100th Birthday to Upton State Forest

Upton State Forest today image by  Ellen Arnold

Friends of Upton State Forest President Bill Taylor just wished Upton State Forest a Happy 100th Year Birthday in the groups monthly newsletter.

While most of the forest was purchased between 1934 and 1935 Taylor recently discovered 63 acres were acquired on March 29, 2015 “which would make this year its 100th birthday,” wrote Taylor.

According to Taylor the 1915 purchase was made under the Forest Restoration Act of 1908, which provided the state forester funds to purchase or accept gifts of land for experiment and illustration in forest management. Under the act sellers or donors had the option to repurchase the land within ten years of the purchase or donation.

Taylor’s article noted, “D. W. Gaskill, a lumberman from Blackstone, donated the land in 1915. The state planted 35,000 seedlings in 1915 and brushed 10 acres in 1919, presumably for fire control.” Mr. Gaskill passed away in 1923 and his family did not opt to repurchase the land in 1925.

Later the land donated  by Gaskill was combined with other purchases in 1934/35 to create Upton State Forest.

Taylor wrote, “The purposes of the 1908 Reforestation Act was to provide demonstration forests for private landowners to learn from, which is part of the forest’s mission today, it seems appropriate to recognize the purchase of the Gaskill property as the birth of Upton State Forest, so happy 100th birthday Upton State Forest!”