This series consists of photographs taken under the supervision of the Eastern Region of the Forest Service and the individual national forests in the region by contract photographers and staff to document activities with the region and individual forests. Coverage includes imagery from most of the national forests in the Eastern Region. The national forests of the region represented are: Allegeheny, Pennsylvania; Chequamegon-Nicolet, Wisconsin; Chippewa, Minnesota; Green Mountain, Vermont; Hiwatha, Michigan; Hoosier, Indiana; Huron-Manistee, Michigan; Mark Twain, Missouri; Monongahela, West Virginia; Ottawa, Michigan; Shawnee, Illinois; Superior, Minnesota; Wayne, Ohio; and White Mountain, New Hampshire and Maine. There are also images for the Clark National Forest, Missouri, which was administratively merged into the Mark Twain National Forest on February 16, 1973. Two units now a part of the Eastern Region, the Finger Lakes National Forest, New York, and the Midewin National tallgrass Prairie, Illinois, were created after the photographic series was assembled. The diversity of subjects in this series reflects the changes in practices within the Eastern Region and its individual forests throughout decades of operation. Subjects documented in the series include forest management, wildlife management, watershed management, fire control, recreation, and the logging industry.
Images relating to forest management include pictures of the effects of logging, cut-over areas, reforestation efforts, and timber stand improvements. Also included are photographs of timber resources sold or harvested from Forest Service lands and forest products businesses. Of note are a number of photographs of logging activity including cutting, scaling, milling, and transportation of logs by railroad and vehicle. Photographs of animal species, wildlife habitats, habitat improvements, programs to protect wildlife, and damages to public lands caused by wildlife are some of the types of images covered under wildlife management. Included under watershed management are photographs showing the effects of erosion, erosion control projects, stream improvements, land use rehabilitation, and flood control. Fire control management images include pictures of forest fires, fire damage, fire lookouts, fire equipment, fire camps, fire prevention programs, fire suppression activities, and firefighters. There are photographs which depict damage caused by wind storms which blew down large numbers of trees. Also included in this series are photographs relating to forest disease research and fire research programs, such as tree and other plant identification studies, studies of forest insect pest and plant diseases. The series also includes numerous images pertaining to recreational uses, facilities, and activities, such as pictures of people participating in fishing, camping, picnicking, hiking, riding, hunting, water sports, and winter sports.
Within this series are numerous photographs of historical subjects pertaining to social and cultural life during the 19th and 20th centuries. Some of the subjects pictured are homesteads from the late 19th Century to the 1930s; logging activity, equipment and camps; historical markers, monuments, and sites, including a marker commemorating one of the Lincoln-Douglas debates. In addition, there are photographs of historical buildings such as pioneer cabins, saw mills, and furnaces. There are a large number of photographs related to forest fires and the damage they cause as well as fire suppression and prevention. There are photographs of Civilian Conservation Corps camps and projects in national forests, as well as Job Corps activities, projects and participants. There are also images of Indians and their families, activities, and structures in national forests of Minnesota.
There are also numerous scenic views of landscapes and geological formations, such as lakes, rivers, waterfalls, natural bridges, caves, and mountains.
Administrative topics documented in this series include portraits of Forest Service officials and photographs pertaining to foresters at work, Forest Service buildings; bridges, trails and roads in forested areas, visitor information services and signs, and public relations activities.
There are also images in the series which are identified by state name, which are in the geographic area of the Eastern Region, rather than by national forest designation. These photographs primarily depict various types of trees and their cultivation as well as logging activities. The state names associated with these photographs are Iowa, Ohio, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, and Wisconsin.
