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Hocking Valley Forest Service Home

CIRCA 1935

Owners/Occupants:
U.S. Forestry Service

Address:
2 & 4 Dalton Ave
Athens, Ohio, Ohio

Brief History

The Wayne National Forest… “Lands in southern Ohio during the 1930s were being abandoned as erosion, poor soil management and severe economic conditions forced many small farmers out of business… On November 22, 1934, the Ohio legislature approved a bill authorizing the U. S. Government to acquire land for the purpose of creating a national forest as per the weeks Act. The first priorities of the Forest Service were to stabilize erosion, rehabilitate damaged land, and control wildfires. “(Source: Wayne Forest Service Headquarter)

Hocking Valley National Forest Service Office, located on the Dalton Ave., was one of five original Wayne Forest Service purchase units in Southern Ohio. U.S. Government bought the 2.22-acre land in 1935 and built a ranger station and dwelling, a utility shed and three detached garages in 1939. During the first 35 years, the Forest owned a total of 140,250 acres within the Units. Then Wayne National Forest reduced the purchase units from the five to three new offices in 1970.

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1905

US Forest Service Founded

1911

Weeks Act passed legislating authority to purchase degraded lands from willing sellers. The primary intent was to protect watershed areas to improve streams and to reforest degraded and forest fire ravaged areas

1930

Deforestation, soil erosion, poor soil management, and severe economic conditions forced many to abandon their land in Athens and surrounding counties to the point where 1/3 of the area that is now the Wayne National Forest was tax delinquent land.

1934

Ohio experienced 698 forest fires during the year, the most ever, with 43% burning more than 10 acres. Vinton County alone had 113 forest fires in the year. This same year the Ohio legislature approves a bill authorizing the US Government to acquire land to create a national forest in Southeastern Ohio per the Weeks Act.

1935

The Hocking Valley Ranger Dwelling and the Hocking Valley Ranger Station at 2 & 4 Dalton Avenue, respectively, were built on what was then the outskirts of town is what is today Athens’ east side neighborhood.

1984

US Forest Service sells the Dalton Avenue Ranger station to a private party and completes the Service’s move to it new headquarters on State Route 33 between Athens and Nelsonville.

Today

The Wayne National Forest represents roughly 240,000 acres in Southeastern Ohio and is the state’s only national forest.

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A KALEIDOSCOPE OF HISTORIC COMMUNITIES WITH DISTINCTIVE PERSONALITIES