Blue Ridge Center: Historical & Cultural Stewardshipe

Blue Ridge Center for Environmental Stewardship

	Our Land
	Scientific & Natural Stewardship
	Historical & Cultural Stewardship
	Archelology
	Historical Structures
	Farming and Forestry
	Civil War
	Appalachian Trail

Historical & Cultural Stewardship

FARMING AND FORESTRY

SUMMARY OF FINDINGS
The historical period of occupation on the land surrounding the Blue Ridge Center for Environmental Stewardship can be divided into three phases identified by different waves of settlement and de-population: 18th-19th century, Reconstruction, and the Modern era.

In the 18th century, English settlers, many of them tobacco farmers and their slaves, arrived in Virginia's Piedmont region, having migrated from the Tidewater region. In Loudoun County, there was a slightly later influx of Germans, Dutch, Scots, Irish, and Pennsylvania Quakers, most of whom did not own slaves. This ethnic mix had consequences later during the Civil War, as Loudoun County was split southeast to northwest, Confederate versus Union.

In the aftermath of the Civil War, Loudoun County saw a shift from corn and wheat cultivation to dairy farming, and populations in the region grew. Many new immigrants were recently-freed Blacks, but these new land-owners may have been slowly driven from their property, through discriminatory legal practices, as lumber companies consolidated large land-holdings.

In the 20th century, a variety of historical and economic pressures resulted in depopulation, exacerbated during the Depression.

In very recent times, the population has increased as "settlers" departed Washington, D.C., and surrounding suburban areas for life in the country. Today, Loudoun Country, Virginia, is the third fastest growing county in the United States. Many of the small farms once common in the 19th century, now stand abandoned and are being slowly but steadily absorbed by returning forest or developed for housing.

LOGGING
The Loudoun Valley has been timbered in the past for a variety of uses. For instance, the U.S. government leased timber rights on Loudoun and Maryland Heights to produce charcoal to feed the Harpers Ferry armory that supplied guns to the Union army during the Civil War.

In some cases, portions of local forests were clear-cut. Tree removal carried out on private lands by individual farmers was focused on level land suitable for plowing, as indicated by old aerial photos of the Foundation property. In this way, local microenvironments were preserved whole or partially and could be exploited for a variety of products, including wild plants, fish, and game.

It appears likely that private lands in the Loudoun Valley, including the Foundation lands, were last heavily logged approximately 100 years ago, about the time large tracts were again consolidated under single ownership. Small-scale logging operations continue in the valley.

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