North Country History with Rob Burg
Your podcast on the Forest History of the Great Lakes Region. The forests of the Great Lakes have been home to people for centuries and have provided great resources and wealth, shelter, food, and recreation for many. But in the wake of these uses, the region has been environmentally damaged from deforestation, fire, and erosion, and are still recovering to this day. I will be your guide for exploring the forests and sharing stories of the forests and the people who have called them home.
About Rob Burg: Hi! I'm an environmental historian specializing on the forest history of the Great Lakes Region. I am a mostly lifelong Michigan resident and studied at Eastern Michigan University for both my undergraduate degree in History and graduate studies in Historic Preservation. My 35-year professional life has mostly been in history museums, including the Henry Ford Museum and Greenfield Village, the Michigan History Museum, and the Stuhr Museum of the Prairie Pioneer. I began my environmental history career with managing both the Hartwick Pines Logging Museum and the Civilian Conservation Corps Museum for the Michigan History Museum system, directing the Lovells Museum of Trout Fishing History, archivist for the Devereaux Memorial Library in Grayling, Michigan, and as the Interpretive Resources Coordinator for the Stuhr Museum of the Prairie Pioneer in Grand Island, Nebraska. I am proud that the first person to ever call me an environmental historian was none other than Dr. William Cronon, the dean of American Environmental History.
North Country History with Rob Burg
Logging in the Northeast, Part 2: The Adirondacks
Part 2 of my "Logging in the Northeast" miniseries has me exploring the forest history of the Adirondack Mountains in New York state.
New York's Adirondack Mountains is the largest state park in the United States, protecting 6,000 square miles of land. Created in 1892, it is larger than many National Parks. It is a unique public-private partnership where many people live in numerous communities within the park. Where it is now a place of recreation, featuring 42 mountain peaks over 4,000 feet tall, 3,000 lakes, and 30,000 miles of rivers and streams, including the headwaters of the Hudson River, the Adirondacks were once nearly stripped of its forest cover.
I ventured into the Adirondacks in October of last year during my Northeastern vacation. It was a couple of rather rainy days, but the beauty of the Adirondack Mountains could not be hidden by the rain and fog.
You can support the podcast by clicking on the "Support" button on the right (Desktop version) or the $ symbol at the top (Mobile version).
https://northcountryhistorywithrobburg.buzzsprout.com/
For Additional Information:
The Adirondack Experience-The Museum on Blue Mountain Lake. https://www.theadkx.org/
Adirondack Interpretive Center. https://wildadirondacks.org/adirondack-interpretive-center.html
https://www.esf.edu/aic/index.php
Episode Sources:
"A Gift of Wilderness: The Adirondack Park." www.wildadirondacks.org/forever-wild-the-adirondack-park.html
"Adirondacks: Lumber Industry and Forest Conservation." www.nps.gov/articles/adirondacks-lumber-industry-forest-conservation.htm