Discover History

The National Forests in North Carolina are located on the ancestral lands of many Native American Tribes that have stewarded them for time immemorial. These tribes include the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma, Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians, United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians, Catawba Indian Nation, Tuscorara Nation, and Muscogee (Creek) Nation. The USDA Forest Tribal Connections Map is a tool to learn about the many tribes that have cared for our nation’s forests and grasslands for millennia and still maintain strong historical and spiritual connections to the land. 

Historical Timeline for the National Forests in North Carolina

1898 – Gifford Pinchot and George Vanderbilt established the Biltmore Forest School on Biltmore Estate land in Transylvania County; it becomes the nation’s first school of forestry.

1911 – Weeks Act is signed by President Wilson, authorizing the federal purchase of Eastern lands for restoration protection; 5 of the original 11 federal purchase units designated are it North Carolina.

1916 – The first major tracts of land are acquired by the Forest Service in NC, including the Biltmore Forest tract.

1916 (October 7) – Pisgah National Forest is formally established – the first eastern National Forest created from acquired lands – it is also designated as a National Game Preserve. (The Ocala NF in Florida was established in 1908 on Public Domain lands.)

1920 – Nantahala National Forest is formally established – includes land in NC, GA and TN.

1921 – Appalachian Forest Experimental Station (now Bent Creek) is established – one of the first 2 research stations in the Eastern US.

1931 – Uwharrie Purchase Unit is established.

1933 – Coweeta Experimental Forest (Coweeta Hydrologic Laboratory) is established. Manages the longest continuous environmental study on any landscape in North America, and one of the world’s oldest gauged watershed sites.

1936 – Croatan National Forest is established; the present borders for the Pisgah, Nantahala and adjacent state national forests are established (July 9).

1933 - 1942 – Civilian Conservation Corps establishes 24 camps across the National Forests in NC, building numerous administrative and recreation structures, trails and bridges that are still in use today.

1961 – Uwharrie National Forest is established.

1964 – First federal Wildernesses are established, including 2 in NC (Linville Gorge and Shining Rock); a total of 11 FS Wildernesses have now been designated in the state.

1968 – Cradle of Forestry (site of the original Biltmore Forest School) is given special Congressional designation as an educational and historical area.

1974 – First NC Wild and Scenic River (the Chattooga) is designated – a total of 3 Wild and Scenic Rivers have now been designated in the state.