The Greatest Good, 100 Years of Forestry in America
by Char Miller and Rebecca Staebler

Publisher:  Society of American Foresters
ISBN:  0939970805

It was pure pleasure browsing this pictorial history book of professional forestry in America. In fact, it is as well crafted a document as any pictorial I’ve seen on the market - on any subject. Through photographs and text, The Greatest Good, 100 Years of Forestry in America celebrates a century of professional forestry in America and is an excellent tribute to forestry and foresters. It should be on every forester’s coffee table and/or plainly visible in his or her office.

The Greatest Good takes you on a chronological trip through forestry’s past. The Society of American Foresters beautifully develops this book beginning with the roots of forestry and timber extraction, highlighting the early growth and development of the fledgling forestry profession, explaining the complexity of the post-World War II wood boom, and finally to tantalize us with the vision of a new kinder and smarter forestry entering the new millennium.

An army of photographers, librarians, and scientist tracked down all the rare photos and original documents displayed in the book. Sources for this material includes the Library of Congress, the Forest History Society, the National Agricultural Library, the National Archives, the United States Forest Service, and Weyerhaeuser. Seems no stone was unturned in building The Greatest Good.

The Society of American Foresters is the national scientific and educational organization representing 17,000 forestry professionals. The Society offers educational projects and programming and produces a variety of publications and outreach materials to include this one.

The Greatest Good was written by Dr. Char Miller and Rebecca Staebler. Miller is professor and chair of history at Trinity University in San Antonio, Texas. Rebecca Staebler is the editorial director for the Society of American Foresters who also directs the publication of the Journal of Forestry.

Steve Nix, your Guide for Forestry