Educator Guide | Pennsylvania Conservation Heritage Project Gifford Pinchot “I have been a governor every now and then, but I am a forester all the time.” — Gifford Pinchot Young Gifford Pinchot created the U.S. Forest Service as a Born in 1865 to James and Mary new agency, with Pinchot still at the Pinchot, Gifford spent most of his helm. childhood in New York City and Pinchot’s family endowed the Yale Connecticut. Family trips to the School of Forestry in 1900 to create a Adirondack Mountains immersed two-year program for training young Gifford in wild forests and foresters, and Gifford founded the nature, which had a deep and lasting Society of American Foresters to impact on him. His parents provide a professional association for encouraged and fostered his natural the foresters he would hire into his love of the outdoors, and guided him new agency. to become trained in forestry. Gifford promoted the “conservation Gifford’s grandfather had made of natural resources” with an money in the early 1800s by logging emphasis on sustainability. His policy property he bought and selling some was summarized as “the greatest of the cleared land for farming. As good for the greatest number in the Gifford grew up seeing the continued long run.” While President Roosevelt loss of forests and urbanization was in office, 150 million more acres occurring around him, Gifford’s father were added to the national forest wanted to reverse history and heal reserves, and Pinchot infused his the cut-over land he’d inherited from vision of “wise use” into national his father in Milford, Pennsylvania. As forest management policy to balance a result, Gifford’s parents instilled in conservation with economic benefit similar political interests, influence him a conservation ethic of restoring of the forests. Unfortunately, and energy, they were married two the land, in addition to a Gifford’s tenure as US Forest chief years later. Cornelia became a responsibility of giving back to ended in 1910 over differences with powerful partner with Gifford, society through public service. President Taft. campaigning tirelessly for improving the welfare of humankind by Early Training championing women’s rights, pushing Following his graduation from Yale for child labor reform, and supporting University, Gifford spent a year in her husband’s political races. Europe learning about sustainable forestry, then returned home eager Return to Pennsylvania to put his training into practice. With In 1920, Gifford became no forestry jobs yet in America, he Pennsylvania’s Commissioner of created a consulting business and Forestry and increased the number of was hired by George Vanderbilt to foresters and firefighters in the manage the cut-over lands forests. He ran for governor in 1922 surrounding his estate, Biltmore, in and won, with an aim to expand the North Carolina. He soon became state forest reserves and hire men to involved in the newly-formed replant and reforest the landscape of National Forest Commission, helping northern Pennsylvania. to identify lands for the federal His interest was to also help government to acquire for a national improve the lives of women and forest reserve. others being neglected by political leaders, and to help solve social Creation of the U.S. Forest Service problems of the day. In 1898, President William McKinley One major accomplishment in appointed 33-year-old Gifford to which he demonstrated his problem- head up the (then) Division of Cornelia Bryce Pinchot solving abilities was bringing together Forestry in the U.S. Department of In 1912, Gifford met Cornelia Bryce, a coal mine labor leaders and mine Agriculture. In 1901 the division was well-to-do social activist who was operators to diffuse tremendous bumped up to become a bureau, then campaigning for Theodore Roosevelt anger on both sides and find a in 1905 President Theodore Roosevelt and the Progressive Party. With resolution to coal mine strikes. Gifford Pinchot | July 2016 1 paconservationheritage.org Educator Guide | Pennsylvania Conservation Heritage Project Putting People to Work During the Grey Towers Great Depression After a required term off, Gifford Pinchot was elected for a second time as Governor of Pennsylvania in 1930 as the st ate and n ation were faced with the tremendous unemployment resulting from the Great Depression. Gifford’s landmark road building and paving program not only put thousands of people to work, it helped connect rural farm communities to markets for their goods and services. He also instituted a m assive tree- planting program, hiring men to restore the cut-over timber areas of the state. This experimental program became President Franklin Roosevelt’s model for the f ederal Civilian Conservation Corps. When Gifford was 21, his parents Gifford and Cornelia’s son, Dr. completed the construction of a Gifford Bryce Pinchot, donated the fieldstone mansion in the style of a building and grounds to the U.S. French chateau on family property Forest Service in the 1960s. overlooking the town of Milford, Designated as a National Historic Pennsylvania along the Delaware Landmark in 1963, this public facility River. Known as Grey Towers, it later stands as a reminder of Pinchot’s became the summer home and ethics of public service and doing the permanent residence of Gifford and greatest good for the greatest Cornelia. number in the long run. Cornelia worked to improve and modernize the mansion to be better Visiting Grey Towers: School suited for entertaining guests, and Groups added a number of interesting features and gardens around it. The U.S. Forest Service at Grey Grey Towers became a place of Towers offers a variety of inspiration for Gifford and others curriculum-based conservation who were influential players in the education programs for students in conservation and progressive grades 2-12. The programs are movements of the early 1900s. The designed to increase students’ surrounding property was also used awareness, appreciation and as a training ground for students in understanding of natural resource Yale University’s early forestry conservation and to foster a sense of program. individual responsibility for land stewardship. Each program is tailored to be grade appropriate. Programs are offered free of charge. Grey Towers National Historic Site P.O. Box 188 Milford, PA 18337 (570) 296-9630 [email protected] fs.usda.gov/main/greytowers Gifford Pinchot | July 2016 2 paconservationheritage.org Educator Guide | Pennsylvania Conservation Heritage Project Gifford Pinchot FAST FACTS BORN 1865 to James and Mary AGE 26 | 1892 George Pinchot Vanderbilt hires Gifford to manage the cut-over lands on AGE 23 | 1889 Graduates his estate, Biltmore in North Carolina. from Yale University and since there are no forestry schools in the U.S., spends AGE 33 | 1898 President a year in Europe learning McKinley appoints Gifford to about sustainable forestry. lead federal Division of Forestry. AGE 35 | 1900 Gifford’s family endows the Yale School of Forestry to create a two-year program for training foresters and Gifford founds the professional Society of American Foresters. AGE 49 | 1914 Gifford marries AGE 40 | 1905 President Roosevelt well-to-do social activist creates U.S. Forest Service with Cornelia Bryce, who becomes Gifford at the helm. Gifford a powerful partner for promotes the “conservation of improving the welfare of natural resources” with an humankind by championing emphasis on sustainability, known women’s rights, pushing for AGE 45 | 1910 President as “the greatest good for the child labor reform, and Taft dismisses Gifford greatest number in the long run.” supporting Gifford’s political as chief of the Forest 150 million acres are added to the career. Service. national forest reserves, and forest management policy balances conservation with economic benefit. AGE 55 | 1920 Gifford becomes head of Pennsylvania’s state forestry program and increases the number of foresters and AGE 66 | 1931 Starts second firefighters in the forests. AGE 81 | 1946 Gifford term as governor in the dies in New York of midst of the Depression. leukemia. Acknowledged as the “father” of Road building and paving AGE 58 | 1923 Elected American forestry and program puts people to governor of Pennsylvania largely responsible for work and connects farm AGE 62 | 1926 with a goal to expand popularizing the term communities. He institutes Barred from state forest reserves and “conservation” and for it massive tree-planting succeeding himself hire men to replant and becoming widely known program, hiring men to as governor at the reforest the landscape and supported. He restore the cut-over timber time, runs for of northern Senate, but loses. asserted its definition as areas of the state – Pennsylvania. Finds a “the greatest good for the becomes the model for successful resolution to greatest number in the President Roosevelt’s coal mine strikes. long run.” federal Civilian Conservation Corps. Gifford Pinchot | July 2016 3 paconservationheritage.org Educator Guide | Pennsylvania Conservation Heritage Project Gifford Pinchot GUIDING QUESTIONS These questions and answers are for drinking, irrigation and forested area in Pennsylvania. The designed to aid discussion of two of hydropower, as well as those who Bureau of Forestry started the the main ideas presented in the film, favored a complete hands-off process of updating its State Forest Gifford Pinchot’s Conservation approach. Resource Management Plan in 2015; a Legacy. Gifford expanded on a phrase wealth of information about • Greatest good for the greatest popularized by English Utilitarianism Pennsylvania’s state forests and number in the long run philosopher Jeremy Bentham, "the management concerns can be found • Importance of forests and forest greatest good for the greatest here: bit.ly/1Wfq3i6. management number" by adding, “in the long run.” This meant using trained Which of Pinchot's Pennsylvania Open ended questions to begin professionals, guided by science, to legacies can we still see and enjoy discussion: make choices that best serve the today? What is the difference between most people over time.