Our night was spent completely disconnected from the world at Lake Gillette in the Colville National Forest.
Morning even brought us a guest.
Continuing west, we were drawn to this roadside history lesson. The Log Flume Heritage Site, where remnants of the old log flume still stand, was a perfect pause because of all the logging we've experienced on this trip.
The flume was constructed in 1920 and for the next two decades logs were floated down a flume from the CCC Camp Growden (below) to the Columbia River to be cut for sash at the White Pine Sash Mill.
Logging is big here!
And thankfully, so is nature!
Next history lesson came at Camp Growden, known as Little America because it housed CCC enrollees from around the country. The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCCs) changed the face of the Colville National Forest during the 1930s because its workers built roads, trails, camps, and buildings, many of which are still in use today. Camp Growden was one of 4,500 CCC operations where hundreds of young men spent stints at the remote forest camp until it was dismantled in 1941.
In the Pacific Northwest the CCC built 677 Lookout structures, 85,000 miles of road, 42,000 miles of hiking trails, planted millions of trees, improved wildlife habitat, fought fire and constructed many recreational facilities we have delighted in.
The work was back-breaking; the pay, modest. Living conditions were primitive – barracks in the Colville National Forest. But in the 1930s, many young men considered themselves lucky to have a job with the Civilian Conservation Corps at Camp Growden. They built roads and trails, fought fires and felled trees for $30 per month ($500 in today's money). During the Great Depression, when many Americans were hungry and homeless, they had a roof over their heads and regular meals.
I 🤎 the Civilian Conservation Corps, one of the most popular of Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s New Deal programs. The CCC’s mission was to conserve the natural resources of the United States while providing relief to the poor and encouraging the recovery of the economy. The program provided employment to enrollees and financial support to their families during the Great Depression, while developing much needed conservation and infrastructure projects for a country that had been devastated by over logging and farming practices that contributed to soil erosion. Known as "Roosevelt's Tree Army," the program improved national and state parks, prevented erosion, controlled flooding, and assisted with natural disaster recovery.
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1 comments:
Logging trucks are all over Oregon too, going both directions! It doesn't make sense, keep the logged logs on the appropriate side to save gas. Ugh. Why do I have to come up with all the ideas? ;)
We need MORE CCC, we need more trees!
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