The United States Forest Service is in the news a lot these days… It feels timely to reflect on how Pisgah National Forest is not only the birthplace of forestry but the backdrop for much of the development of the forest service itself. Before the forest service existed a young George Vanderbilt recognized our region’s beauty. He sent his staff to survey and buy property from local families who made claims to the land in what is now Pisgah. Dr. Carl Schenck, who founded the Biltmore Forest School, reported nearly 300 farms on these inholdings, particularly in the fertile Pink Beds area. …The same year the Biltmore Forest School was founded, Pinchot became chief of the Division of Forestry in the federal Department of Agriculture. When Roosevelt created the USFS in 1905, Pinchot became its first leader and many of Schenck’s alumni were among the ranks of his staff.