Forest History of Colonial New England: Combining Evidence from Documents and Pollen

Bringing metal tools and animals with them from Europe, settlers set out to transform the Northeastern American landscape shortly after founding Plymouth Colony in 1620. Historical accounts describe an abundance of tree cover, which, environmental historians argue, provided the frame and fuel for American nationhood. But what do we really know about the pre-colonial canopy of the Northeast and its transformation under colonialism? To find out, we have to go back into the woods and understand how forests age. Using ecology and pollen records, we can learn about Abenaki and early settlers’ interactions with the treed landscape.