Twin Pines Conservation Center Educates You About Ozark...
Tuesday, Feb 24, 2009 @09:50pm CST
 There's no doubt the ice storms in the last few years have taken a toll on the landscaping of the Ozarks. Even so, our forests are still bountiful with beautiful trees that help define our history.
But you might be surprised to learn that many of the trees we enjoy today aren't really all that old.
And there's a new education center over in Shannon County that can show you why.
You can still hear the sound of a sawmill in many areas of the Ozarks. But a new facility in Shannon County aims to educate you in old-school logging.
"A lot of people don't realize how heavily this area was logged, even people that live here" says Melanie Carden-Jessen, Twin Pines Manager.
Melanie Carden-Jessen is the education manager at the Twin Pines Conservation Center near Winona. It just opened a year ago, and it tells the story of the logging and timber industry in the Ozarks.
"But we had pine trees up to 7 foot in diameter. We had some pretty lofty pines. All of those were logged off and used to build the railroads out west" says Carden-Jessen.
In fact there was so much logging that very few trees were left once timber crews came through.
"If you were a tree of any size, and by any size I mean 8 inches, you were cut. And there was not a lot of seed trees left. The landscape has totally been changed" says Carden-Jessen.
This center tells that story through pictures and pieces of memorabilia. And outside among the timber visitors can see the actual tools used by loggers back in the 1800's.
"We have an old tie-mill. We have an 1840's vertical sawmill, one of five in the county. We have single mills, barrel mills" says Carden-Jessen.
Something else you'll see at Twin Pines is an old rugged cabin. It was built back in 1840 and was moved here from Sutton Creek north of Eminence. It's in a place like this that the loggers would've lived.
There's also a one-room school house that represents everyday life for the families of those who came to log the region.
"The one room school house didn't serve just as a school house. It also served as a church, community center. It was a group meeting place so that's why it was important to the timber industry here in the Ozarks" says Skyler Bockman, education specialist.
Twin Pines also offers educational classes to help teach property owners how to better manage their own forest lands. They say it's just one way to plant some positive seeds to help protect the landscape we've all come to love.
"Forestry is a huge part of the economy in this area. People still depend on trees. We can't completely eliminate the need for trees, don't want to" says Carden-Jessen.
There's also a fishing pond and archery range at Twin Pines where local students come out to have some fun, and learn about logging history. The center is run by the State Department of Conservation. Its 1.3 miles past Winona off Highway 60. |
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