12/03/20
Before settlers arrived in Vermont, Centennial Woods was not called Centennial Woods. It was Abenaki land, so there is no way of knowing exactly what it was used for, but we can be sure that they had very different land use practices than the settlers. Practices that involved farming and hunting without clear cutting forests and completely reassembling the landscape. While today I was able to use my site in Centennial Woods as a method of studying the phenology of Vermont’s forests, there was a time when Centennial Woods had no trees. Vermont’s farm production reached its peak in the 1870’s, when about 80% of the state was deforested, including Centennial Woods. Eventually, when sheep farming in Vermont became less popular, many of the forests grew back. Many of the trees in Centennial Woods are the same size, which is evidence of the abandonment of farms that allowed for regrowth, all beginning around the same time. The University acquired most of Centennial Woods in parcels between 1891 and 1908. For a long time it was used as a dump for the University, including being a dumping ground for medical supplies from the hospital and even cadavers. In 1963 a small ski hill called South Burlington Kiwanis Ski Area opened in Centennial Woods, but it fell victim to arsonists four years later. Now Centennial Woods is primarily used for academic purposes such as labs and as a recreation area for students and Burlington residents.
Sources:
Abramovich, C. (2020, March 31). Curious Centennial Woods. Retrieved from http://obscurevermont.com/curious-centennial-woods/
Merck. (2019, October 25). History of Vermont Forests & Farmland. Retrieved from https://www.merckforest.org/history-of-vermont-forests-farmland/