James Madison's Montpelier We The People Fall 2017 WTP_fall 2017_FINAL-rgb | Page 14
WE THE PEOPLE
To find living evidence of Madison as a steward
of the landscape, just walk though the 200 acres
now known as Montpelier’s Landmark Forest,
protected by an easement through The Nature
Conservancy. Experts who have examined the
trees and soil in the Forest have concluded that
the land was at least partly cleared and cultivated
in the time of Madison’s grandfather and father,
and then abandoned. Madison could have been
describing a stage in the Forest’s development
when he wrote to a friend in 1818, “Now all our
red fields long unplowed, are overspread with
pines as thick as they can grow.”
Although Madison did clear some pinelands
on the property for tobacco cultivation in
the 1820s, he seems to have used the future
Landmark Forest mainly for grazing livestock
and for careful timbering.
As Madison correctly predicted in 1818, his
pine forests would continue to evolve: “many
years may not pass before the oak & other trees
hitherto an undergrowth only, will instead of a
new forest of Pines, become Masters of the Soil.”
Today, the oaks and poplars of the Landmark
Forest stand as a tribute to the far-reaching
vision of this early environmentalist.
“[M]any years may not pass before
the oak & other trees hitherto an
undergrowth only, will instead of
a new forest of Pines, become
Masters of the Soil.” —James Madison
Left: T he next time you visit Montpelier, make sure to check out our new
trail map. Happy hiking!
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