The People's Forest

For 100 Years

100 years ago the White Mountains were largely a denuded cutover landscape marked by eroding hillsides. Streams were blackened by silt and ash from widespread fires sparked in expansive logging slash. The passage of the Weeks Act in 1911 called for the protection of headwater streams. On May 16, 1918 President Woodrow Wilson signed Executive Order 1449 creating the White Mountain National Forest in Maine and New Hampshire.

Today the Forest is nearly 800,000 acres and attracts several million visitors who hike, camp, climb and ski on their public land each year. The White Mountain National Forest has become a major part of the economic engine of New Hampshire contributing to the nearly 9 billion dollar statewide outdoor recreation industry that supports almost 80,000 jobs.

Whether you are a regular visitor, local community member, volunteer or partner, the White Mountain National Forest hopes the centennial will encourage you to relfect on that importance of your connection with the land known as “the people’s forest.”