Department of Forestry

In 1897, Silas Mason, the first College Forester, purchased the original tracts of land for the Forest with help from a generous benefactor, Miss Sarah Fay. Although much of the purchased land had been exhausted by overuse, Mason imagined a restored, healthy forest that would give Berea College clean water, timber for carpentry, and rest and recreation, while teaching both students and the surrounding community about forestry.

The conservation challenges and opportunities we face today have changed since 1897, but the original vision for the Berea College Forest remains compelling: Forestry that tends to the spiritual, intellectual, material, and ecological needs of a local community can become a model of stewardship that reaches beyond the borders of the Forest.