Photograph of Smithville, Okla. Vocational Agriculture class with instructor examining pine tree that should be removed from the forest because it is defective. Small log or pulpwood will be cut from defective trees of this type. A tract of about 80 acres, owned by Story-McKee-Wilson Lumber Company, is set aside as school forest where the Voc. Agri. class study and apply proper forestry practices. Selective cutting has been carried out on 20 acres in the 1955 and 1956 compartment. The high school's senior class receives the net income from this forest project.

Photograph of a new building on the old site of Brushy Ridge School. Patrons and School Board completed this building of a class room, hall, assembly room and large kitchen for $2,600. 00. Funds from their school forest donated by J. D. Bates helped furnish the kitchen.

Photograph of Glen Scott, Vocational Agriculture student, girdling cull hard wood tree in pine stand. J. C. Brown and Tom Stickler checking girdle to be certain it is wide enough to kill the tree. These boys are studying forestry in relation to soil conservation training. Work and training is being carried on in the school forest. The forest is divided into several compartments to allow study of all phases of forestry.

Photograph of an automatic lumber sorter in operation at a saw mill. This sorter conveys and drops lumber in piles according to size and grade. Lumber is sawed at a mill in the forest and hauled to a finishing mil in town. As the lumber is unloaded, it is fed into this sorter which moves it and piles it in the proper place. The lumber is fed into the sorter by two men, thus conserving much time and labor. OK-413-9.

Photograph of a pine nursery. Bill Campbell, nursery manager, preparing to plow up trees. Tractor loosens trees with bar, leaving trees loose for hand pulling. Trees are sorted and packed in bundles of 50 trees each. Little River Soil Conservation District crews pick up the trees at the nursery she dfor farm delivery. Three large industrial forest firms give small landowners trees on a tree-for-tree-matched basis. These trees are given to small land owners to encourage them to increase their timber stands. OK-412-1

Photograph of native grass, Claude Gilbert farm. Native grass pasture seeded in 1952. Bluestem on the right and Indian grass on the left. These grasses have not been grazed since they were seeded. Soil Conservation Service program started on this farm in 1952. OK-401-11.

Photograph of weeping lovegrass. Claude Gilbert in a field of weeping lovegrass. That was moved once this year, making 1 ½ tons of hay per acre. Mowed twice in 1955, it yielded 100 pounds of seed per acre which was sold for $0.65 per pound. Gilbert fertilizes his weeping lovegrass with 100 pounds of 10-20-10 fertilizer per acre each spring. Soil Conservation Service program started on this farm in 1952. OK-401-9.

Photograph of hardwood control. Quintas Herron, owner, and C. P. Durk [?], Soil Conservation Service, examine pine trees released by deadening culled hardwood trees with a basal injection of 2-4-5T herbicide in December, 1954. Planting an acre of pine seedlings costs about $8.00 per acre where controlling hardwoods to release young pine costs about $4.00 per acre. Natural reproduction of pine produces more trees per acre to be cut as poles, posts and pulpwood than plantings. OK-414-3.

Photograph of Vocational Agriculture class studying conservation plan map of school forest. People shown in photo go as followed from left to right: Front Row: 1. J. C. Brown, 2. Glenn Scott, 3. Jack Brock, Instructor, Back Row: 1. Glen Hensley, 2. Tom Stickle, 3. Don McClung, 4. Steve Hilton, 5. Luther Baxter. The back of the photograph proclaims, "Conservation Education. Vocational Agriculture class at Smithville, Okla. High School studying conservation plan map of school forest. A tract of 80 acres owned by McKee-Story-Wilson Lumber Co. is set aside for this Voc. Agri. to study and practice forestry practices on. Left to right is J. C. Brown, Glenn Scott, Jack Brock, instructor, back row; Glen Hensley, Tom Stickle, Don McClung, Steve Hilton and Luther Baxter. The boys of the class are learning forestry by doing as well as studying in class."

Photograph of a supplemental pasture of oats and vetch seeded in Bermudagrass sod in the fall of 1956. The back of the photograph proclaims, "Oats and vetch seeded in Bermudagrass sod in the fall of 1956. Seeding was done with a sod disc with about 200 pounds of 5-10-5 fertilizer being applied with the seed. Fifteen pounds of vetch and 2 bushels of oats per acre were seeded in the Bermudagrass sod. Owner Planned to use the oats and vetch as winter grazing for his cattle."

Photograph of forestry lumber. A general view of a lumber yard and storage sheds at Herron lumber mill. Storage sheds and wood working rooms are laid out in a definite manner to make lumber easier to handle and store to reduce time and labor needed to produce the finished product. OK-413-11.

Photograph of a saw mill. Head-saw in operation running out hardwood logs. This mill also has a gang saw for pine lumber. This country mill has a pay roll of $150.00 per day which adds to the forest economy of the district. Lee Swarts, shown here, marks all of his pine timber to be harvested on D-46 spacing, as recommended by the Soil Conservation Service, according to his agreement with the Little River Soil Conservation District. He manages 8000 acres of his own timber land. OK-412-7.

Photograph of a pine tree plantation. Pine trees planted in the winter of 1948 - 1949 on old cultivated land which was farmed until 1944. First trees planted were dug from woods and transplanted by millhands on the off days at the mill. Later, as nursery stock became available, the tract was planted with seedlings. Earl Hayes, SCS; Lee Swarts, owner; and C.P. Burke, SCS, examine trees to determine when the first cut should be made. The trees were planted as proper land use and a soil conservation measure as well as a cash crop. OK-412-10.

Photograph of timber stand improvement. Pre-commercial thinning of trees to improve composition and quality of pine stand. Lee Swarts, a small mill operator, works the mill hands on off winter days on odd timber jobs to forest timber ideas and to provide steady work for regular employees. Mr. Swarts has over 8000 acres of pine land under agreement with the Little River Soil Conservation District with cutting compartments and cutting cycles. OK-412-5.

Photograph of forestry lumber. The dry kiln at Herron mill, Idabel, Oklahoma. The kiln was installed to conserve time. Lumber is gas dried and ready 48 hours after being put through the kiln. Several mills in southeast Oklahoma have installed these kilns in a modernization of the lumber industry. Improvements in machinery and management at the mill and in the forest have been adopted to upgrade the lumber industry in this area. OK-413-10.

Photograph of Luther Lawson felling a pine tree. This tree is being taken down for lack of growth progress owing to fire damage. To gain the best from a forest, all space must be conserved for sound trees properly spaced to get the maximum footage from each acre. OK-414-7.

Photograph of a pine nursery. Approximately 1,500,000 Loblolly and short leaf pine trees are to be planted during the 1956 – 1957 planting season. Dry weather and the shortage of irrigation water has cut the output of this nursery by approximately 50%. These trees will be used to establish pine stands on old worn crops such as cotton and corn. The trees will conserve the land from further erosion. OK-412-2.

Photograph of the Vocational Agriculture class at Smithville, Okla. High School studying conservation plan map of school forest. A tract of about 80 acres, owned by Story-McKee-Wilson Lumber Company, is set aside as school forest where the Voc. Agri. class study and apply proper forestry practices. Left to right is J. C. Brown, Glenn Scott, Jack Brock, Instructor, back row; Glen Hensley, Tom Stickle, Don McClung, Steve Hilton and Luther Baxter. The boys of this class are learning forestry by doing as well as studying in class.

Photograph of Glen Hensley planting a pine seedling in school forest. Steve Hinton, Don McClung and Luther Baxter watching the planting. These boys are members of a Vocational Agriculture class at Smithville High School. This class has planted 5 acres of pine (1956 planting season) and plan to plant an additional 5 acres. The boys are studying as part of a well rounded course in soil conservation work.

Photograph of Weeping Lovegrass. Claude Gilbert stands by a stack of weeping lovegrass hay. 700 bales cut this year off a 14 acre field. Yield is 1 1/2 tons per acre. Gilbert fertilizer his weeping lovegrass with 100 pounds of a 10-20-10 fertilizer per acre in the spring of each year. A Soil Conservation Service program started on this farm in 1952. Gilbert is sold on weeping lovegrass and has needed 80 acres of his eroded cropland to lovegrass. OK-401-8.

Photograph of Weeping lovegrass. Claude Gilbert in a field of weeping lovegrass that was mowed once this year making 1 1/2 tons of hay per acre. Mowed twice in 1955 and yielding 100 ounds of seed per acre which was sold for 65 cents per pound. Gilbert fertilizes his weeping lovegrass with 100 pounds of 10-20-10 fertilizer per acre each spring. Soil Conservation Service program started on this farm in 1952. OK-401-9.

Photograph of Claude Gilbert's cattle.

Photograph of Smithville's Vocational Agricultural Class students and their instructor on Story-McKee-Wilson Lumber Co. land set aside for them examining a pine tree that should be removed from forest because it is defective. People shown in photo go as followed from left to right: 1. J. C. Brown, 2. Jack Brock, Instructor, 3. Tom Stickle, 4. Steve Hilton, 5. Glen Hensley, 6. Glenn Scott, 7. Don McClung, 8. Luther Baxter. The back of the photograph proclaims, "Forestry Training. Smithville, Okla. Vo. Agri. class with instructor examining pine tree that should be removed from forest because it is defective. Small log or pulpwood will be cut from defective trees of this type. A tract of about 80 acres, owned by Story-McKee-Wilson Lumber Co., is set aside as school forest where the Voc. Agri. class study and apply proper forestry practices. Selective cutting has been carried out on 20 acres in the 1955 and 1956 compartments. The high school's senior class receives the net income from the forest project."

Photograph of a supplemental pasture of oats and vetch seeded in Bermudagrass sod. The back of the photograph proclaims, "Supplemental Pasture. Oats and vetch seeded in Bermudagrass sod in the fall of 1956. Seeding was done with a sod disc and about 200 pounds of 5-10-5 fertilizer was applied with the seed. Fifteen pounds of vetch and 2 bushels per acre were seeded in the Bermudagrass sod. Owner plans to use oats and vetch as winter grazing for his cattle."