Austin Cary
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Austin Cary (July 31, 1865 – April 28, 1936) was an American
forester A forester is a person who practises forest management and forestry, the science, art, and profession of managing forests. Foresters engage in a broad range of activities including ecological restoration and management of protected areas. Fores ...
, known as the "father of southern forestry". Austin Cary Forest, on Great Island,
Maine Maine ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the United States, and the northeasternmost state in the Contiguous United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Provinces and ...
, is named for him.


Early life and education

Cary was born in 1865 in
East Machias, Maine East Machias is a town in Washington County, Maine, United States on the East Machias River. At the 2020 census, the town population was 1,326. It is the home of Washington Academy, a private school founded in 1792. Geography According to th ...
, to Charles Cary and Mary Eliza. He was one of their two sons, the other being George. He was a descendent of John Cary, who arrived in the
Massachusetts Bay Colony The Massachusetts Bay Colony (1628–1691), more formally the Colony of Massachusetts Bay, was an English settlement on the east coast of North America around Massachusetts Bay, one of the several colonies later reorganized as the Province of M ...
from
Bristol Bristol () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, the most populous city in the region. Built around the River Avon, Bristol, River Avon, it is bordered by t ...
, England, in 1630. Caleb Cary, Austin's grandfather, moved north in the early 19th century, settling in East Machias. He was educated at Washington Academy in East Machias. He graduated with honors from
Bowdoin College Bowdoin College ( ) is a Private college, private liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Brunswick, Maine. It was chartered in 1794. The main Bowdoin campus is located near Casco Bay and the Androscoggin River. In a ...
in 1887. After working as an instructor in Biology and Geology at Bowdoin for a year, he moved to
Johns Hopkins University The Johns Hopkins University (often abbreviated as Johns Hopkins, Hopkins, or JHU) is a private university, private research university in Baltimore, Maryland, United States. Founded in 1876 based on the European research institution model, J ...
, where he studied biology for eighteen months. In 1890, Cary studied
paleontology Paleontology, also spelled as palaeontology or palæontology, is the scientific study of the life of the past, mainly but not exclusively through the study of fossils. Paleontologists use fossils as a means to classify organisms, measure ge ...
at Princeton.


Career

In the summer of 1891, Cary took part in the Bowdoin Scientific Expedition to
Labrador Labrador () is a geographic and cultural region within the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador. It is the primarily continental portion of the province and constitutes 71% of the province's area but is home to only 6% of its populatio ...
, led by Professor Leslie A. Lee. With Dennis Cole, he traveled along the Churchill River to Grand Falls, discovering a navigable waterway which extended in continuous form for around . They named the
canyon A canyon (; archaic British English spelling: ''cañon''), gorge or chasm, is a deep cleft between escarpments or cliffs resulting from weathering and the erosive activity of a river over geologic time scales. Rivers have a natural tendency t ...
at the bottom of Grand Falls the "Bowdoin Canyon" and named a nearby peak Mount Hyde, after Bowdoin president William DeWitt Hyde. Cary kept a diary of the expedition, later published in a bulletin by the
American Geographical Society The American Geographical Society (AGS) is an organization of professional geographers, founded in 1851 in New York City. Most fellows of the society are United States, Americans, but among them have always been a significant number of fellows f ...
. Cary initially began his career as a teacher at
Harvard University Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...
, but later became a pioneer in
forestry Forestry is the science and craft of creating, managing, planting, using, conserving and repairing forests and woodlands for associated resources for human and Natural environment, environmental benefits. Forestry is practiced in plantations and ...
. He had a 25-year career with the
United States Forest Service The United States Forest Service (USFS) is an agency within the United States Department of Agriculture, U.S. Department of Agriculture. It administers the nation's 154 United States National Forest, national forests and 20 United States Natio ...
. His ''Woodsman's Manual'' (originally named ''Manual for Northern Woodsmen'') became an important reference. He wrote over one hundred articles for various periodicals, including the American Geographical Society, '' Journal of Forestry'' and ''American Lumberman''. In 1893, Cary served for three years with the Federal Division of Forestry, having been given the role by Dr. Bernhard Fernow of the Bureau of Forestry. Between 1898 and 1904, he worked for the Berlin Mills Company, which was prominent in northern
New Hampshire New Hampshire ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Gulf of Maine to the east, and the Canadian province of Quebec t ...
and his home state of
Maine Maine ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the United States, and the northeasternmost state in the Contiguous United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Provinces and ...
. In 1908, Maine governor William T. Cobb selected Cary to represent the state at the Great Natural Resources Conference in
Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...
The following year, he was appointed Superintendent of Forests for New York, but resigned in 1910 due to ill health. Later that year, he became Senior Logging Engineer with the U.S. Forest Service. He worked with them for the next 25 years, retiring at the age of 70 in 1935.


Personal life

Cary married Lelia J. Chisholm, of
Seattle, Washington Seattle ( ) is the List of municipalities in Washington, most populous city in the U.S. state of Washington (state), Washington and in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. With a population of 780,995 in 2024, it is the List of Unit ...
, on October 8, 1916. She died in May the following year. In 1922, Cary was awarded a doctorate of Science by Bowdoin College. Two years later, be became a Fellow of the
Society of American Foresters The Society of American Foresters (SAF) is a professional organization representing the forestry industry in the United States. Its mission statement declares that it seeks to "advance the science, education, and practice of forestry; to enhance t ...
. After retiring, Cary split his time between living in
Lake City, Florida Lake City is a city in and the county seat of Columbia County, Florida, United States. As of the 2020 census, the city's population was 12,329, up from 12,046 at the 2010 census. It is the principal city of the Lake City Micropolitan Statistica ...
, and
Brunswick, Maine Brunswick is a New England town, town in Cumberland County, Maine, United States. Brunswick is included in the Lewiston-Auburn, Maine metropolitan New England city and town area. The population was 21,756 at the 2020 United States Census. Part o ...
, where he had a home on Gurnet Road, which leads to Harpswell.


Death

Cary died at the
University of Florida The University of Florida (Florida or UF) is a public university, public land-grant university, land-grant research university in Gainesville, Florida, United States. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida and a preem ...
in
Gainesville, Florida Gainesville is the county seat of Alachua County, Florida, United States, and the most populous city in North Central Florida, with a population of 145,212 in 2022. It is the principal city of the Gainesville metropolitan area, Florida, Gainesv ...
, in 1936, after a
cardiac arrest Cardiac arrest (also known as sudden cardiac arrest CA is when the heart suddenly and unexpectedly stops beating. When the heart stops beating, blood cannot properly Circulatory system, circulate around the body and the blood flow to the ...
. He was 70 years old. His body was cremated in
Jacksonville, Florida Jacksonville ( ) is the most populous city proper in the U.S. state of Florida, located on the Atlantic coast of North Florida, northeastern Florida. It is the county seat of Duval County, Florida, Duval County, with which the City of Jacksonv ...
.


Legacy

A memorial to Cary was erected beside Florida State Road 13, ten miles from Gainesville. It is a
granite Granite ( ) is a coarse-grained (phanerite, phaneritic) intrusive rock, intrusive igneous rock composed mostly of quartz, alkali feldspar, and plagioclase. It forms from magma with a high content of silica and alkali metal oxides that slowly coo ...
boulder, which was transported from Machias. On it is a bronze plaque with an inscription by T. A. Liefeld. Austin Cary Forest, a wood, on Great Island,
Maine Maine ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the United States, and the northeasternmost state in the Contiguous United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Provinces and ...
, is named for him. It was established by sisters Dr. Virginia Hamilton Bailey and Patricia Hamilton Lowery Bousfield.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cary, Austin 1865 births 1936 deaths People from East Machias, Maine People from Gainesville, Florida American foresters Bowdoin College alumni Harvard University faculty Writers from Maine Bowdoin College faculty Johns Hopkins University alumni Princeton University alumni