Charles Lane Poole
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Charles Edward Lane Poole (16 August 1885 – 22 November 1970) was an English Australian forester who introduced systematic, science-based forestry practices to various parts of the
Commonwealth A commonwealth is a traditional English term for a political community founded for the common good. The noun "commonwealth", meaning "public welfare, general good or advantage", dates from the 15th century. Originally a phrase (the common-wealth ...
, most notably Australia.


Biography


Early life and education in Europe (1885–1906)

Poole was born on 16 August 1885 in Easebourne,
Sussex Sussex (Help:IPA/English, /ˈsʌsɪks/; from the Old English ''Sūþseaxe''; lit. 'South Saxons'; 'Sussex') is an area within South East England that was historically a kingdom of Sussex, kingdom and, later, a Historic counties of England, ...
, England, the youngest son of
Stanley Lane-Poole Stanley Edward Lane-Poole (18 December 1854 – 29 December 1931) was a British orientalist and archaeologist. Biography Lane Poole was Born in London, England, the eldest of three children (two sons and a daughter) of Edward Stanley Poole (1830 ...
, an Egyptologist, and his wife Charlotte. His brother
Richard Richard is a male given name. It originates, via Old French, from compound of the words descending from Proto-Germanic language">Proto-Germanic ''*rīk-'' 'ruler, leader, king' and ''*hardu-'' 'strong, brave, hardy', and it therefore means 'st ...
was a senior officer in the Royal Navy. In 1900 his father took up a professorship at
Trinity College Dublin Trinity College Dublin (), officially titled The College of the Holy and Undivided Trinity of Queen Elizabeth near Dublin, and legally incorporated as Trinity College, the University of Dublin (TCD), is the sole constituent college of the Unive ...
, moving the family with him, and Lane Poole began attending school at St Columba's College the next year. He then undertook an engineering course, but dropped out after losing his left hand in a shooting accident. He switched to forestry science, graduating from the French National School of Forestry in 1906.


Africa (1906–1916)

After Lane Poole's graduation from the French National School of Forestry, the British government sent him to what is now South Africa, where he initially spent a year at the South African Forest School. He began working as a forest officer in Transvaal in May 1907, and was then appointed as District Forest Officer at Woodbush Forest, near
Haenertsburg Haenertsburg is a village situated on the edge of the Great Escarpment in the Limpopo Province of South Africa, on the R71 road between Polokwane (formerly: ''Pietersburg'') and Tzaneen en route to the Kruger National Park. Farming and tourism ...
. He resigned from this position in June 1910, citing disagreement with the government's policies. In November 1910 he was posted as a forest officer to
Sierra Leone Sierra Leone, officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country on the southwest coast of West Africa. It is bordered to the southeast by Liberia and by Guinea to the north. Sierra Leone's land area is . It has a tropical climate and envi ...
. While on leave in Dublin in July 1911, he married Ruth Pollexfen, an Irish-born embroiderer and furniture designer who later designed the interiors of The Lodge and Government House in Canberra, and was a cousin of W. B. Yeats. She stayed in Ireland when he returned to Sierra Leone, where he became the Conservator of Forests and a member of the Legislative Council, among other things establishing the forestry department and setting up the first forest reserves.


Western Australia (1916–1921)

In 1916, Lane Poole was appointed as Western Australia's Conservator of Forests, and moved to the Perth suburb of Cottesloe with his wife and daughter in their first home together.Dargavel, John. Australian National Botanic Gardens
Charles Lane Poole
Originally published i
issue 32
summer 2006–2007, of ''Momento'', National Archives of Australia.
He formulated the Forests Act (1918), established a new Forests Department, and began long-term planning for sustainable use of timber. In
Ludlow Ludlow ( ) is a market town and civil parish in Shropshire (district), Shropshire, England. It is located south of Shrewsbury and north of Hereford, on the A49 road (Great Britain), A49 road which bypasses the town. The town is near the conf ...
, he set up a forestry settlement along with Ludlow Forestry School (1921–1927), the first forestry school in Western Australia. When the Western Australian authorities would not heed his advice, he resigned in protest in 1921. Shortly afterwards, Ruth returned to Ireland with the couple's two daughters.


Papua and New Guinea (1921–1925)

The Australian timber industry pressured the national government to hire Lane Poole to survey the existing timber resources in Papua, then an Australian territory, and later in
New Guinea New Guinea (; Hiri Motu: ''Niu Gini''; , fossilized , also known as Papua or historically ) is the List of islands by area, world's second-largest island, with an area of . Located in Melanesia in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, the island is ...
. He spent three years surveying the Papuan and New Guinea forests, from the lowlands to the highlands; he surveyed the country, measured trees, and collected specimens. Although he did not find the stands of timber that could be harvested on a large scale, his extensive notes on such forest products as resin, oils and nuts helped identify other possible avenues of commercial development. His third and youngest daughter was born while he was in Papua. After the missionary
Christian Keyser Christian Gottlob Keyser (also spelled Keysser, Kaiser) was a Lutheran missionary of the Neuendettelsau Mission Society. He served for almost 22 years at the Neuendettelsau Mission Station in the Finschhafen District of New Guinea, which ...
, he was one of the first Europeans to climb the Saruwaged Massif.


Melbourne, Canberra, and later life in Sydney (1925–1970)

In 1925 Lane Poole moved with his family to the Melbourne suburb of South Yarra, where he was appointed Forestry Adviser for the Commonwealth, on the recommendation of Western Australian senator
George Pearce Sir George Foster Pearce KCVO (14 January 1870 – 24 June 1952) was an Australian politician who served as a Senator for Western Australia from 1901 to 1938. He began his career in the Labor Party but later joined the National Labor Party, ...
. In 1927 he was appointed Commonwealth Inspector-General of Forests and Acting Principal of the Australian Forestry School, which he had established and strongly campaigned for. The Lane Pooles moved to Canberra in late 1927 and by early 1928 they were living in Yarralumla in Westridge House, the forestry school principal's official residence, which had been designed for them by Harold Desbrowe-Annear with Ruth's input regarding the interiors. The Australian Forestry School, which was later amalgamated into the
Australian National University The Australian National University (ANU) is a public university, public research university and member of the Group of Eight (Australian universities), Group of Eight, located in Canberra, the capital of Australia. Its main campus in Acton, A ...
, trained many of Australia's professional foresters. He retired from the Australian Forestry School in 1944 and from the Commonwealth government in 1945, after which he moved to the Sydney suburb of Manly and carried out consulting work. He died on 22 November 1970, aged 87, in Sydney; his body was cremated.


Legacy

The author Mervyn Millet described his friend and mentor as the father of national forestry in Australia, as its first Inspector-General of Forests and in advancing education on management practices. A large reservation of jarrah forest is named in his honour: the Lane Poole Reserve is about from Perth, and contains the old milling town of Nanga Brook. The species '' Eucalyptus lane-poolei'' and '' Cycas lane-poolei'' were named in his honour.


See also

* Bendora Arboretum, established by Poole


References


Further reading

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Lane Pool, Charles 1885 births 1970 deaths 20th-century Australian scientists People educated at St Columba's College, Dublin French National School of Forestry alumni Australian foresters British emigrants to Australia People from former British colonies and protectorates in Africa English foresters Australian amputees English amputees People from Easebourne Lane family British scientists with disabilities