![pioneer mothers memorial wall](https://webarchive.library.unt.edu/eot2008/20081027033406im_/http://www.fs.fed.us/r9/hoosier/images/historical/pmmf/pmmf_wall.jpg) |
Pioneer Mothers Memorial Forest |
Imagine
walking through Indiana 100 years ago. Instead of cornfields and forested hillsides of
young trees, there were 19,000,000 acres of old growth forests. Walnut trees 40 inches in
diameter and 130 feet tall were common. Ancient oaks, which had stood since before
Columbus discovered America, were abundant.
![Little boy hugging a large tree in pioneer mothers memorial forest](https://webarchive.library.unt.edu/eot2008/20081027033406im_/http://www.fs.fed.us/r9/hoosier/images/rec_files/trail_pics/luke_big_tree.gif) |
You dont have to just imagine, you can visit Pioneer
Mothers Memorial Forest and step back into the past. This 88-acre area is located just
south of Paoli, Indiana. |
Formerly known as Cox Woods, the tract is the last old
growth forest of it's size in Indiana. The site has been left virtually undisturbed since
before it was purchased by Joseph Cox in 1816. |
![large tree in pioneer mothers memorial forest](https://webarchive.library.unt.edu/eot2008/20081027033406im_/http://www.fs.fed.us/r9/hoosier/images/rec_files/trail_pics/luke_big_tree2.gif) |
![big trees in pioneer mothers forest](https://webarchive.library.unt.edu/eot2008/20081027033406im_/http://www.fs.fed.us/r9/hoosier/images/historical/pmmf/pmmf_trees.jpg) |
Cox came to Indiana from Tennessee and acquired 258 acres
near what was to become the town of Paoli. Cox loved trees and set aside 88 acres of his
land to save for future generations. His land stayed in the family and eventually passed
to another Joseph Cox who shared his grandfathers love of the stately old trees. He
resisted pressure to sell the large trees despite poverty and debts. The second Joseph Cox died in 1940. His heirs quickly sold
his property, including the tract of old growth timber, to Wood-Mosaic Lumber Company of
Louisville, Kentucky for $23,000. |
When the sale was publicized in local
papers, a movement was started to save the unique tract from harvest. The Meridian Club of
Paoli convinced Wood-Mosaic to refrain from cutting the timber for 90 days and to resell
the tract at the purchase price. The community then began a massive fund- raising effort.
The Forest Service also initiated efforts
to help save the old forest. The agency was able to procure half the funds needed as long
as the land would be controlled by the Forest Service. The remaining money was quickly
raised with one day of grace and the land bought back from the lumber company. Two
conditions were attached to the donations received from the community.
![visitors at memorial wall](https://webarchive.library.unt.edu/eot2008/20081027033406im_/http://www.fs.fed.us/r9/hoosier/images/historical/pmmf/ladies_pmmf.jpg) |
First,
no trees on the 88 acres could ever be cut. Second, in tribute to the $5,900 donation from
the Indiana Pioneer Mothers Club, the area would be named the Indiana Pioneer Mother
Memorial Forest and a suitable memorial would be built. A rock wall memorial was completed
in 1951. |
In 1944 the tract was designated a Research Natural Area
by the Forest Service. Along with a 165-acre buffer, the area is managed to protect its
unique qualities.
Today, because of the determined commitment of many
people, the Pioneer Mothers Memorial Forest has been preserved. These great trees now
stand as a monument to the massive deciduous forests that covered Indiana 180 years ago.
A double-walled post stockade designed for defense encircled the village.
This stockade enclosed over an acre of land. Excavations by the Glenn A. Black Laboratory
at Indiana University in 1993 and 1994 defined the walls and scope of the village. Further
study focused on identification of house sites and a central plaza, and study of the daily
life of these people. The drawing below shows what the village might
have looked like.
![drawing of an oliver phase village](https://webarchive.library.unt.edu/eot2008/20081027033406im_/http://www.fs.fed.us/r9/hoosier/images/historical/pmmf/oliver_village.gif)
Even though vandalism and illegal digging have disturbed much of the area, the site is
still eligible to be on the National Register of Historical places.
Archaeological sites hold clues to Americas past. Federal law protects them.
If you discover such sites, leave them undisturbed and report your discoveries to the
Forest Service. Like the tall trees preserved for future generations on the hillsides
above the site, archaeological resources are shadows of our past - a tie to the people and
cultures that came before us.
|
![logs from pioneer mother's walnut tree](https://webarchive.library.unt.edu/eot2008/20081027033406im_/http://www.fs.fed.us/r9/hoosier/images/historical/pmmf/pmmf_logs.jpg) |
Although most
records show there were never any trees harvested from the Pioneer Mothers Memorial
Forest, there may have been two trees cut in 1936. |
Possibly Joseph Cox,
facing a depression economy was forced to sell two of his beloved trees. These logs
were shown in a USDA photo from that year. The caption with the picture said two trees
from Cox Woods near Paoli Indiana sold for $1,200 (a phenomenal amount for that time!)
These logs were from one of those trees which included a 16x33, 16x32, 16x30, 16x28,
16x27, and 12x27 log, plus 2 limb logs. Pioneer Mothers
Trail
This one mile, hiking only trail runs between the parking area on
State Road 37 and U.S. Highway 150. The memorial wall's location now seems rather odd, however it once stood
near the site of a former picnic area accessible by a road off Highway 150. The
access road has
been closed (due to an unsafe bridge) and the picnic site removed.
Limited parking is available at the access road to Hwy 150, however this
road is not signed and visitors would need to hike down the old access
road to the area. Preferred access is from S.R. 37. Click here for a topographic map of the
trail. |
![line map of site](https://webarchive.library.unt.edu/eot2008/20081027033406im_/http://www.fs.fed.us/r9/hoosier/images/maps/trail_maps/pioneer_mom.gif) |
Note: Since this area is a Research Natural Area no hunting, camping,
target- shooting, or plant collecting is allowed. Horses and bikes are also prohibited in
this area.
Click here for information
on a research study on oak seedling dispersal at Pioneer Mothers Memorial
Forest.
Informational paper on Pioneer Mothers - A Changing Forest
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