We are fired up about burning for healthy forests!
Indian Burning in Clay County, Alabama
December 17th, 2009 Filed Under Blog
Excerpts from:
A Historical Analysis of the Creek Indian Hillabee Towns, Don C, East, 2008 iUniverse , Inc. New York Bloomigton
About:
Clay Country, Alabama
Page 123, Livestock Herdsmen
….”The pine forest had been kept clear of understory through annual burning by the Indians. The following pioneers continued the practice. The burning allowed wild oats, grasses, wild vetch, and pea vines to grow as summer grazing. The deep hollows and swamps were covered with dense cane breaks, furnishing the livestock winter grazing and protection from the elements.”
Page 142, Life in the Chapman Road Villages; Farming
Oral interview with John A. Cleveland
“First we had to clear the land and that was a big job. I especially remember the pines; they were great big trees. We would chop around the trees (girdle) to kill them. Then, when they died and fell, we would pile them up and burn them. We picked up all the rocks from the field and piled them up. We raised corn, cotton, vegetables, and some wheat. We had cows, pigs, chickens, and some sheep for wool. The cows were branded or marks put on their ears and they just ran loose. The chickens ran loose also so they could fend for themselves in the woods and fields.”
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