Once upon a time, Lassen College had a very popular forestry program. This was back in the day, with three large lumber mills in Susanville, another one in Westwood, along with the Lassen National Forest provided a lot of job opportunities. It was because of these factors that there was need for some vocational training in this field, and especially for the community.
In 1935, the college board of trustees, who also served as the Lassen High School board, met with Mr. J.C. Beswick from the State Department of Education, in charge of Trade and Industrial Education. It was met with enthusiasm by all parties, including the mills and related fields. On September 19, 1935, a Technical Institute course in forestry at Lassen College was offered, with Gale M. Whitchurch in charge. Initially, enrollments fluctuated between 12 and 23.
It was the National Youth Administration (NYA) program that would provide a big boost in enrollment in the forestry program. The NYA provided youth between the ages of 16 and 25, opportunities for education, and a job, and in 1938, Lassen College participated in the program. It saw additional 40 students enrolled in the forestry program. These new students came from all over California. Now there was dilemma of housing. The Lassen Lumber & Box Company leased their large dormitory known as the Alpine Hotel to the NYA. The NYA program continued through 1943.
By that time the forestry program was well established. In the decades to follow, times changed and in 1984, the program was cancelled.
Personally, I want to thank Charles “Chuck” Stewart, Lassen College Class of 1941, for all his work in putting some of the history of the NYA program at Lassen.
Thank you Tim. Really sad to learn that the program was cancelled. In the early ’70’s when classes where still held at the old high school site, it was on going. Some students from far and wide were majoring in forestry. Maybe sometime in our children’s future, we will mill again. Grown; milled and made in USA has a great ring to it, don’t you think?
Hi Tim. Thanks for this post. My father, John Hamilton, was the faculty chair of the forestry department for most of the last 20 years it existed. It really was in its heyday in the 60’s and early 70’s, with three full time faculty and dozens of students. But with the decline of the timber industry and more and more people getting bachelors degrees in forestry, jobs for people with associate degrees in forestry dried up.
I am on a long term project of scanning pictures from my parents, so if I run across any related to the forestry program I will pass them along.
Scott Hamilton
Scott . . . thanks. Actually, I am interested in all materials relating to Lassen College. In 2025, it will be the college’s centennial, so this is a good as any, to start compiling material.
It does have a great ring to it. I graduated from Lassen Forestry School in 1970. It opened doors for me right after graduating. I as part time with Lassen National Forest for two seasons then went to Weyerhaeuser Co. in Central Asksnsas. Worked as an auditorscaling logs then went to the Forestry Department. Found a mistake in a mapping of a logging site and was hired as a Forestry foreman with 180,000 acres to care for. Best occupation I ever had.
I took your father’s, John Hamilton, 7am General Forestry class in 1965 while within the old Lassen High School site, while living in the dorm down the street.
I worked for a number of years with the USFS, BLM plus the US Park Service. I served on many wild fires within 6 states. I was on a BLM First Strike Team that deployed 56 engines made up of BLM, USFS plus US Park Service thought Southern Oregon. One year we brought a team and engines down to Placerville in CA for a fire. You showed have seen us going down I-5 with all of our over head lights going. I have now been retired for 15 years.
Attended Lassen College from 1968-70 in the forestry program when your dad and Mr. Cotter were the teachers. There may have been 12 or 15 of us that graduated, getting jobs in the private sector and public land management agencies. I worked 25 years on six National Forests in both California and Oregon.
Hi Tim.. Lassen’s was a great program. I taught there from 1970 through the end of the program. Was hired to add a fire management program option. But also taught forest management every year and at different times, dendrology, entomology, ecology, mensuration, and personnel supervision. We were in the old two story school building in 1970, forestry upstairs and gun smithing downstairs. With publication of Rachael Carlson’s Silent Spring and the US Forest Service’s introduction of Environmental Impact Plans there was a huge surge in environmental interest. A parallel surge in enrollment occurred 1972 to about 1977, hitting about 175 students and three study options; forest management, wildland fire management, and forest recreation. There were four full time instructors then, John Hamilton, Al Stoll, ?? Scott and myself, Mike Moyers. Jobs were plentiful and Lassen forestry grads were hired everywhere. Forestry was one of the first programs to move to the then new campus above town. By ’84 the job market changed, there were only a handful of students and no valid reason to train technicians. Full time jobs were rare. There was a shift to part year employment in government and few jobs in the private sector. And the employment period had changed to May-to-October rather than year-round. Technician jobs were being filled by forestry grads with bachelor’s degrees. Employment in forestry had shifted and Lassen’s Forestry Program became a footnote in some great technical careers. Being part of that program was a high point in my own forestry career. I will always cherish associating with the eager, diverse, and optimistic students in the forestry program.
Mike,
I have been looking for you on the internet for a few years now and am grateful to run across this posting. I studied fire suppression with you during the summer of 1984, and worked with you on the AD crew that summer. I then returned with my cousin and some friends the following summer and studied with you until we were handed off to Bob Walker.
I fought firers for two more years after that, including dropping out of college with the intent of making a career out of fire suppression. But, in the end, I never found another leader like you.
I’ve been looking for you so that I could thank you for the seminal role you played in my life, and to express my deep gratitude. You are a great teacher and the forestry world owes you a tremendous debt.
If you see this posting and would like to connect, my email address is MichaelRPastreich@Gmail.com.
I have such fond memories of Mr. Hamilton and Mr. Cotter and, of course, many others! I attended Lassen College from 1966-67 and received a GREAT foundation! I ultimately graduated from LCC with transfer units in 1973. Unfortunately, I had an active duty commitment to fulfill with the US Navy. While in the Navy, first as an enlisted man (data processing tech and COBOL programmer), I attended undergraduate classes wherever & whenever I could! I finally graduated with a BA in criminology and natural resources in 1975, and was selected to Officer Candidate School. While on active duty, the Navy sent me to several PG schools and 7 ships…whew! After retiring in 1995, I served as an industrial tech high school teacher/ administrator for 7 years! After coming to my senses, I found myself selected to an NPS-sponsored Seasonal Law Enforcement Ranger Training Program. After graduation in 2003, I served as a federal ranger with the US Army Corps of Engineers for 10 years and retired…for good! So glad I was finally able to use my “forestry” degree! Thanks LCC! Sorry…TMI!