The Pine Barrens

Last updated March 01, 2021

The Pine Barrens is a 1968 book by American writer John McPhee about the history, people and biology of the New Jersey Pine Barrens that originally appeared in The New Yorker in 1967.

The book is an early example of McPhee's acclaimed creative nonfiction literary style. The book employs a nonlinear narrative that incorporates profiles of contemporary residents, local history and culture, unique geography and environment, and current issues then facing the region.^[1]

Synopsis

The Pine Barrens is divided into nine chapters, or installments.

In "The Woods From Hog Wallow," McPhee introduces the Pine Barrens as the six hundred and fifty thousand acre virgin forest reserve that dominates the southern half of New Jersey. The Pine Barrens region is sparsely populated at about 15 people/square mile, in contrast to New Jersey's average population density elsewhere of 1,000 people/square mile (the greatest in the US). Local residents, who inhabit mostly small forest towns amid vast stretches of wilderness, refer to the area as "pine belt" "the pinelands," or "the pines."

In speaking to these locals - or "Pineys," a term which has contested connotations - McPhee claims that his interest in the untouched region stems from its proximity to major urban centers (i.e. Philadelphia and New York). Burlington and Ocean County developed plans to construct a supersonic jet port, but these plans have never been executed - and most people (including "Pineys") believe that they never will be.

The Pines Barrens host an underground reservoir of pure, untapped water. Loose, high-absorption soil makes the woods an ideal aquifer, while self-contained rivers prevent pollution from foreign water sources. Nevertheless, the aquifer's water table is notably shallow and therefore extremely easy to contaminate.

McPhee meets Frederick Chambers Brown, a resident of Hog Wallow in the Pines and a widower with 7 children. Brown has no telephone and shows McPhee around the area throughout the series. Along with Brown, McPhee encounters Bill Wasovwich, a young man who grew up in the Pines. Wasovwich's familiarity with the complex trail system of the woodlands allows him to embark on long journeys that non-locals could never experience.

In "Vanished Towns," McPhee explores the history of the Pines. The woods functioned as refuge for various dissociated social groups, such as the Tories during the American revolution and Quakers. Iron was a productive industry in the Pines for years during the nineteenth century, yet all that presently remains of the ironwork (which relocated, along with other heavy metal industries, to Pittsburgh) are small iron towns in the Pines, such as Batsto.

In "The Separate World," McPhee describes the development of the Pines' reputation as a region of alleged savagery. Through the late nineteenth and early twentieth century, numerous magazine articles and reports (notably Elizabeth Kate's "The Piney," which depicted residents as drunk, illiterate, and incestuous half-animals) stigmatized the region's population as backward, nearly primitive, recluses. Although images of hostile back-landers eventually disappeared from media representations, the term "piney" still possesses multiple connotations. Whereas some tourists still come to the region seeking strange, eccentric foresters that they refer to as "Pineys," locals also utilize the term to endearingly refer to their neighbors. Hence, most residents of the Pine Barrens, while recognizing the term's contested meanings, claim the term "Piney" as a respectful recognition of a long-term, like-minded local.

McPhee describes the yearly cycle of natural yields in the Pines: in the spring, sphagnum moss; in the summer, blueberries, then cranberries; in the fall, berries off of vines; and in the winter, cordwood and charcoal. "Pineys" gather and sell these and other natural materials, allowing for self-sustainability without a longstanding nine-to-five job. This naturalistic sentiment is indicative of the cultural character of the Pines.

In "The Air Tune," McPhee describes the popular storytelling practices in the Pines. Herbert N. Halpert collected Pine Barrens story in the 1930s and 40s, describing the legends as mostly European but featuring an overlapping of various regional traditions. Most famously, the Jersey Devil, or Leed's Devil, describes a half-bat, half-kangaroo that killed its human mother at age 4 and has been wandering around the Pine Barrens ever since; as with most Pine Barrens folk tales, there are numerous versions of the story.

In "The Capital of the Pines," McPhee describes Chatsworth, the principal community of the Pines, where roughly two-thirds of the residents 'live off the land' or work various odd jobs, such as highway workers or fire wardens. There is very little crime in the Pine Barrens, and police hardly bother with the region's residents, who are mostly loners and largely keep to themselves. Typically, crime is the work of outsiders, and the back roads of the region are notoriously difficult to navigate.

In "The Turn of Events," McPhee details three noteworthy happenings in the Pines. First, the Chatsworth Fire of 1954 burned five hundred acres of land. Second, Emilio Carranza, a famous Mexican aviator, crashed in the Pines in 1928 while flying from New York to Mexico City; a yearly memorial is held in his memory at the site of the crash. Third, Italian prince Mario Ruspoli, 2nd Prince of Poggio Suasa built an estate in Chatsworth on land belonging to his wife, legacy of a substantial New York City real estate fortune.

In "Fire in the Pines," McPhee explains the role of fires in the Pines. Nearly four hundred forest fires occur in the Pines every year; the pine trees require this fire in order to flourish. A sort of "natural selection" enables only two types of Pines, which put forth sprouts in response to fire, to grow in the area. The fires prevent the march of natural progression, so to speak, which would replace the pines with other trees, such as oaks or maples. The woods therefore remain perpetually "young" due to this "biological inertia."

The region also attracts pyromaniacs: it seems that many people (including, on one occasion, a police officer of the Pines) cannot resist the urge to set the severely dry area ablaze. The Upper Plains of the Pines, which possess dwarf trees, whose incongruously small height remains a mystery to scientists, some of whom posit that the fires kill the trees' taproots but not their lateral ones, thus giving them a dwarf size.

In "The Fox Handles the Day," McPhee discusses the environmental aspects and hunting practices of the area. Quaking bogs are virtually unique to the Pine Barrens, and the area's plant species resemble (though are not identical to) those of North Carolina's pinelands. Fox hunting is popular in the pines; hunters have their dogs chase down foxes, where after they release the foxes back into the forest. Deer hunting is also prevalent, as NJ hosts a high deer population.

In "Vision," McPhee examines plans to develop the Pines. During the mid-nineteenth century, real estate speculators worked to develop the area, selling Pines land in major cities throughout the east coast. The most elaborate plan for the area was a supersonic jetport (the largest on Earth) and a new city, researched by the federal government and criticized by conservationists. Due to the spectrum of varied opinions about the project, McPhee predicts the Pines will not be dramatically changed any time soon.^[2]

Related Research Articles

In Southern New Jersey and Philadelphia folklore, the Jersey Devil is a legendary creature said to inhabit the Pine Barrens of South Jersey. The creature is often described as a flying biped with hooves, but there are many variations. The common description is that of a bipedal kangaroo-like or wyvern-like creature with a horse- or goat-like head, leathery bat-like wings, horns, small arms with clawed hands, legs with cloven hooves, and a forked tail. It has been reported to move quickly and is often described as emitting a high-pitched "blood-curdling scream".

The New Jersey Pine Barrens, also known as the Pinelands or simply the Pines, is the largest remaining example of the Atlantic coastal pine barrens ecosystem, stretching across more than seven counties of New Jersey. Two other large, contiguous examples of this ecosystem remain: the Long Island Central Pine Barrens, and the Massachusetts Coastal Pine Barrens. The name pine barrens refers to the area's sandy, acidic, nutrient-poor soil. Although European settlers could not cultivate their familiar crops there, the unique ecology of the Pine Barrens supports a diverse spectrum of plant life, including orchids and carnivorous plants. The area is also notable for its populations of rare pygmy pitch pines and other plant species that depend on the frequent fires of the Pine Barrens to reproduce. The sand that composes much of the area's soil is referred to by the locals as sugar sand.

Wharton State Forest is the largest state forest in the U.S. state of New Jersey. It is the largest single tract of land in the state park system of New Jersey, encompassing approximately 122,880 acres (497.3 km²) of the Pinelands northeast of Hammonton. Its protected acreage is divided between Burlington, Camden, and Atlantic counties. The entire forest is located within the Atlantic coastal pine barrens ecoregion as well as the New Jersey Pinelands National Reserve. The forest is located in the forested watershed of the Mullica River, which drains the central Pinelands region into the Great Bay. The forest is under the jurisdiction of the New Jersey Division of Parks and Forestry.

The Sandhills or Carolina Sandhills is a 10-35 mi wide physiographic region within the U.S. Atlantic Coastal Plain province, along the updip (inland) margin of this province in the States of North Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia. The extent of the Carolina Sandhills is shown clearly in maps of the ecoregions of North Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia.

The Atlantic coastal pine barrens is a now rare temperate coniferous forest ecoregion of the Northeast United States distinguished by unique species and topographical features, generally nutrient-poor, often acidic soils and a pine tree distribution once naturally controlled by frequent fires.

Pine barrens, pine plains, sand plains, or pinelands occur throughout the U.S. from Florida to Maine as well as the Midwest, West, and Canada and parts of Eurasia. Pine barrens are plant communities that occur on dry, acidic, infertile soils, dominated by grasses, forbs, low shrubs, and small to medium-sized pines. The most extensive barrens occur in large areas of sandy glacial deposits, lakebeds, and outwash terraces along rivers.

New Jersey Pinelands National Reserve is a national reserve that encompasses the New Jersey Pine Barrens.

The Plymouth Pinelands is an ecoregion located in Massachusetts in the United States.

Piney is a historically derogatory term for the inhabitants of the New Jersey Pine Barrens, but is now considered a cultural demonym. The Pine Barrens have sandy, acidic soil considered unsuitable for traditional farming by early settlers, who called the land "barren". The area is forested mainly with pitch pine and scrub oak. Many areas are swampy with cedar forests that grow along brownish-red, fresh water called "cedar water." The red color is actually created by the high level of iron in the water.

Warren Grove is an unincorporated rural community that is a part of Stafford Township, Barnegat Township and Little Egg Harbor Township in Ocean County, New Jersey, United States. Its location in the heart of the Pine Barrens makes it one of the most secluded and remote corners of the state.

Piney may refer to:

Cattus Island Park, also known as Cattus Island is a 530 acres (2 km²) passive recreational park located in Toms River, New Jersey. Cattus Island is a park of the Ocean County Department of Parks and Recreation. Cattus Island is home to the Cooper Environmental Center, an educational center which displays collections of local wildlife including snakes, reptiles and aquatic animals. The center also provides educational programs and presentations to the public and organized groups.

The New Jersey Pine Barrens has been the site of many legends, tales and mythical creatures, many of which have been documented by Weird NJ in its magazines and books.

The eastern savannas of the United States covered large portions of the southeast side of the continent until the early 20th century. These were in a fire ecology of open grassland and forests with low ground cover of herbs and grasses.

The Batona Trail is a 53.5-mile (86.1 km) hiking trail through New Jersey's Pine Barrens. The trail is one of the longest in the state, behind the Delaware and Raritan Canal Trail, the section of the Appalachian Trail within the state, the Liberty-Water Gap Trail, and the completed section of the Highlands Trail in the state. The Batona Trail begins in Brendan T. Byrne State Forest at the ghost town of Ong's Hat and traverses Franklin Parker Preserve, Wharton State Forest and Bass River State Forest. The trail was built in 1961 by the Batona Hiking Club, which began informally in 1928 when Philadelphians began meeting regularly to hike. It takes about three days to hike the whole trail.

Howard P. Boyd was an entomologist, botanist, editor, teacher, photographer, filmmaker, writer, and naturalist, best known for his close association with the Pine Barrens of New Jersey spanning more than 70 years.

A pine barrens is a type of ecosystem characterized by soil that supports pine forests but is poor for agriculture.

Penn State Forest is a 3,366-acre (5.259 sq mi) state park in Burlington County, New Jersey, United States. The forest is protected as a section of the environmentally sensitive Pine Barrens. Various recreational resources are available to visitors including Oswego Lake and the Oswego River for swimming, boating, and fishing. The lake has a picnic area with a boat launch, swimming area, and primitive restrooms. Miles of unpaved roads composed of gravel, dirt, and sand traverse all areas of the forest. The roads are open for hiking, mountain biking, horseback riding, and cross-country skiing, as well as four-wheel driving. Hunting for deer, wild turkey, water fowl, and small game is permitted in season. A section of the Pine Barren Plains, a globally rare dwarf forest ecosystem that reaches a mature canopy height of about 4 ft (1.2 m), is located in the northeastern portion of the park. Penn State Forest is operated and maintained by the New Jersey Division of Parks and Forestry.

The Pinelands Protection Act, passed by the New Jersey Legislature in June 1979, required the development of a Comprehensive Management Plan (CMP) for the New Jersey Pine Barrens, a relatively undeveloped, ecologically unique area in New Jersey. The goal of the CMP was to state the rules on how the land may be used.

Franklin Parker Preserve is an 11,379 acre natural preserve located in the Pine Barrens in Chatsworth, New Jersey. The preserve links Brendan Byrne, Wharton, and Penn State Forests. Franklin Parker Preserve is owned and managed by New Jersey Conservation Foundation.

References

↑ Description of the non-fiction book Archived 2006-06-27 at the Wayback Machine
↑ McPhee, John (1978). The Pine Barrens . New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux. pp. 1–157. ISBN 978-0374514426.

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[1] Description of the non-fiction book Archived 2006-06-27 at the Wayback Machine

[2] McPhee, John (1978). The Pine Barrens . New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux. pp. 1–157. ISBN 978-0374514426.

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