A Great Pine Forest

The St. Croix River valley's sandy loam soil is ideal for growing pine. In the 19th century its forests were filled with white pines. Many of them were two to three hundred years old, four to five feet in diameter, and stood up to two hundred feet tall. These trees were strong, lightweight, resistant to decay from pests and rot, and easy to cut. They furnished the growing Midwest with abundant, cheap lumber for shelter, furniture, fences, and much more.

Restoring a Forest

The Woodland Stewardship Plan 2000, a partnership of the Minnesota Historical Society, the City of Marine on St. Croix, and the Forestry Division of the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, is working to return this site to the appearance it probably had before the first sawmill was built. Beginning in the winter of 2001, non-native trees such as European buckthorn and black locust were removed and replaced with native species such as white pine and sugar maple.

Minnesota Historical Society

Marine Mill

Marker can be reached from Judd Street south of Maple Street, on the left when traveling south.

Courtesy hmdb.org

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