Pennsylvania Forest Fire Wardens Association

The occurrence of wildfires and in Pennsylvania predates the onset of European exploration and settlement of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Native American inhabitants used fire as a tool to maintain and manipulate the floral composition of their environment. Early written accounts also document the use of fire by Native Americans as a method of driving game animals during hunts. European settlers utilized fire as a tool to augment the efforts of the axe and oxen in clearing land of stumps, logs, and brush to make way for their crops and dwellings. The increase in the use of fire to clear land and the loss of control of these fires became so widespread that between 1700 and 1735, the colonial government passed a series of laws against "unreasonable firing of woods." The laws also established liability for the damages these fires caused to forests, croplands and villages. Although largely ineffective, the passage of such laws demonstrates the concern about the consequences of wildfire in Penn's Woods.

As demand for lumber and other forest products increased, forest values changed. The vast tracts of timber that early settlers saw as an obstacle to their agricultural pursuits became a valuable commodity. Pennsylvania led the nation in lumber production in the late 1800s and by the turn of the century, most of our forest lands had been logged. These cut over mountains and hills became sun-baked tinder waiting for a spark to ignite them. Large fires burned for weeks, destroying not only the young forest but the soils as well. Many of these fires burned unchecked until extinguished by rain or snow. On June 3, 1915, Governor Martin G. Brumbaugh (1862-1930) signed Act 353, PL 797 establishing the Bureau of Forest Protection within the Department of Forestry and vesting the bureau with the responsibility of preventing, controlling, and extinguishing fires on all forested land in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Between 1914 and 1940 the Bureau of Forestry erected more than 150 steel forest fire observation towers across the state to aid in the early detection of wildfires.

During that same era, the bureau developed an extensive Forest Fire Warden system designed to promote fire prevention, and to suppress wildfires when they occur. During the 1950’s, aircraft were introduced into the fire protection program both for aerial detection and suppression work.

Today advances in technology and equipment development have enabled the Bureau to be even more effective in all aspects of wildland fire management. Even with these tools, the demand is greater than ever before for individuals to step forward and commit their time and talent to join forces in protecting Pennsylvania’s ever-changing forest landscape.