J.W. STARR MEMORIAL FOREST - OKTIBBEHA & WINSTON COUNTIES, 8321 ACRES
During the depression of the 1930's, the Federal government accumulated land holdings in Mississippi of which 8,500 acres became the John W. Starr Memorial Forest at Mississippi State University. The University initially managed the mix of old fields and scattered forest as a dairy. This land-use was not successful and by the late 1940's the property was placed under the management of a small group of forestry faculty who became the nucleus of the School of Forestry at Mississippi State University. John W. Starr, a member of the faculty of the School, was instrumental in restoring the property to the productive forest that it is today. He accomplished this feat in a time of minimum fiscal support and very low demand for raw material by a fledging forest industry in east central Mississippi. The school forest was later named the John W. Starr Memorial Forest in his honor.
Pine plantations planted by John Starr matured into forest that have been harvested in recent years. By the early 1990's the forest contained several stands of over mature timber which were harvested to finance approximately $2.9 million of the $12 million required for the construction of Thompson Hall, the new forestry building. However, it should be emphasized that this was a one time cut that removed over mature timber and that the volume that was removed was much greater than the forest's annual growth. Management of the John W. Starr Memorial Forest is self-sustaining. Research and management were combined to maximize use of scarce funds.