Forestry career of the late Mike Cheesewright

Date Added: 16 November 2021 Contributor: Norman Davidson Year of Photo: 2021 Picture No: 5264

This newspaper cutting from the Courier and Advertiser 13 November 2021 was sent in by Bradley Borland, Perth, and is a tribute to Mike Cheesewright who was District Forester Harvesting in Tay Forest District in 1990s.

The newspaper charts Mike’s forestry career from his very early days in Leicestershire to Forester Training School at Pitlochry (1961-63) followed by a period in Norfolk and then Thetford. A little later he was stationed at Kielder before his first posting in Scotland which was at Strathdon (possibly Bunzeach Forest or may have been Bennachie). Between 1977 and 1985 he was Head Forester at Banchory following which he was based at Newton Stewart and then to Dunkeld where he was District Forester until his retirement in 1999.

Not mentioned is his time as a Training Forester when he was going around forests training operators to work various machines and other forestry skills. Mike also, following his retirement, worked part time back at Kincardine Forest District for about two years in the early 2000s supervising the trial period when a harvesting team and machinery was provided directly by Forestry Commission Mechanical Engineering Services.

Any further details and updates would be very welcome. See Comments below

Groups: Forester Training Schools and Universities, Forestry Areas

2 Comments

My husband was sent to Kielder forest when he was with the Forestry Commission as an assistant Forester. A few doors away lived a family Mick & Irene Cheesewright - they had three children two boys & a girl. Irene came from Pitlochry, I would love to know if this is the same family. My husband Jim Waddell took voluntary redundancy and we moved back to Preston in the North West in 1972. Comment left on 10 November 2024 at 18:02 by Pauline Waddell

Having picked up this article about Mike Cheeseright purely by mistake I read it with interest as my husband Jim Waddell & myself were in Kielder in the early 70s. Jim was an Assistant Forester & I’m sure we lived a few doors away from the Cheeserights! After a year at 10? South Waterside Jim took voluntary redundancy & we moved back to north west England where I still live in Preston Lancashire. Sadly Jim died of a brain hemorrhage in 2005 aged just 64.

Comment left on 24 November 2024 at 23:57 by Pauline Waddell

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