Lorne Forest District Map – Former Barcaldine and Glencoe Forest Areas updated to 1991 – Map 7 Barcaldine west
The map was recovered from a shed at Newton Nursery which acted as a storage area for Forest Research who used the maps to locate forest and tree experiments in the field.
The survey date of the Barcaldine Forest area Map 7 is not noted but was updated up to 1991 and shows the actual tree crops in the forest at that time. Barcaldine originated as a Forestry Commission forest in 1925 with a total area of over 4000 acres. The initial forester in charge is noted as S H Paterson and in 1950 there was a change to Hugh Cameron. From 1960 forester A MacKay is noted as Head Forester with I McNicol as Forester and later in 1965 three foresters noted as M M Campbell , I M Garioch and J H M Lyon and by this time the total forest area was over 10,000 acres. In 1972 Crearan Forest was added to and named as part of Barcaldine Forest.
This map of the western side of Barcaldine Forest (around Benderloch) depicts a variety of early and later planting dates indicating that by 1991 some of the first planted areas had been felled and replanted. However it can be noted that much of this area was initially planted between 1958 and 1937 with some remnants from 1930 in compartment number 1088 and 1089. Some later land purchases permitted planting into the late 1960s as in compartments 1204 and 1304. Sitka spruce in the main species planted but there are significant areas of larch, Norway spruce and Lodgepole pine. Interestingly four Forest Worker Holdings are annotated in Compartment 1084.
Keith Miller, former Forest District Manage for Lorne provides more detail. “Barcaldine is an interesting forest and was acquired by Forestry Commission in its early days (around mid 1920s, I think). It was a very extensive acquisition of a large mixed estate which was struggling with viability in the hard times after WW1. There were a number of 19th Century woodlands already established around Barcaldine House and on the estate’s outlying land and some quite extensive coastal native woodlands, where the main thrust of Forestry Commission’s input at Barcaldine was to build on these woodlands and carry out 'infill'.
Some of the outlying land was sold on to sporting estates and never planted up and then other hill land areas adjacent were acquired subsequently, such as the Loch Etive side woods at Barrs and Cadderlie in the 60's (Map 9). Also the Barcaldine Castle woodlands as outliers on the southern coastal fringe of Barcaldine area (compartments 1301-05 on this map). I think these later acquisitions were mainly on much poorer land compared to the main Barcaldine Forest and with much lower timber production potential and troublesome to establish too, with access problems and recurrent sheep/deer encroachments etc.
The main admin and residential centre for Barcaldine Forest was on the low land just south of Barcaldine House (which I don't think we ever acquired) in and around compartment 1082 (partially on the top right of this map and on the mid left side of Map 8) and collectively known as Achanreir. This was the main Forest centre where we had several Forest Worker Holdings, Foresters’ houses, the main Forest Office and a substantial depot, engineering workshops etc., along with about 20 modern houses built at Achanreir which were mostly occupied by workers for Forestry Commission and a key residential investment for the Barcaldine Alginate Factory which was set up after WW2, adjacent to the main Forest Worker Holdings. There was even an official District Officers House called Park House at the western edge of Achanreir and marked on this Map (No 7) just beside the old beechwoods at Tarnuirich (Compartment 1133 next to the railway and seashore). A bonny 19th century 'factors house' with wonderful views over Loch Creran to Appin and Morvern. It was sold off before I washed up here on transfer in, so I never had the joy of glory days and elegant living!
Any more information and names would be very welcome - please see large image link below.
Groups: Maps of Forest and Woodland Areas