Secrets of the Trails: A Brief Stroll Through Land Use and Forest Regeneration in Putnam County

the Roaring Brook Garden Club, in collaboration with the Roaring Brook Lake Property Owners Association and Tompkins Corners Cultural Center, will present avid hiker and local historian Ed Illiano who will guide us in a virtual tour across Putnam County as he recounts the story of the County as seen through the lens of land use and forest regeneration. Did you know that over seventy percent of Putnam County is reforested woodland? The transitions and different uses of the land over time are embedded in these regenerated woods. Old farm foundations, stone walls, mill sites, town roads, abandoned mines family burial rounds, quarries, Native American settlements, railroad beds, docks, ice houses, bridges and more are preserved in these forested tracts. All of these things conserve our historical use of the environment and are available and accessible to anyone who enjoys hiking. Ed has seen these sites first-hand on the hikes he leads for the Cornell Cooperative Extension of Putnam County where he is the Treasurer and veteran Master Gardener Volunteer.