Presented by the Thoreau Alliance
Before 1910, the American chestnut was one of the most common—and cherished—trees in the eastern United States. Its rot-resistant wood framed barns and fences; its abundant nuts fed wildlife, livestock, and families. Then a blight fungus arrived, and within decades the species was functionally extinct across its native range—an ecological catastrophe and a cultural loss still felt today.
Join author and environmental historian Donald Edward Davis for a compelling conversation about this once-dominant tree and the long story of its rise, fall, and possible return. Drawing from The American Chestnut: An Environmental History, Davis traces the chestnut’s place in Native American life, early American industry, and everyday culture—and examines modern restoration efforts, from breeding programs to genetic research.
For readers of Henry David Thoreau—who walked among chestnuts in Concord and understood forests as living communities—this story resonates deeply. What does it mean when a foundational species disappears? And what might restoration teach us about attention, responsibility, and hope?
Donald Edward Davis is an independent scholar, author, and former Fulbright fellow. He has authored or edited seven books, including Southern United States: An Environmental History. His second book, Where There Are Mountains: An Environmental History of the Southern Appalachians, won the prestigious Philip D. Reed Environmental Writing Award. Davis was also the founding member of the Georgia Chapter of the American Chestnut Foundation, serving as its president from 2005 to 2006.
Neil Pederson is a forest ecologist and independent scholar who has been studying trees and forests for over 30 years. He has studied old trees, old-growth forests, and climate history over much of the eastern US, and in Mongolia, Russia, China, the Colchic Temperate Rainforest of Turkey and the Republic of Georgia, and Spain. Neil is most curious about the tree growth, longevity, and ecology of broadleaf trees and forests. Neil grew up in Volney, NY and spent much time in the Adirondack State Park. He earned an associate’s degree at SUNY-Morrisville, a bachelor’s at SUNY-College of Environmental Science & Forestry, an MS at Auburn University, and a PhD at Columbia University. Currently a Highstead Research Affiliate, Neil was an assistant professor in biology at Eastern Kentucky University, a research professor at Lamont Doherty Earth Observatory, and a forest ecologist at the Harvard Forest.
The free event takes place at Thoreau Farm in Concord, Massachusetts.
