| Résumé: | Forests of the Western Highland Rim were heavily influenced by the iron industry during the 19th and 20th centuries. The production of iron required large amounts of charcoal. Timber was cut, burned in hearths to produce charcoal and then the charcoal was transported to local furnaces and forges. The goal of our study was to document the lasting effects of charcoal production on soil characteristics, species composition and stand structure for a forest on the Western Highland Rim in Tennessee. Fires used in hearths to produce charcoal were intense, spatially concentrated events that modified soil characteristics differently than typical surface fires. We hypothesized there would still be a footprint of the charcoal making process evidenced by systematic differences in forest composition and structural attributes that could be related to soil properties. Results show there were significant differences in some soil traits between charcoal hearths and surrounding sites. However, differing soil conditions have not significantly influenced forest development. Although tree density differed between hearths and adjacent areas, there were no systematic differences in tree species richness, diversity (H′), evenness (J) or basal area between charcoal hearth and non-hearth sites. Results of this study indicate the historic land use has minimal influence on modern forest communities in our Tennessee study site.
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