Tales of the Old Woodlanders

Book excerpt: The woodlanders' traditional way of life is increasingly under pressure from the modern world, and this book provides a record of the lives and work of a range of people who are part of Britain's rural heritage: chestnut coppicers; craftsmen who made sheep hurdles, wattle panels, walking sticks, roofing shingles and a host of other traditional products; those who worked with horses and those who produced charcoal; naturalists who simply loved the woodlands for their flora and fauna; and women who worked in the woods, such as the Timber Corps in World War II. There are those who worked alone, and those who were employed on great estates, or by the Crown or the Forestry Commission.