A Study On The Timber Trade Of Hunan Province During The The Republic Of China (1912-1949)

Hunan Province has a very large forest resource and is one of the main timber producing areas in China. The research object of this paper is the timber trade in Hunan during the Republic of China (1912-1949). Many historical documents were collected, analyzed, compared to expound the impacts of the natural resources in Hunan, planted forest of Chinese fir, timber logging and transportation, timber markets and timber merchants. This paper recalls and summarizes the history of timer trade in Hunan in order to provide historical references for present day forest policy and forest restoration decisions.The research shows that characterized by the suitable natural conditions, the tradition of afforestation, reinforce the management of forest, the development of cities and modern industries and the mature water transportation system, the timber trade in Hunan reached great prosperity before the Anti-Japanese War. In this process, with the development and improvement of timber markets, many Chinese merchants and even foreign company came to Hunan to run the timber trade. After the breakout of the Anti-Japanese War, the timber trade in Hunan declined from prosperity to deterioration. During the Republic of China (1912-1949), the timber trade in Hunan changed the employment structure of rural labor and pushed the development of some new commercial towns. But deforestation in Hunan led to forest degradation and ecological challenges, including a severe decrease wild animal populations, some even on the brink of extinction. Timber trade has close relation with the sustainable development of forest resources. As a result, a scientific and reasonable plan must be taken to make the best use of forest resources. In future, the development of forest should take into account the social, economic and ecological benefits.