This paper aims to make statistically rigorous inferences about the frequency and spatial pattern of presettlement forest burring in Fairfax County Virginia by Native Americans. The data used to create the project database comes from a sample set of 80 of the original land surveys conducted prior to European settlement in Fairfax County between 1649 and 1781. This is a pilot project designed to lead to a study of the greater area of Northern Virginia. Beside legal information, these documents contain spatial and ecological data as trees were normally used to identify the corners of properties. Tree attributes were also given such as species, size, and number. This data has been compared to present day data from the Forest Service to find distribution changes of fire-prone and fire-resistant species. Previous projects in the southeastern piedmont and coastal plain of the similar methods have suggested a high degree of regional variation in Native American use of fire and there are accounts of early settlers making observations of forest burring. The project will fill in an important historical gap by answering questions regarding past human-environment interactions and the ecological and geographical conditions that existed prior to settlement.

The Geography Seminar Series is organized by the Geographical Honors Society Gamma Theta Upsilon Eta Omicron Chapter.