Guide to the Papers of Charles Edward Lane Poole, 1905-1970

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Summary

Collection number:
MS 3799
Creator:
C. E. Lane Poole
Extent:
0.64 metres and (4 boxes, folio items)
Language:
English
Preferred citation:
Items from this collection should be cited as '[Title or description of manuscript item], Papers of Charles Edward Lane Poole, National Library of Australia, MS 3799, [series and/or file number]'.
Availability:
Available
Access conditions:
Available for research. Not for loan

Background

Content Summary:

The collection includes correspondence, diaries, notes, articles, photographs and slides, published material and press cuttings. Much of the material relates to Lane Poole's work in Papua and New Guinea between 1922 and 1925. There are also papers on his work in Sierra Leone and Western Australia and as a consulting forester after 1945. Correspondents include Lord and Lady Novar, M. R. Jacobs, G. Rodgers, H. C. King, Professor J. D. Ovington, Jack Lever, Sir Russell Grimwade, Lane Poole's wife and children, Major J. McAdam, timber merchants, the C.S.I.R.O., Commonwealth New Guinea Timbers Ltd., Bulolo Gold Dredging Ltd., Mallison Sons Ltd., and the Department of Forests, New Guinea. The collection does not contain any papers relating to Lane Poole's work as Commonwealth Inspector-General of Forests, nor as Principal of the Australian Forestry School, Canberra.

See the Correspondence Index for a name index to all letters in this collection. (under Related Documentation tab).

Biographical Note:

Charles Edward Lane Poole, son of Stanley Lane Poole, historian and Egyptologist, was born on 16 August 1885 at Eastbourne, Sussex, England. After an education at St. Columba's College, Dublin, he attended the Forestry course of l'Ecole Nationale de Eaux et Forets at Nancy, France, graduating with the diploma in 1906.

Lane Poole's first appointment was in the South African Forestry Department in Cape Colony and then in the Transvaal as a District Forest Officer.

From the Transvaal, Lane Poole transferred to Sierra Leone in 1910 where he was appointed Conservator of Forests. His work there included the demarcation of virgin forests and the introduction of various trees of economic value, particularly rubber and conifers. He was also engaged in the drafting of Forest Ordinance for which he was made a member of the Legislative Council.

In 1916 Lane Poole left Sierra Leone and came to Western Australia, where he held the position of Conservator of Forests until 1922. Here he endeavoured strenuously to put into effect a policy of conserving the forests of Western Australia and he was responsible for the 1921 Forestry Act and for organising the Forests Department of the State. He published several articles relating to Western Australian forests including 'Fires in forest' (1921), 'Notes on the forests and forest products and industries of Western Australia' and 'Short descriptive notes on the principal timbers of Western Australia', (1920).

In 1922 Lane Poole was commissioned by the Commonwealth Government to report on forest resources in Papua. He spent twelve months in Papua and was then invited by the Administration of New Guinea to undertake a similar forest survey of the Mandated Territory. At the conclusion of his work in 1925 he wrote a report entitled The forest resources of the Territories of Papua and New Guinea in which he concluded that "Australia's tropical dependencies while offering no prospects of immediate gain to large saw milling interests possess forests potentialities of a high order."

In 1926 Lane Poole was appointed Inspector-General for the Commonwealth Forestry Bureau and held that position until his retirement in 1945. During his nineteen years as Inspector-General he was also principal of Australian Forestry School in Canberra and was credited by D.A.N. Cromer, the former Director-General of Forestry, as being "largely responsible for putting higher forestry education on a sound footing in Australia".

Lane Poole also represented the Commonwealth Government at a number of Empire Forestry Conferences. He attended the First Empire Forestry Conference held in London in 1921, he was Vice-President of the Third Conference held in Australia in 1928 and he represented the Commonwealth at the Fourth Conference held in South Africa in 1935.

On retiring from Government service in 1945 Lane Poole set up practice as a Consulting Forester in Sydney and was retained by the following firms as Consulting Forester: A.J. Bedwell Pty. Ltd., Sydney Suburban Timber Merchants Ltd., Commonwealth New Guinea Timbers Ltd., and New Zealand Forest Products Co. Ltd.

His works as a consultant involved him in visits to various districts in Australia and countries in the Pacific, including New Caledonia, the New Hebrides, Papua and New Britain. During his retirement he also appeared before the Tariff Board on several sittings to give evidence on the fiscal problems arising from the importation of timbers from overseas.

Charles Lane Poole died in Sydney on 22 November 1970.

Provenance:

The papers of Charles Lane Poole were presented to the National Library in October 1972 by his widow, Ruth Lane Poole.

Indexed terms

Names:
C. E. Lane Poole

Access and use

Conditions Governing Access:
Please refer to the collection's catalogue record for the access conditions (http://nla.gov.au/nla.cat-vn2268351).
Conditions Governing Use:
Copying and publishing of unpublished manuscript material is subject to copyright restrictions. For such material, written permission to publish must be obtained from the copyright holder(s). Copying of unpublished material for research purposes is permissible 50 years after the death of the creator of the material.
Preferred citation:
Items from this collection should be cited as '[Title or description of manuscript item], Papers of Charles Edward Lane Poole, National Library of Australia, MS 3799, [series and/or file number]'.
Location of this collection:
Parkes Place
Canberra ACT 2600, Australia
Contact:
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