Cracked Lid

[Ron Nossaman]

>Thanks, Ron.  Chestnut is not a common species in the upper midwest.  I know
>little about its use, though have repaired pieces that customers said were
>made of chestnut. The resemblance to oak made it hard to identify. The
>"uncommon" wood seemed to make the piece more valuable.
>
>Paul C

Hi Paul,
It's another tragic story. The American Chestnut used to be plentiful, and 
the biggest tree (up to 100') in the Eastern hardwood forests. Around 1900, 
a fungus that came in on imported nursery stock started killing them off, 
and by about 1940, most that were left were small blighted trees not 
suitable for lumber harvest. The Chestnut blight was what finally prompted 
quarantine regulations on plant imports.

Ron N