Tree-Ring Analysis in Indiana with Special Attention to Dendroarchaeology

Abstract

Although tree-ring studies have been performed in Indiana since the 1930s, their study in the state has been sporadic, and many gaps in our current understanding of tree growth and forest dynamics exist. Most notably, very little information regarding tree growth prior to the nineteenth century has been made available in the state. The tree rings in timbers of historically erected buildings can be used to build centuries- long chronologies for Indiana and the Mid-Ohio River Valley. Through tree-ring analysis, especially of nineteenth century buildings found throughout the region, study of past growth patterns and dynamics of the old-growth forest that once covered the state is possible.