The very ancient Eastern forest of North America is characterized by an extraordinary variety of plants, animals, and human communities. Barry M. Buxton refers to this diverse area as the Great Forest in his book A Great Forest: An Appalachian Story, published in 1985. Buxton examines the natural and cultural landscape of the Appalachian region, and provides a detailed history of the area. In order to study the ecology of the forest, he includes a narrative of the people behind the forest and how they have impacted and changed the landscape.

The proceedings from the 1984 Appalachian Studies Conference includes contributions by Sam Gray; Derrell Roberts; Laurel Horton; Grace Toney Edwards; Parks Lanier; Ron Wlloughby; Allen Bateau; Thomas A. Arcury and Julia D. Porter; David K. Evans; Paul McClure; Cheryl Claasen; Bennie Lee Sinclair; Tom Boyd; Thomas R. Shannon; Ted Couillard; Gene Wiggins; John C. Inscoe; David Carpenter; Charles Gunter; and Ray Rensi and Leo Downing.