Archives West Finding Aid

Warren Huntington Bolles was born on December 13, 1899 in Collins, New York to John and Harriet (Merill) Bolles. As a young child, Warren had a love for the outdoors. He participated in hunting, trapping, fishing, and other activities. In 1916, during World War I, he was a part of the Farm Cadet program. This program allowed farm boys to be released from school early in order to work. When he was accepted, Warren's high school career was terminated, which left him with a ninth grade education.

In 1919, with encouragement from his mother, Warren wrote to the New York State Ranger School located in the Adirondack Mountains to request admission. This was a branch of the forestry school in Syracuse, New York. He was accepted, and began attending in March 1920. Warren graduated from the school in December 1920, and left for Ogden, Utah after receiving a job offer letter from the United States Forest Service (USFS).

After a year of working the entry level position, Warren took the Forest Rangers' examination given at Emmett, Idaho on October 25, 1921 - and passed. He then accepted a ranger job on the Toiyabe National Forest, which at that times was the largest forest in the USFS Region IV.

In September 1922, Warren made his way to Moscow, Idaho to attend the University of Idaho to complete a Forestry degree. Due to his age and experience, he fell into a special student category and could work off needed credits. At that time, twenty students were enrolled alongside him in the forestry school. He completed his degree in 1926, and in March of that year, had taken the Junior Forester Civil Service examination. He ranked second out of 160 forestry graduates who had taken the exam.

Warren traveled to many different duty stations throughout his Forest Service career. As a Forester, he also adopted many different roles. He was on the front lines of forest fires, was camp cook and lookout, measured the volume of trees, completed stand exams, and much more. He even published research and other articles in academic journals, newspapers, and magazines. His personal life was also a success. He married Ella Cretors in March 1942, and they had three daughters, Mary, Beth, and Jeanne. Warren H. Bolles passed away in 1996 in Oregon when he was 97 years young.