John Goffe’s Mill is the story of his adventure in turning an obsolete rural industry into a design for happy living.When George and Connie returned to the ancestral acres, the dam was in ruins, the mill itself had tumbled in, the old house was badly in need of repairs, and soon thereafter the hurricane of 1938 wrought havoc in the little wood lot. Assisted by Louis Lavigne, a retired woodchopper, he cleaned up the wood lot and sawed enough lumber to rebuild the mill. Little by little the rest of the work was done, most of it by George himself, some of it with the help of local artisans as obsolete as the mill itself: Desidere la Tulippe, master mason of prodigious girth; Hank Gookin, alcoholic barn framer; Kitty, monosyllabic metalsmith; and other original characters of a sort only to be found in a country town.But this was only the beginning. Sometimes by barter, occasionally by purchase, George expanded his equipment. What he couldn’t swap or buy he invented and built himself, until now he can take a tree out of his own wood lot, saw it into lumber in his mill, dry the lumber in the kiln he built, and make it into furniture in his own shop — all within a radius of two hundred yards and a timespan of three weeks.Of all this, and of the life he and Connie and their four children have made for themselves, George Woodbury writes with contagious humor. His gay and unconventional outlook is suggested by some of his advertising copy: “These are the only milking stools in southern New Hampshire,” he says, “that are individually rump-fitted by a graduate anatomist.”

    Not only are they a continuous source of raw materials for industry and agriculture but they affect the climate, water resources, and soil, purify our air, furnish food and shelter for wildlife and are indispensable to our vast recreational and scenic areas. They form a basic part of our diverse natural environment - our ""biodiversity."" Their protection and management are vital to the state's wellbeing. Industries which depend upon trees for their existence are major employers and rank high in the state's economy. The annual production and manufacture of forest products is measured in billions of dollars. The recreation ""industry,"" including vacation travel, resorts, food, lodging, hunting, fishing, and camping, is likewise a multi-billion dollar a year business. Equally important is the intangible wealth which trees bring to us through sheer enjoyment of beauty and love of nature. Whether in field, fencerow, woodlot or forest, or along highways, rural roads, urban streets, or greenbelts, this bounty is ours for the taking. We have only to picture ourselves without trees to appreciate this value.

    First Edition 1948Second Edition 1951Third Edition 1959Fourth Edition 1966Fifth Edition 1969Sixth Edition 1976Seventh Edition 1982Eighth EditionNinth Edition 2004