Harold S. Newins was born at Patchoque on Long Island, New York, November 30, 1887, and spent his boyhood within sight and sound of the Atlantic Ocean. On graduation from high school, he entered Lafayette College, receiving his B.S. degree in 1909 and M.F. from Yale University in 1911.

Like many forestry graduates of his day, Newins accepted a job with the U.S. Forest Service and moved to Oregon. His stay with the Forest Service was brief, as Newins was offered an instructorship at Oregon State College in 1911. He would devote 35 of his next 40 years to forestry education, leaving the field only for brief intervals. These included the World War I years when he inspected aircraft for the Army; 1922-24 when he served as director of dry kiln operations for the Cutler Desk Company; 1929-31 when he was State Forester of West Virginia; and 1934 when he served as Inspector of ECW Camps in Michigan.

As a teacher, primarily in the field of wood technology and utilization, Newins demonstrated extraordinary ability in arousing the interest and enthusiasm of students. He never spared himself in class, and he was particularly effective in supervising and guiding students in extra-curricular activities. Although Newins taught at four different schools -- Oregon State, Pennsylvania State, Michigan State, and the University of Florida -- it was at Florida that he contributed most significantly to the advancement of forestry education.

Newins had been hired by the University to head a one-man forestry department and to teach forestry on a nonprofessional basis. He performed these duties well, but he made it plain to all that he believed the time was ripe to develop a four-year School of Forestry for the youth of Florida. This was his vision, and he dedicated himself to this goal.

Unfortunately, few shared his optimism. The University administration was apathetic, state resources were limited, and forestry education and opportunities were little understood. By his persistence, tact, and perseverance, Newins surmounted these difficulties. In 1937, the Department of Forestry was elevated to the status of the School of Forestry and funds were provided to employ a faculty. Forest land was acquired and developed for a teaching and research. Forestry education in Florida thus became a reality through the toil, vision, and perseverance of Harold Newins.

In addition to his work in forestry education, Newins was active in the Society of American Foresters. He served on Society committees and was an officer in the Southeastern Section for several terms. He was a Fellow of the American Association for Advancement of Science, a senior member of the SAF, a member of the American Forestry Association, the Florida Forest and Park Association, and the Xi Sigma Pi honorary forestry fraternity. He belonged to the Gainesville Presbyterian Church and was faculty adviser of Phi Gamma Delta social fraternity.

Retired as Director Emeritus of the School of Forestry on June 15, 1951, Newins found time to manage his 700-acre forest near Gainesville -- a timber tract which he, with keen foresight and enthusiasm, had purchased in 1939. On his forest he had made several improvement cuts, leased trees for naval stores, and finally received a Tree Farm Certificate. Thus, in retirement as during his active career, Newins continued to build "for the future."

When Professor Harold S. Newins passed away in 1963, the forestry profession lost one of its most distinguished gentlemen -- a gentleman who will be long remembered as a pragmatic pioneer in Florida forestry.