McMenamins and Deschutes Historical Museum present
History Pub
Public Lands: An American Story
Presented by Jeff Kitchens
McMenamins Old St. Francis School
Father Luke’s Room
Tuesday, September 30, 2025
7pm/doors 6pm
$5
All ages welcome
For over 200 years the United States has been trying to figure out what to do with America's public lands. From surveys to sales, grazing to natural gas development, national seashores to national parks, the US has had a very complicated history of land use. To this day, it seems everyone wants a piece of it. Join Jeff Kitchens, historian and Bend resident, as he shares the story of America’s relationship to her public lands.
Jeff Kitchens has worked in public land management for over 25 years. His varied career has taken him through the Southeast, Midwest, and various western states including Oregon, Montana, Nevada, and Colorado. Jeff has worked in wildland fire management, forestry, lands and surveying, mining, cultural resources, and wildlife management. He has worked on national projects for two federal agencies and has experience as a field forester, spending eight hours a day marking timber on snowshoes in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan.
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