Thiérache is a natural region located mainly in the north-eastern part of the Aisne department extending somewhat north into the Nord department, east into the Ardennes and also into Belgium.             An impermeable sub-strata and rainy weather make Thiérache favourable to pasture land. It also is a bocage region where one discovers the function of hedges, windbreak and place of life at the same time.       Following several land clearances throughout the centuries, pasture has replaced forest as the new landscape of Thiérache. This is what the museum is showing by presenting the three main business activities that make the region viable: forestry development and wood processing, cattle rearing and milk processing, wicker cultivation and basketwork.      The museum lays emphasis on the importance of forestry in Thiérache. Forests cover 125 000 ha, that is a sixth of the land in the department. The national forests represent a fifth of the forestland and have their origins in the royal properties confiscated in the XIX century ( Saint Gobain, Coucy, Villers Cotterêts) and in the large abbey domains confiscated during the Revolution (Saint-Michel, Vauclair).      So the visitor will discover the multiple facets of Saint-Michel forests: its history, the different forest species, the techniques used in wood processing (cutting, transport, sawing) the trades of wood workers (on work sites in open air or in workshops) as exhibited by numerous working tools. The city of Saint-Michel en Thiérache wishes to thank the following persons for their donations to the museum. Monsieur AIRAUD, Francis ANACLETO, Paul BERTIN, Yves BOURGIN, Monsieur BOUXIN, le C.D.D.T. (Comité Départemental du Tourisme), Jean-Pierre CAILLOT, Monsieur CARPENTIER, Monsieur COHEN, Christine DEBRIE, Madame DECOINT, Monsieur DENIS, Robert DEVOITINNE, Monsieur DIET, René DUPONT, Jean DUROISEL, Monsieur DUTERQUE, Francinet LECUYER, Albert GARANGER, René GOARIN, Monsieur GOBEAUX, Monsieur GODART, Yves GUERNUT, Madame HARDY, Monsieur HENIOT, Laurent HENRI, Monsieur HESTERCE, Monsieur HOUDIARD, Madame JACQUART, Monsieur LACOMBLEZ, Gérard LELEU, Jean LEURQUIN, Abel LIENART, Madame MARIE, Madame MOREAU, Louis MORLET, Monsieur PECHON, Madame PEPONEY, Michel PERRIN, Monsieur PERSINET, Monsieur PETIT, Monsieur PIECOURT, Pascal PIGNE, Monsieur RAY , Madame SANSENOT, Monsieur SARDIN, François SIGAUT, Henriette TIROT, René TOFFIN, Claude TREVIN.