Philip A. MacDonald, a pioneer forest ranger of the Wisconsin Department of Conservation, was born in DePere, Wisconsin in 1889, one of nine children of Mary Ellen Walsh and John H. MacDonald. In 1891 the family moved to Tomahawk. Little is known about Philip MacDonald's early life, but it is known that he worked as a lumberjack and a river man.
In 1911 MacDonald took the first forest ranger examination and then began a 47-year employment with the department. He helped build the tree nursery at Trout Lake and later did fire control work throughout the northern half of the state. He also worked on the development of the facilities at Devil's Lake. In 1946 MacDonald was assigned the task of mapping canoe rivers and campsites. In the 1950's he did land acquisition and survey work for the department. During this period MacDonald also owned his own land, and he built up a substantial logging operation. At the time of his retirement in 1957 MacDonald's contributions to conservation in the state were formally recognized by the Conservation Commission.
In addition to his conservation work, MacDonald was a director of the Woodruff State Bank and a member of the Knights of Columbus. He died in 1961 at age 68 in Tomahawk.
