Two of Dr. Rothrock's major accomplishments as commissioner were his land acquisition program and the creation of a forest academy to train foresters for state service. He led the effort in central Pennsylvania to acquire land that had once belonged to the Greenwood Iron Works. The iron company had left behind approximately of land that had been stripped of its old growth forest to provide fuel in the form of charcoal for the iron furnaces in northern Huntingdon County. Additional land was purchased soon after until nearly all of the Seven Mountain area had become state property. The lands acquired in the early 20th century were divided into three separate state forest reserves. Logan State Forest comprised the land in northern Huntingdon County and Ferguson and Harris Townships in Centre County. Penn State Forest was located in Potter Township, Centre County and Armagh Township and Brown Township Townships in Mifflin County. Rothrock State Forest was near Mount Union and Entriken, in Huntingdon County. The three forests were merged in 1953 with parts of Penn and Logan being added to Bald Eagle State Forest and the rest combined to make what is now Rothrock State Forest.