Colonial workers extracted tar from pine logs here to waterproof ropes and rigging and to coat and caulk ship's hulls. Because a tar kiln could be used only once, thousands of them are scattered throughout the coastal forests. People who live and play in these modern woods often have no idea of the mounds' historic function. This preserved tar kiln recalls when longleaf pine forests made 18th-century North Carolina a world leader in the production of naval stores—tar, pitch, and rosin.