I became really interested in this topic after having my first roast chestnuts a couple years ago! Some of the interesting things I learned: - Chestnut deforestation due to blight was a substantial portion of global deforestation in the early 20th century (IIRC half in 1920s and 1930s). - Chestnuts were such a staple that they were considered poor people food in America. Some lamented that chestnut products (including chestnut flours) seemed to be all the general stores carried. - The majority of all wood construction in early America was chestnut.

Wild that such a central part of American society vanished and I didn't even know beyond "chestnuts roasting on an open fire". Makes me wonder what other parts of our lives and culture will be lost with extinctions caused by climate change.