While many are aware of when Red River Lumber Company’s mill town of Westwood first came into operation in 1913, it was a true company town. All the housing was owned by company, and about 99 percent of businesses were too. There are exceptions to the rule.  There were some tasks the company did not want to undertake, such as the mortuary. Of course, that business needed Red River’s approval to operate. The featured illustration provides another example.

In. 1918, WesleyTaylor advertised in the Westwood Independent his services as insurance agent and notary public. How long he remained in business there is not clear. However, in 1920 with the formation of the Westwood National Bank, that institution provided notary services. It should be noted since Westwood was initially a company town, there is little public documentation of the coming and goings of the town’s residents.

Tim

Ad from Westwood Independent April 2, 1918