Halls Flat came to life in a big way starting in August 1941 when the Red River Lumber Company established Camp Bunyan. This camp was unique from other Red River logging camps. Not only did it have a name and not a number, it was their largest camp that consisted of both temporary and permanent buildings. At its peak, it was the home to some 350 loggers, making it one of the largest seasonal communities in Lassen County. From Camp Bunyan a railroad logging line was constructed to the east in the company’s Blacks and Harvey Mountain timber tracts. In 1943, a second logging camp named Camp Harvey was established. At the end of the following of year, a major change happened when Red River sold to the Fruit Growers Supply Company. At the end of the 1946 logging season Camp Bunyan had served its intended purpose and was shut down. Its location remained a hub of activity since the log trains from Camp Harvey, plus the additional Camp Stanford, went to the Camp Bunyan site to connect with the Western Pacific Railroad that relayed the loaded log cars to the Westwood mill.
In the spring of 1949,the hustle and bustle of the connections of the Harvey line connecting with the Western Pacific at Halls Flat came to a sudden halt. The cookhouse employees at Camps Harvey and Stanford went on strike over wages. With no end in sight with negotiations, Fruit Growers permanently closed down those logging camps and the railroad logging line. Thus, Halls Flat returned to its quiet existence.