The record load of 26,860 board feet being unloaded at the Fruit Growers millpond, Susanville, August 21, 1953. Courtesy of Hank Martinez
Yesterday, it was noted that the massive sugar pine tree felled by the Red River Lumber Company contained 27,570 board feet. To gain a better understanding, the above photograph is a massive truck load of logs being unloaded at Fruit Grower’s Susanville millpond that contained 26,860 board feet!
A question was raised about timber fallers. A good timber faller can determine precisely where the tree will fall. Well, a not so good faller, is another tale. I recall in one instance working in the woods with my Dad. My father gave the faller instruction as to where a particular tree was to land. Needless to say, it did not happen and some one was not happy with the final result.
This mammoth tree was cut in 1922 on Fruit Growers property west of Eagle Lake.
In November 1928 the Red River Lumber Company reported that they had felled a 650 year-old sugar pine tree at Camp 74, in Plumas County, west of Chester. It required three railroad flat cars to bring the tree to the mill in Westwood. It was 101 inches in diameter at the stump and 84 inches at the second cut.* The tree contained 27,570 board feet. Red River noted that this was the largest tree ever brought into the mill.
*For those not familiar trees are bucked/cut into 32 foot lengths.
Yesterday, I briefly mentioned how Red River Lumber Company sold a mill site at Chester to the Collins Pine Company. What I did not include, was the Red River offered its plant at Westwood to Collins, which the latter declined. Red River was so desparate to unload its Westwood plant, but no one wanted it for various reasons. The plant itself, as one can see from the above illustration, just how large a facility it was. It did not help either that many of its facilities were showing their age. Then, of course, there was one other huge factor was the lack of timber tributary to Westwood.
In the early 1900s, the founders of Collins Pine Company amassed some 60,000 acres of timberland in the greater Lake Almanor Basin. It was not until the late 1930s, that they gave consideration to establish a mill there. In the fall of 1940, after much negotiations the Red River Lumber Company offered a mill site adjacent to Chester, along with thirteen miles of its main line railroad from Chester to Clear Creek Junction where it connected with the Western Pacific Railroad, which Red River estimated its value at $80,000.
Thus, the Almanor Railroad was born. Collins Pine changed it from a private line to a common carrier, should anyone in Chester desire to use it. Collins Pine had a lot of work to upgrade the railroad line. It also needed motive power, as it decided not to purchase any of Red River’s locomotives. At its Grande Ronde operation, it had discontinued its railroad logging in favor of truck logging. There it had at its disposal a Heisler geared steam locomotive, the 104, and it was put into operation on the Almanor. Initially it worked ideally to handle the railroad’s sharp turns and steep grades. It was later replaced with a small diesel locomotive.
September 17, 1917. Courtesy of Walter “Doug” Luff
On September 17, 1917 at approximately three in the morning, a fire of unknown origin erupted in the middle of the south lumberyard. It was not until noon, with 2,000 men battling the fire, that it was contained. Fortunately, it was one of those typical fall days with no wind otherwise the entire plant would have been in jeopardy. The final result was that 60 million board feet of lumber was destroyed. If there was one bright spot, it was that the lumber that was destroyed was deemed of such low grade as to be only suitable for the box factory. However, it was still a considerable loss to Red River, as the value set at two million dollars. Insurance adjusters, however, placed the loss at $800,000. It was determined the fire was of suspicious origin, no doubt started by an arsonist. While an investigation did not provide any real clues as to the individuals responsible, phosphorous bombs were found on the property.
One of the reasons the Red River Lumber Company located and created the town of Westwood, was due to its remoteness, thus creating a buffer from outside influences such as organized labor. By the 1930s, however, Red River had to deal with labor unions, and it was not by choice. There would be some very ugly labor disputes at Westwood. Continue reading Westwood’s Kangaroo Court→
The Almanor branch, 1924. Courtesy of Minnesota Historical Society
In 1921, the Red River Lumber Company needed to expand its logging operations having logged over most of the surrounding territory around Westwood and the northeastern section of Lake Almanor. A second main line would be constructed from Red River Junction (Clear Creek) running to the west to Chester. One of the biggest obstacles to build the nine-mile segment was the crossing at Bailey Creek. There a wooden trestle of some 550 feet in length and fifty feet high required nearly 300,000 board feet of timbers, that took nearly a year to complete.
Over time this line extended way past Chester to Deer Creek. Like, Red River’s other main line that extended along the east shore of Lake Almanor, led to speculation and rumors. Would Red River extend its line down Deer Creek to connect with the Sacramento Valley, was a question on a lot of minds. By the time the logging line reached Deer Creek, Red River was faced with so many financial issues, that it was not feasible.
The fire as seen from Willow Creek Valley. Courtesy of Lola L. Tanner
On Sunday, August 26, 1926, Charles Hurlbut, a Lassen County Road department employee had made a working camp on Rice Canyon Road. In the afternoon, he built a campfire, and left it unattended to gather more wood. In the interim, an erratic gust a wind blew threw, sending embers from the campfire onto nearby dry bronco grass. A wildfire quickly erupted. There was nothing Hurlbut could do, but to drive frantically to Susanville to enlist aid. Some sixty men were recruited to fight the fire. Half of the fire crew consisted of employees of the Red River Lumber Company, as the company owned a tremendous amount of timber in the district. From Susanville the fire was a spectacular sight for its residents, as most of the Antelope Mountain went up in flames. One interesting facet in battling the fire was the use of backfiring. Charley Carpenter, a prospector, had a cabin at Miner’s Spring on Antelope Grade. Carpenter seeing the fire raging towards his place, lit a fire in the approaching direction, and it was enough to divert it from destroying his home. In all, some 22,000 acres were burned, making it one of the largest fires of the era.
The firefighters were able to keep the fire away from the ranches at the lower end of the valley. However, one ranch, belonging to Bob Wilson was not so fortunate. Wilson lost his house, his barn containing seventy-five tons of hay and some two hundred chickens. For the Red River Lumber Company their loss was substantial too, an estimated fifteen million board feet of timber, and to the lesser extent the former Conklin holdings at Jacks Valley.
In 1861, Carlton Goodrich settled at Mountain Meadows and would become one of the largest property owners there, as his ranch totaled over 7,000 acres. He located his ranch house just west where the highway crosses Goodrich Creek, approximately across from where the old chimney stands. It became known as Mountain House and was a popular stop for weary travelers. In April 1875, Sylvester Daniels paid Goodrich a visit while touring the region and wrote, “I love these mountain folks. No aristocracy among them.” When Goodrich died in 1886, due to estate issues and the subsequent sale to John Crouch, the popular establishment closed. When the Red River Lumber Company established its Westwood operation, they transformed the old Goodrich ranch into a dairy.
The reservoir as it appeared in 1914. Minnesota Historical Society
The drought of 1924 caught many people off guard. Springs that had never gone dry, went dry. At Westwood the unthinkable happened when Duck Lake the main water source of Goodrich Creek went dry. Up until this time, it was Westwood’s water supply. Red River’s resident manager, Fletcher Walker wrote on May 10, 1924: The water supply for the town is failing us quite rapidly and it is now a race to get water from Clint’s Camping Ground Spring [Clear Creek] before the Goodrich Ditch fails us. We are running the town on meal hours so every one can get water for their meals and then closing it off. To do this requires water taken from the millpond.” As Walter Luff, Jr. recalled they used millpond water to bathe with, and the water tasted like turpentine.
