USA > Michigan > Saginaw County > History of Saginaw County, Michigan; historical, commercial, biographical, Volume I > Part 39
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Aside from these is a steam mill now building by Hulsey, about 12 miles up the Tittabawassee river, capable of driving one upright, and two edging saws.
Clark & Wisner's mill is at the forks of Bad river (which is a branch of the Shiawassee), about 14 miles above Saginaw City. This mill, which was built last season by Nelson W. Clark, of Clarkston, and Moses Wisner, of Pontiac, has two upright, and one siding saw, with three buzz saws, and is capable of cutting 3,000,- 000 feet of lumber.
Corey's mill, built by Smith & Gould,is at the forks of Bad river, and has one upright and one buzz saw, and can cut perhaps 1,000,- 000.
Blackmar's mill is upon the Flint, about eight miles from the mouth. It has one upright, and one buzz saw, and cuts about 1,- 000,000 feet.
The Birch-Run mill is upon the plank road leading from Flint to Saginaw, about 15 miles from the latter place. There is a pine ridge here, which yields a most excellent quality of lumber, com- manding a high price. This mill has two upright, one siding and flooring, and two buzz saws, and cuts about 2,000,000 feet.
There are two mills upon the Kawkawlin river, which empties into Saginaw Bay, two miles west of the mouth of Saginaw river. The first of these is a water mill, which cuts 3,000,000 feet, and the steam mill, which drives two upright and two buzz saws, cuts 2,000,000 feet. These mills were both built by James Frazer, and are owned by him in company with others.
Adding to the above the mills already in operation, Wni. P. Doty's mill, now being erected at Lower Saginaw, that in process of erection by Messrs. Baughman and Partridge, that in process of erection by R. Moore, of St. Clair, and H. J. Vorce, just below the Bangor mill, by Judge Copeland, H. N. Walker, and Mr. Ripley, of St. Clair, that of Peter Rodgers, at Lower Saginaw, the Wester- velt mill at Carlton, Jeffers' mill and Whitney's mill opposite East Saginaw, and Corloss' mill, above Millard's, and there is no doubt that there will be cut in Saginaw county at least 90,000,000 feet of lumber during the coming season (1854). The sawing price for lumber was $4 per M. last season, at which price is included, of course, the wages of the men and incidentals. "Of this amount, the mill, if energetically driven, and economically conducted, will save $2 per M. above all-making $180,000, aside altogether from the profits of the lumber. The aggregate amount of the manufacture, estimated at $9 per M., which is a low average estimate, would be $810,000.
388
HISTORY OF SAGINAW COUNTY.
MILLING INTEREST OF 1857.
Within the five succeeding years, the lumber trade so increased that in 1857 no less than 58,500,000 feet of lumber was cut within the boundary of Saginaw connty alone, and 53,700,000 in the Valley. The saw-mills of Saginaw county, in 1857, comprised Cushing & Co.'s, Hill's, Curtis', D. G. Holland's, Gallagher mill, then operated by W. F. Glasby, Copeland & Co.'s, Whiting & Garrison's, the Atwater mill, all located at East Saginaw; J. A. Westervelt's, at Carrollton; the Johnson mill, operated by John Drake, and B. F. Fisher's mills, at Zilwaukee; the Gang mill, G. D. Williams & Sons', and Curtis & King's mills, in Saginaw City; Bradley & Co.'s, and Wendal's mills, at the forks of Bad river; Morley's, Turner's and Fuller's mills, at Chesaning; Shaddock's, on the Tittabawassee; Hoyt's and Updike's mills, at Birch Run; and Hubinger's mills, at Frankenmuthi, making a total of 24 milling concerns in actual operation within Saginaw county in 1857. Of this number, 20 mills were run by steam power, while Hubinger's, Fuller's and Turner's requisitioned water power.
From 1857 to 1863 the advance of the lumber interests was not marked so much by the increase in number as in the capacity of the mills within this county. Between 1863 and 1866 the progress of the industry was remarkable. The later year was the mill bnild- ing era; large structures and modern machinery began to occupy the place of the more primitive concerns of earlier years ; new men joined the brotherhood of enterprise, and henceforth the work of the foresters was destined to proceed steadily on a comparatively certain basis.
389
HISTORY OF SAGINAW COUNTY.
The following table shows the location of the mills of this county, as well as the quantity of sawed lumber produced by each during the years 1863-'6:
LOCATION OF MILLS.
1863.
1864.
1865.
1866.
| No. Men.]
ST. CHARLES.
Kimberly & Co.
1,000,000
2,000,000
2,000,000 3,000,000
2,000,000 10 2,500,000 20
Bundy & Louman.
3,500,000
4,500,000
5,250,000
5,000,000 22
Sutherland's.
500,000
500,000
1,500,000 15
Rust & Engledew.
3,500,000
3,500,000
3,500,000
5,000,000 22
Curtis & Corning.
4,000,000
4,000,000
3,700,000
3,600,000 22
SAGINAW CITY.
Green & Harding.
2,000,000
3,500,000
4,000,000 28
Forest Valley S. & L. Co
3,000,000
5,300,000
4,000,000 33
Heather & Allison.
2,500,000
3,000,000 26
Barnard & Co
new mill.,
5,000,000 25
Thompson Bros.
5,000,000
4,000,000
5,300,000
5,000,000 25
Williams Bros., two mills
3,000,000
4,000,000
5,600,000
6,500,000 46
A. W. Wright & Co ...
7,000,000
8,778,000 new mill. 13,573,225 55
CARROLLTON.
Grant & Saylor.
3,200,000
4,000,000
3,200,000
3,500,000 23
Chicago S. & L. Co.
2,500,000
4,000,000
3,300,000
4,000,000 22
Merrill's Mills.
5,700,000
6,500,000
5,650,000
5,300,000 30
U S Gilbert .
5,500,000
5,300,000
7,500,000 50
Shaw & Williams
3,000,000
6,500,000
8,000,000 40
Gould's Mill.
3 500,000
3,000,000
4,500,000 30
J. P. Allison.
5,000,000
5,500,000
6,000,000
6,500,000 30
Hale & Jerome.
new mill.
4,500,000 20
Webster's.
7,000,000 50
ZILWAUKEE.
4,000,000
6,000,000
7,670,000 70
Oneida S. & L. Co.
1,433,000
8,000,000 10,000,000 80
Chapin & Sons.
1,500,000
5,500,000
5,000,000
7,000,000 25
E. P. Sears.
7,000,000
6,500,000
7,000,000
9,600,000 30
G C Warner & Co
4,500,000
5,700,000
6,350,000
6,000,000 25
C Lee, two mills. .
1,100,000
2,791,000
4,300,000
6,500,000 25
W. L. P. Little & Co
3,500,000
4,000,000
4,100,000
3,500,000 20
Jewell & Gordon.
2,700,000
3,600,000
3,300,000
4,000,000 18
S. M. McClaine
1,000,000
3,500,000
4,500,000 30
Star Hill.
3,000,000
200,000
4,000,000 20
Warner & Eastman.
2,000,000
2,700,000
3,800,000
2,500,000 17
The totals of these statistical columns, dealing with the Valley, are as follows:
Total mills. . .... .83 Lumber cut in '70. . 576,726,606 | Men employed,
3,124
: muley saws. . 61
Capital $3,991,000 .
Lath cut ...... 61,287,500
circular saws, 79
On hand, unsold ... 82,560,190
Lath on hand .. 5,794,000
= gang saws ... 51
On dock, sold ... 47,862,000
Pickets cut. 891,620
Capacity, 665,500,000
Logs in boom . 30,138,462
4,000,000
5,300,000 20
E. Briggs
Rust, Eaton & Co
FAST SAGINAW.
2,200,000
Freeman & Co ..
SOUTH SAGINAW.
390
HISTORY OF SAGINAW COUNTY.
SUMMARY.
The following statistical summary of the lumber business during the years 1871-'5, will be sufficient to show the state of trade in the Saginaw Valley district during the first half of the last decade:
1871.
1872.
1873.
1874.
1875.
No. of mills.
84
112
112
105
91
16
muley saws.
58
54
40
41
38
"
circular saws.
83
98
102
100
91
gang saws.
52
57
67
67
67
Total number of saws.
193
209
209
208
196
Capacity of mills, ft. . .
701,000,000 801,000,000 885,500,000 805,500,000 845,500,000 529,682,878 602,118,980 619,867,021 584,632,771 571,401,001
Capital invested ..
$ 4,238,000
$ 4,394,000|$ 5,076,000 $ 4,808,000 $ 5,033,000 42,023,511 111,894,353 191,178,665 190,017,663 196,606,530
On dock, sold, ft
33,576,000
40,928,200
30,893,000
23,135,000
25,595,578 51,845,800
Logs in mill boom, ft
11,989,264
48,380,845
62,628,078
52,395,200
3,583
Lath cut, pcs.
62,850,900
3,535 76,951,800
4,071 89,320,400
3,825 73,675,950
73,209,250
Lath on hand, pcs.
8,517,350
11,975,055
Pickets cut, pcs.
5,333,950 576,610
7,127,950 93,750
25,807,250 . 109,900
644,000
571,141
Lumber cut, ft.
On hand, unsold, ft.
Men employed, No.
3,140
The cut for 1876 exceeded that of the previous year by 2,549,770 feet being 573,950,771. In 1877, the manufactured lumber of the Valley aggregated 640,166,231 feet. The cut of 1878 fell behind that of 1877 by 86.003,504 feet, but advanced in 1879 to 736,106,000, and in 1880 to 863,356,009.
NAME AND LOCATION.
Season's Capacity, day cut.
Lumber manufac'd, 1880.
dock, factured, 1880. sold. Lath manu- Lumber on Lumber on Lumber on dock at closc. dock. unsold.
Logs in mill boom.
SAGINAW CITY.
Sturtevant, Green, Plummer & Co
60 15,000,000 16,514,399
3,411,400
8,885,000
1,800,000
7,055,000
2,500,000
J. H. Pearson & Son.
50 16,000,000 15,600,000
3,913,610|
1,750,000
2,163,610
600,000
Sample & Camp. .
50 10,000,000 10,000,000 2,000,000
3,000,000
3,000,000
500,000
Geo. F. Williams & Bros.
50 14,000,000 12,000,000
1,000,000
1,000,000
200,000
N. & A Barnard.
150 15,000,000 15,500,000
7,000,000
3,000,000
4,000,000
1,000,000
Alex. Swift.
75 12,000,000 12,000,000
5,000,000
500,000
4,500,000
200,000
C. K. Eddy & Son.
25| 6,000,000 5,500,000
2,400,000
2,400,000
500,000
A. W. Wright & Co
120 25,000,000|25,439,203
2,640,500
2,200,000
2,200,000
4,000,000
FLORENCE.
20
4,000,000
2,500,000
2,000,000
2,000,000
200,000
EAST SAGINAW.
50 15,000,000 10,500,000
5,000,000
5,000,000
Jesse Hoyt.
33 7,000,000 6,737,000
300,000
7,813,000
225,000
7,588,000
Chas. Lee. .
15| 3,000,000 3,000,000
750,000 700.000
2,500,000
2,500,000
J. F. & D. W. Rust & Co.
80 15,000,000 15,040,219
2,900,133
6,458,000|
1,500,000
4,958,000
John G. Owen. .
50|18,000,000 14,040,000
4,720,000
2,610,000
2,110,000
N. Holland. .
60 17,000,000 17,500,000
5,000,000
5,000,000
Warner & Eastman.
50 12,000,000 10,000,000
4,200,000
4,200,000
I. Barringer
93 20,000,000 17,200,000
8,000,000
4,500,000
3,500,000
2,200,000
A. D. Camp
33 8,500,000
7,500,000
3,000,000
1,500,000
1,500,000
300,000
Burnham & Still
30 35,000,000
6,200,000
500,000
2,000,000
2,000,000
300,000
CARROLLTON.
T. Jerome & Co.
60 10,000,000 11,500,000
2,500,000
2,500,000 2,000,000
200,000 800,000
C. M. Williams.
55 12,500,000 15,260,000
875,000
3,937,000
5,691,185 700,000 5,000,000
500,000 3,500,000
C. L. Grant & Co.
23
5,000,000
1,309,000
1,660,000
500,000
LaDue & Phinney. ZILWAUKEE.
129
4,500,000
4,500,000
1,000,000
1,000,000
250,000
Rust, Eaton & Co ..
47 12,000,000 12,042,233 17,000,000 21,000,000
5,598,376 9,400,000
2,283,080 7,900,000
3,315,296 1,500,000
3,500,000 1,500,000
Hamilton, McClure & Co
A. T. Bliss & Bro
55|12,000,000|12,000,000
3,715,000| 1,900,000| 1,815,000 1,815,000
river mills in Saginaw county for 1880:
The following is a statement of the lumber cut of the Saginaw
HISTORY OF SAGINAW COUNTY.
391
STATISTICS FOR 1880.
Sanborn & Bliss.
44 12,000,000 14,000,000
7,691,185
4,637,000 5,000,000
E. F. Gould.
40 7,000,000 7,000,000
Chas. Merrill & Co.
55 14,000,000 11,648,763 4,520,000
4,637,000
160,000
4,447,000
2,000,000 1,500,000
Gebhart & Es'abrook.
46 13,000,000 12,155,000
.
. .
.
.
100,000 1,500,000 2,000,000
500,000
Jam's Patterson. .
Eaton, Potter & Co.
1867.
1868.
1869.
1870.
1871.
1872
1873.
Tittabawassee. ...
236,008,415 228,871,300 277,026,057 347,041,250 288,748,401 310,216,000 269,508,740
Cass.
74,643,300
83,740,854
71.075,970
60,942,533| 55,841,618
99,113,915 100,458,140
Bad.
18,964,544
:15,701,142
21,101,894
14,894,521
14,258,818
18,284,621
37,137,384
Rifle.
23,911,547
48,044,946
55,349,981
80,427,714
55,823,013
61,000,000[
80,872,607
Au Gres.
27,980,000
18,800,000
22,296,661
35,091,635
31,125,084
23,870,742
62,281,236
Kawkawlin
10.000,000
17,700,000
Au Sable. .
48,000,000
34,102,341
30,000,000 44,500,000
25,000,000 60,000,000
52,000,000 105,000,000
96,148,000
Totals.
...
..
429,207,808|446,960,583|321,350,663 623,397,353|521,796,927 645,285,278|680,979,461
.
1874.
1875.
1876
1877.
1878.
1879.
1880.
Tittaba wassee. . .. .
343,814,365 309,908,517 341,000,000 422,500,000 328,228,810 455,667,800 580,290,610
Cass.
40,000,268
56,003,470
18,000,000
22,029,160
6.500,000
11,168,000
5,481,260
Bad.
26,000,000|
41,854,894
36,000,000
28,000,000
17,000,000
5,000,000
9,568,139
Rifle.
58,687,083
92,128,200
61,000,000
70,274,295
72,112,114
82,000,000
79,314,651
Au Gres.
38,723,688
10,948,620
49,229,472
32,645,493|
57,240,750| 70,846,786
95,719,614
Kawkawlin
22,000,000
19,000,000
22,500,000
15,319,000
15,000,000;
17,500,000
15,000,000
Au Sable. .
52,000,000
55,000,000
47,150,000
60,800,000
62,000,000 113,000,000 138,500,000
Totals.
1589,225,404 584,843,701 572,229,472 651,567,948 258,079,674 755,182,286 923,874,274
It may now be asked from which corner of the world are the logs brought to supply all these busy mills. The elaborate figures collated by the editor of the Courier answer, and figures never lie :
LOGS.
HISTORY OF SAGINAW COUNTY.
392
24 000,000| 27,000,000
33,573,354
. 393
HISTORY OF SAGINAW COUNTY.
The streams that have furnished the logs for the Saginaw river mills, and in what is commonly termed the Saginaw lumber dis- trict, are the Cass, Flint, Shiawassee. Bad, Tittabawassee and tributaries, Kawkawlin, Rifle, Shore, Pine, Saginaw, Au Gres, Au Sable and tributaries. The great bulk of logs, however, during the past years, have been furnished by the Tittabawassee and trib- utaries, and when this supply commences to diminish the back- bone of the log product will have been broken. The An Sable and. tributaries contribute of late but few logs to the Saginaw inills. They are manufactured at Au Sable, Oscoda, and other shore points, and rafted to lower lake points. The Au Gres contributes a por- tion of its stock to Tawas mills, but the bulk of Rifle and Au Gres logs come to the Saginaw river.
The Cass, Bad, Shiawassee and Flint, among the first lum bered, have passed out of calculation as log-producing streams, as a basis of supply, each contributing bnt a small amount. Although logs liad been run out of Cass river previous to 1864 in large quanti- ties, the Huron Log Boom Company was not organized until that year, and has since handled the product of the stream, which lias diminished from one linndred million feet to less than six million feet the past year.
The main source of supply for the Saginaw mills, as stated, is the Tittabawassce and tributaries, which are the Chippewa, Tobacco, Molasses, Pine, Salt and Cedar.
The Tittabawassee Boom Company was organized in 1864, and during the first year of its existence rafted out 90,000,000 feet of logs. In 1865 the product was 180,000,000 feet, and in 1866, 186,000,000 feet were rafted. In 1867 the company rafted out and delivered 236,000,000 feet. The amount furnished this season however, exceeds any previous year. The Bad River Boom Com- pany rafted ont 20,000,000 feet of logs in 1865, and 23,000,000 in 1866. The Kawkawlin, Rifle and Au Gres Boom Companies were subsequently organized.
RECAPITULATION.
Briefly summarized, the rafting operations for the years desig- nated aggregate as follows:
Feet.
Feet.
Feet.
1867
429,207,806
| 1872
.645,285,278
1877
651,567,948
1868. 446,960,583
1873.
680,979,461
1878. . 558,079,674
1869
.521,350,663
1874
.589,225,404
1879 .755,182,586
1870
.623,397,353
1875
.584,843,701
1880. 923,874,274
1871.
521,796,927
[1876.
572,229,472
Not enminerated in the amount rafted in 1879 from the streams, 755,182,586, was 25,000,000 from the Shore, Pine and Saginin; and 24,300,000 in 1880, would make the grand totals for the past two years: 1879, 780,182,286 feet; 1880, 948,174,274 feet.
In the foregoing statement of the amount rafted during 1880, all of the logs handled by the Bad River Boom Co., for convenience,
394
HISTORY OF SAGINAW COUNTY.
are included in the estimate for that stream, although all of them do not properly belong to that stream. The total number of logs rafted out of the Bad river boom in 1880, was 39,327, scaling 4,877,570 feet. The total number of logs rafted out of the Bad river, Shiawassee, Flint, Swan creek and Ferguson bayou, was 66,039, scaling 9,568,139 feet. The latter are the figures em- braced in the tabulated statement. In addition to the amount given as rafted, 922,583,664 feet, there came out of the Shore Pine 18,000,000 feet, and out of the Saginin 6,300,000 feet, making a grand total of logs rafted, as stated above, of 948,174,274 feet.
LOGS HELD BACK.
The foregoing figures represent the logs handled by the respective boom companies on the streams named. It is estimated that there is now in the limits of the Tittabawassee Boom Co. 35,000,000 feet of logs, and there is 79,759,100 in the mill and store booms. Added to the 580,290,610 feet rafted, the 35,000,000 in the boom limits would make a total product of 615,290,610 feet. At the close of operations in 1879 there was held back in the Tittabawassee boom limits 65,000,000 feet of logs, and at the close of operations in 1878 there was held back 21,900,000 feet of logs. At the close of oper- ations in 1879 there was in the mill booms of the Saginaw river 31,700,000 feet of logs. As each of the several streams contributed to the amount now in the mill booms, and they are rafted and delivered, they are of course included in the foregoing tabulated statement.
The amount rafted from the Au Sable and Sable Pine is given at 138,500,000 feet. There is in the boom and boom limits 17,000,000 feet, which, added to the amount rafted, makes a total for those streams of 155,500,000 feet. At the close of operations on the Au Sable in 1879, there was a stock of 13,000,000 feet in the booms.
There was rafted on Rifle river, as shown in the table, 79,314,651 feet. There was left in the boom at the close of operations this season 3,573,438 feet, and in the river 8,000,000 feet, which added to the amount rafted as given in the tabulated statement gives the total for the stream 90,888,089 feet.
There is 500,000 feet in the Au Gres boom, and about 5,000,000 in the river, which added to the 95,719,614 feet rafted, makes a total for the stream of 101,219,614 feet. Of the amount rafted from the Au Gres, about 10,000,000 feet went to Tawas, and the balance came to the Saginaw river. Of the Au Sable stock only 2,000,000 feet came to the Saginaw river.
RAILROAD LOGS.
During the year 1880 the Flint & Pere Marquette railroad hauled 87,485,547 feet of pine logs, of which 58,205,194 feet came direct to the Saginaw river. The Mackinaw division of the Mich-
395
HISTORY OF SAGINAW COUNTY.
igan Central railroad also hauled to the Saginaw river during 1880 about 15,000,000 feet of logs.
SHINGLES.
This branch of the lumber trade may be said to have been inaugurated in 1852, and to liave been ushered into public notice in 1853, when 6,650 M. were shipped out of Saginaw river. The following year, 10,000,000 were manufactured and shipped at prices ranging from $2.25 to $2.50 per thousand. Since that period thiis industry has grown prodigiously, reaching 120,600,000 in 1872, and meeting with an annual increase until 1880, when it rose to 241,075,160. Following is a summary statement of shingles man- ufactured in the Saginaw Valley since 1872:
1872 120,600.000 | 1875 124,030,240 | 1878 153,989,750
1873. 130,618,550 1876.
.132,179,750
1879. .218,934,000
1874. 130,631,500 | 1877
167,806,750
| 1880 241,075,160
During the year 1880, the shingle factories of the county were as follows:
OWNERS.
Capacity.
Amount cut, 1880.
Amount on hand at close of season.
N. & A. Barnard.
15,000,000
13,750,000
2,750,000
Francis Kelly.
3,000,000
2,700,000
Geo. Davenport.
6,000,000
4,000,000
350,000
A. T. Bliss & Bro.
10,000.000
8,500,000
D. McLeod.
7,000,000
6,400,000
700,000
Martindale Bros.
18,000,000
15,500,000
1,200,000
B. M. Hosmer.
10,000,000
9,930,000
A. B. Wiser.
1,500,000
840,000
18,000
C. & E. Ten Eyck.
20,000,000
21,963,250
883,750
Warner & Eastman
5,000,000
3,000,000
Jno. G. Owen ..
500,000
327,750
Wood & Reynolds
25,000,000
18,000,000
3,000,000
Wylie Bros. ..
26,000,000
25,500,000
2,300,000
Melchers & Nerreter
10,000,000
2,050,000
LaDue & Phinney
20,000,000
14,000,000
350,000
J. W. Perrin. .
13,000,000
12,000,000
Brand & Hardin ..
7,000,000
6,571,000
G. V. Turner & Son.
12,000,000
11,000,000
500,000
E. Andrews.
.. .
8,000,000
7,050,000
.
.
.
...
.
STAVES.
The first stave yard in the county was established in the winter of 1850-'1, by Henry Shaw, of Mt. Clemens, acting as agent for a company of capitalists, consisting of E. G. Merrick, of French creek, on the St. Lawrence, Nickels and Whitcomb, and Hiram Merrick, of Detroit.
From 1850 to 1854 little actual work was performed by the com- pany. In the latter year, however, one hundred thousand Quebec butt staves, worth, delivered on the bank of the river, $50 per M., and 300 M. hogshead and pig staves, worth about $25 per 1,000, were manufactured.
396
HISTORY OF SAGINAW COUNTY.
Ten years later this industry produced 3,000,000 staves, manu- factured throughout the Valley, and in 1873 reached its greatest height, 9,568,898 staves being made.
OAK AND SQUARE TIMBER
« was begun in 1869 by Canadian lumbermen. The product of the first year was 765,000 cubic feet. In 1873 the shipment of oak timber alone reached 3,234,920 feet.
Of manufactured lumber the product of the Saginaw river mills from 1863 to 1880 is set forth as follows:
Feet.
Feet.
Feet.
1863
133,580,000 [ 1869
523,500,830 1875.
571,558,273
1864
215,000.000
1870. .
576,726,606 1876.
573,950,771
1863. 250,139,340
1871.
529,682,878
1877 640,166,231
1866 349,767,834
1872.
602,118,980 1878 574,162,757
1867
423,963,190
1873. 619,867,021
1879. 736,106,000
1868
457,396,225
1874. 573,632,771|1880.
863,356,009
The following statement shows the aggregate shipments of lum- ber and shingles from the opening of navigation to the close in the years named:
Lumber, ft. Shingles.
Lumber, ft. Shingles.
1868
430,128,100
74,141,050
1875
445,149,155 117,832,500
1869 474,912,425 86,878,500
1876
455,227,252 105,743,050
1870. 487,489,268 130,448,490
516,629,474 142,661,500 1871.
1872.
492,834,990
87,204,500
1879. 678,298,866 222,602,731
1873. .
452,768,562
38,521,500
1880 769,573,000 168,145,400
1874. . 448,707,652 82,154,500
The record of the lumber on the mill docks on the Saginaw river, at the close of each season during the past sixteen years, is as follows:
On dock. Sold. Unsold. 19,091,000 30,204,700
On dock. Sold.
Unsold.
1865. . 44,453,000 22,362,000
1873.222,071,665 30,893,000 191,178,965
1866. . 44,415,700 14,211,000
1874.213,152,663 23,135,000 190,017,663
1867 .. 69,969,771 19,435,571 50,534,200 1875.223,202,108 26,595,578 196,606,530
1868 .. 67,401,017 13,402,990
53,998,027
30,000,000 194,546,657
1869. . 93,331,614 14,526,000 78,805,514
23,511,666 222,323,856
1870.130,422,190 47,862,000 82,560,100
18,640,280 2:8,932,103
1871 .. 75,599,511 33,576,000 42,023,511
1872.152,822,553 40,928,200 111,894,353
1876.224,546,657 1877.245.935,5:2 1878.247,572,383 1879.221,864,595
85,647,837 136,216,758 1880.295,870,633 92,103,596 203,667,037
COMMERCIAL HISTORY.
The foregoing descriptions and statistics are evidences of prog- ress, driven faster by enterprise, which cannot be mistaken. Scarcely a half a century has passed since the forests of this land were mere shades for the trapper and hunter; but all this has changed; the woods yield up their wealth, and give present employ- ment to tens of thousands of honest laborers, while in preparation for thousands of thrifty settlers.
In closing this section of the book, the following review of the lumber market of the valley, for a series of years, is given. Taken from statistics, compiled by Messrs. Geo. F. Lewis, C. B. Headly.
-
1877 539,886,047 162,594,250
1878. 525,282,098 187,699,380
4
GH.Chapman
399
HISTORY OF SAGINAW COUNTY.
and in later times for the Courier, it appears to be as precise in statement as it is instructive and useful. On that account it is selected as a mnost appropriate conclusion to a most important chapter in the history of this county.
"In 1858 the accepted market value of No. 1 and 2 Cass river logs, was $+ per M feet, and sales were made as low as $2.25. The price of lumber then was $3, $6, $8, $12 and $18 per M, and a portion of the product that ycar sold as low as $2.50, $5, $7, $10 and $15 per M. As late as 1860, the three upper qualities sold together at $9, and in many instances as low as $8 per M. And it should be recollected in those days only the cream of the logs were manufactured, the skinning process being reserved for later days, greater demand and scarcity of the better qualities of pinc lumber. Early in the season of 1863, sales of lumber were made at $3, $8 and $16, and later in the same year the price advanced to $4.50, $9 and $18. During the season of 1864, sales were made at $5, $10, $15, $20 to $25, and prices gradually advanced until 1867. During the season, notwithstanding the surplus- of stock as compared with the requirements of trade, lumber ruled firm at $6, $12 and $40 for culls, common, and upper qualities.
" The season of 1868 was characterized by a fair degree of activity, and a larger manufacture than any previous year in the history of the manufacture on the Saginaw river. Prices held quite evenly at $6, $12 and $35, some exceptional lots selling a shade higher than these quotations.
"No year between 1861 and 1870, was so unsatisfactory to lum- bermen as that of 1869, no year involving so many losses to the smaller operators, none wherein the margin of profit to those doing an entirely " solid " business, whose resources werc ample, and whose facilities were such that they could take advantage of every favoring circumstance of the market and shipment, were so slight. In fact the Saginaw Valley was in 1869 the 'backbone' of the. lumber business of the entire Northwest, and, but for the right position taken by its leading manufacturers and held against all assaults, and under a weight which only needed the 'last feather' to crush the entire superstructure, the lumber business would have touched bottom, and demoralization taken place. Prices ranged during the year for the better grades of lumber at $6, $12, $35, $5.50, $11 and $33, and coarser grades being sold at less figures, and in many instances good stock was shaded.
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