When the white pine was king : a history of lumberjacks, log drives, and sawdust cities in Wisconsin

"From the ring of the ax in the woods, to the scream of the saw blade in the mill, to the founding of many of Wisconsin's communities, Jerry Apps does an outstanding job bringing Wisconsin's logging and lumbering heritage to life."—Kerry P. Bloedorn, director, Rhinelander Pioneer Park Historical Complex For more than half a century, logging, lumber production, and affiliated enterprises in Wisconsin's Northwoods provided jobs for tens of thousands of Wisconsinites and wealth for many individuals. The industry cut through the lives of nearly every Wisconsin citizen, from an immigrant lumberjack or camp cook in the Chippewa Valley to a Suamico sawmill operator, an Oshkosh factory worker to a Milwaukee banker. When the White Pine Was King tells the stories of the heyday of logging: of lumberjacks and camp cooks, of river drives and deadly log jams, of sawmills and lumber towns and the echo of the ax ringing through the Northwoods as yet another white pine crashed to the ground. He explores the aftermath of the logging era, including efforts to farm the cutover (most of them doomed to fail), successful reforestation work, and the legacy of the lumber and wood products industries, which continue to fuel the state's economy. Enhanced with dozens of historic photos, When the White Pine Was King transports readers to the lumber boom era and reveals how the lessons learned in the vast northern forestlands continue to shape the region today. "From the ring of the ax in the woods, to the scream of the saw blade in the mill, to the founding of many of Wisconsin's communities, Jerry Apps does an outstanding job bringing Wisconsin's logging and lumbering heritage to life."—Kerry P. Bloedorn, director, Rhinelander Pioneer Park Historical Complex For more than half a century, logging, lumber production, and affiliated enterprises in Wisconsin's Northwoods provided jobs for tens of thousands of Wisconsinites and wealth for many individuals. The industry cut through the lives of nearly every Wisconsin citizen, from an immigrant lumberjack or camp cook in the Chippewa Valley to a Suamico sawmill operator, an Oshkosh factory worker to a Milwaukee banker.__When the White Pine Was King__ Enhanced with dozens of historic photos, transports readers to the lumber boom era and reveals how the lessons learned in the vast northern forestlands continue to shape the region today. "This is the story of the logging era in Wisconsin, of lumberjacks and camp cooks, of log drives and log jams, of sawmills and lumber barons and the echo of the ax in the Northwoods as yet another white pine tree fell to the ground. Jerry also walks readers through the aftermath of the logging era, including efforts to farm the cutover, reforestation work, and the legacy of the state's lumber and wood products industry"-- Provided by publisher Before the loggers arrived -- The logging boom -- Setting up camp and crew -- The lumberjack's life -- From forest to sawmill -- Logging and lumber leaders -- Life in a sawmill town -- Growth, change, and the end of the era -- The plow followed the ax -- Reforestation efforts