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+--- Topic: PRENTICE: HISTORY OF THE JUMP RIVER LUMBER COMPANY (/thread-863.html)
PRENTICE: HISTORY OF THE JUMP RIVER LUMBER COMPANY - My Northern Wisconsin - 07-31-2026
Jump River Lumber Company Sawmill, Prentice, 1882
Into this rich forest land of north central Wisconsin, in the spring of 1881, came an elderly Scotchman. His name was Alexander Prentice, and he was accompanied by a George Greenman. The two had journeyed from Portage to make a survey of the timber in this area and, if possible, to find a good location for a mill. They found it right by the Jump River where it was crossed by the Wisconsin Central Railroad.
Enthused by the promising aspects of their survey, they traveled back to Portage to make plans and to interest a number of their friends in a sawmill venture. Early in the fall, they returned to put dreams into action.
Activities began on September 1, 1881, when George Greenman felled the first tree in that eight mile square of timberland along the Wisconsin Central. That night, the two men slept in a tent they had pitched in the vicinity of the present oil tanks.
They were soon joined by a group of men from Portage. Oscar Derrick Van Dusen, who was already involved with a lumbering operation in Dorchester, was the first one on the scene. Workmen, too, arrived with more tents and lumber for necessary buildings. The old Scotchman viewed the tents with distaste. One night in one of those things was enough. Bunk houses held no appeal for him, either. He preferred a comfortable bed in which to sleep and home-cooked meals. With that in mind, he walked along the track as far as Worcester "101." There, he contacted the newly arrived Carl Hjorts and asked for board and lodging. His request was granted. So, for a little time, he made his home with them. He walked to the mill and back each day. Occasionally, he would ride along with the section crew.
In the spring of 1882, the new lumber company was organized and incorporated under the name of the Jump River Lumber Company. Officers named were O.D. Van Dusen, president; F. H. Lewis, vice president; M. T. Alverson, secretary and treasurer; and C. R. Gallett, superintendent. Although Mr. Prentice did not assume any office, he was recognized as the senior advisor and leader.
Work on a sawmill began immediately. By September 1, the mill was in operation with a capacity of 50,000 feet of lumber per day and later increased to 100,000 feet daily. A large planing mill, as well as a drying shed, were completed in 1894.
In the spring of 1889, the company purchased what was known as the Ward Tract (La Font) and located about four and a half miles or so southeast of the mill town. That summer, a railroad spur was built into that wealth of timber. Throughout the year, the mill ran both day and night. About 450 men were employed. In the spring of 1884, the company ceased operations, and the mill was operated only a few months each summer by O. D. Van Dusen.
in the early '90s, a number of other enterprises were established in Prentice. One was a heading mill owned by Mr. C. T. Fox and employed 25 men. This operation lasted only a few years, and the owner returned to his home in Columbus, Ohio. A stave mill was also started but did not continue long.
The enterprising Jump River Lumber Company attracted so much attention that the Chicago Lumber Journal gave it this publicity:
"Their sawmill is located about one-half mile from the railroad crossing on the east side of the Wisconsin Central Line. It is the most excellent affair and deserves a description. The main part of this mill stands north and south and is 70 by 100 feet in size. On the east side of this main building are two smaller buildings, one 30 by 40, the other 20 by 20. The mill contains two band saws, one which is manufactured by the Edwin Allis Company, Milwaukee. The trimmer was made by McDonough Bros., Eau Claire; the edger and slab slasher by DeGroat, Giddings and Lewis, Fond du Lac. The lath is a McDonough, and the shingle mill was made by the Geo. Challoner's Sons, Oshkosh.
The shingle machine is one of double variety. The power is furnished by five boilers. There is no refuse burner here, but what is better, the offal is run out across a pond and burned where there is no possible chance of it getting to the mill.
The planing mill, located at a convenient distance south of the mill, stands in the same general direction as the sawmill and is 50 by 120 ft in size.
It contains improved surfaces; a 28-inch surfacer; one Hoyt & Bros. 15-inch surfacer; one 26-inch surfacer; one moulding machine, one rift saw, one cut-off saw. The engine, which runs the planing mill, is 12 x 32 inches in size, and the power is furnished by two tubular boilers.
When the mill was first built in 1882, an 8 foot dam was put in the Jump River and logs were boomed in that way. Some of the finest logs ever lumbered in the state were taken from the river and the supply is not yet exhausted.
In the last two years, the mail has been largely logged by means of a railroad built six miles to the southeast. The road is of standard gauge, built of 40-pound steel and is furnished with one engine and 30 cars. At the present terminus, a dam has been built across the malden twenty feet high. The back water resultant from this dam building has made a pond, which at one time this season held 12 million feet of logs.
The company also has logging privileges on the Soo Road and buys a great many logs, which are brought in over that line, which takes such good care of its sawmill friends."
Reprinted from the Prentice History Walk with encouragement from Dale Heikkinen
This marker is #2 on the History Walk Map.