Historic Driving Tour of Grandin, Missouri
Introduction
Welcome to Grandin. You are about to be taken back 100 years to experience life in a company-owned lumber town. Life in the Ozarks during the late 1800s and early 1900s was fairly primitive, but not in Grandin. Grandin was quite modern compared to its neighboring towns. The Missouri Lumber and Mining Company had moved in, developed the area with buildings, attracted a large labor force and provided many new technologies only available in larger metropolitan areas.
Frontier towns were popping up all over the country and established cities were expanding. Metropolitan areas such as St. Louis, Kansas City and Chicago needed lumber--specifically, soft woods such as pine--for building and home construction. Grandin, a small town in the middle of Ozark pine forests, quickly arose and soon became wealthy by harvesting its main natural resource - timber.
On this tour, you will see buildings that were constructed around 1900 and were used by Grandin Citizens and the Missouri Lumber and Mining company. Please note that Grandin is no longer a company-owned town and its buildings and land are owned by private individuals. We ask that your respect their privacy as well as their property. Grandin's buildings and property are for outside viewing only and are not available for touring.
The Missouri Lumber and Mining Company established Grandin in 1887. They named the town after E.B. Grandin, the corporation's main stockholder. The company-owned town boomed with excitement and growth during the late 1800s. Employing more than 1,500 workers, the Missouri Lumber and Mining Company owned and operated every aspect of Grandin. The corporation supplied Grandin citizens with housing, churches, schools, hospitals and many other economic resources.
Many of the private homes you will see around Grandin were built 100 years ago for married employees of the Missouri Lumber and Mining Company. More than 475 small frame houses were built. Most of these houses rented for $1 per room a month, so a five-bedroom house rented for $5. Unpainted frame shacks were available for common laborers at $2 to $2.50 a month. However, most of these shacks no longer exist today. Company officials paid $5 to $10 per month for better, nicely painted houses. Several of these can still be seen throughout Grandin. Single women were housed in company boarding houses for $18 a month. The company collected $18,000 annually for rent, which was considered reasonable for the times.
The town flourished during its lumbering days. From 1887-1909, Grandin grew to become one of the largest lumber milling operations in the nation. However, Grandin's glory years lasted only as long as the standing timber. In 1909 forests around Grandin were gone, leaving the company no choice but to relocate. In 1910, the Missouri Lumber and Mining Company moved to West Eminence, selling most of Grandin in the process. Now Grandin is a small southeast Missouri town of 233 residents; however, the remnants of what was once a booming mill town are still visible. Although many of the buildings and other resources have changed names or services, today they stand as a reminder of the glorious lumbering days in Grandin.
Toliver Pond
Toliver pond is a small, natural pond just east of the Granidn city limits. Covering about 3 1/2 acres, Toliver Pond is 60 feet deep, privately owned and cannot be seen from the road. it is quiet and secluded, but its waters still ripple with memories of the booming lumbering days.
Toliver Pond was the heart of the Missouri Lumber and Mining Company. Although small in nature, Toliver Pond greatly contributed to the success of the lumber company. Its waters provided the missing key in Grandin Lumber production by storing logs ready to be milled and by loosening any dirt, rocks and debris that would dull saw blades.
After loggers cut the trees, the logs were loaded onto railway tram cars and delivered to Grandin. As the logs reached Toliver Pond, the tracks sloped into pond waters, chains were loosened, and the logs tumbled freely into the pond.
Once the logs were delivered to the pond, they remained there for three to four days. The water washed dirt and debris off the bark to leave a clean log ready to be milled. As new logs were delivered, older logs were pushed closer and closer to the mill.
Pond workers directed the logs toward the mill ramp with a pike pole, a long wooden pole with a metal hook extending from the end. Pond workers could grasp the floating logs with the metal hook and direct it toward the sawmill conveyor. From there, the conveyor mechanically lifted the logs out of the water and into the mill.
There were two mills at Grandin--the big mill and the little mill. The big one held a circular saw, a band saw and a gang saw. In one operation, the gang saw could cut a lot into a block and then turn it into dimension lumber. The big mill was powered by nine boilers that ran three giant steam engines. It produced 160,000 board feet a day.
The little mill operated like the big one, except that it also contained the lath and shingle mills. This smaller mill was powered by four boilers and one McDonough engine. Daily output was 60,000 board feet of lumber. The lath and shingle mills also contributed to production by 48,000 feet of lath and 28,000 feet of singles.
Although 220,000 board feet is a lot of lumber to produce in one day, one must remember the logs being milled were out of the age-old Ozark forests. Many of the logs to be milled were nearly four feet in diameter. The mill did not waste time and effort on small trees. No trees less than 11 inches in diameter were ever taken to the mill.
At this fast pace, the Missouri Lumber and Mining Company soon cut all of the nearby timber resources. In 1909, tram lines already had extended into Shannon County. The farther the company had to go to get trees, the more expensive it became to transport them. Soon, it had become too expensive to transport the logs from Shannon County to the mill in Grandin. The company decided that it would be more productive and efficient to move the milling operation closer to the resource.
In 1910, the company officially relocated in West Eminence. Before the move, the company drained Toliver Pond to retrieve any logs that might have sunk to the bottom. Surprisingly enough, 2 million board feet of usable logs were recovered.
Lumberyard
Although now a pasture, the great lumberyard of the Missouri Lumber and Mining company was 40 to 80 acres in size and was once divided into three main sections:
1. The green yard,
2. the dry yard
3. and dry sheds.
This arrangement was practical and reduced the danger of fire by limiting the amount of lumber in the same area. To reduce the fire hazard even further, sweepers continuously cleaned the yard.
Lumber was transported from the grading table to the yard by wagons. Only six wagons were needed for the entire yard, because lumber could be hauled quickly. From the grading table, lumber was destined for the dry kilns or green yard, depending on the quality of the wood. High-quality lumber was dried in kilns. Common stock was stacked in the green yard to dry in the open air.
Stacking green lumber was quite an involved process. The piles of lumber were so heavy that a strong base was crucial. A stack was generally 16 feet high and 12 to 14 feet wide. A stack of these dimensions would weigh between 40 and 60 tons. Lumber was rarely stacked higher than 16 feet because the cost of handling wood increased dramatically past this height. Narrow strips of cull lumber were used to hold the boards apart and allow more air to move through the stack so that it could dry more quickly.
Higher grades of lumber were taken to the dry yard to be dried in a kiln. The kiln had many economic advantages for the Missouri Lumber and Mining company. In one to three days, the kiln substantially lowered the moisture content of the lumber by warming it to a temperature of 220 degrees. This loss of moisture not only reduced the weight of the lumber, but the freight bill, as well.
By drying the wood quickly, the kiln was able to prevent most wood discoloration. Controlling lumber discoloration was particularly important for high-quality lumber. Using the kiln also condensed the amount of space needed for the drying process.
Once the boards were dry, they were moved to the planing mill where they were surfaced into a finished product. After this process, the lumber was either loaded in train cars to be shipped out of Grandin or moved into the dry shed.
The dry shed was used to store finished lumber. Depending on the season, the amount of lumber stored in the dry sheds varied between 8 and 25 million feet. Even when demand for lumber slacked off, mills kept running to build up inventories for periods of heavy demand.
Whitehall
Whitehall stands as a reminder of the social etiquette in the late 1800s and early 1900s. Formerly the home of J.B. White, Whitehall was one of the four company-owned boarding houses. Whitehall housed Grandin's young, single women and was often called "Dear Park" by the men of the town. The residing women were employed in the company headquarters, store or school.
The women were charged $18 a month for room and board. This amount was unusually high; men were normally not charged more than $10 monthly. However, quality office workers were held in high esteem by the management. Women residing in Whitehall were considered skilled labor and probably received higher wages than most of the common laborers.
The company hired an elderly couple to oversee all Whitehall activities. Strict dinner hours were imposed and bedtime was promptly at 10 each evening.
The house consisted of 12 rooms, all furnished by the Missouri Lumber and Mining Company. Often, more women were hired by the company than there were rooms available in Whitehall. The overflow was boarded at the company hotel. Living in the hotel was welcomed by the women, since hotel rules were not nearly as rigid. Fewer rules were not the only privilege of living in the hotel. Most of the other hotel residents consisted of the higher-paid, single, male company employees. Hotel meals cost the women 25 cents a meal.
After the Missouri Lumber and Mining Company moved from Grandin, taking with it everyone except a few hundred people, a local family bought the old boarding house for a family home. Whitehall remains a private residence.
Company Store
The Missouri Lumber and Mining Company owned and operated a large company store in Grandin. The store served not only the Grandin locals, but small versions of the store also branched into each logging camp by way of railway cars. Company-owned commissaries were popular among the logging industry, but Grandin's company store was unlike any other.
The store was one of the largest stores in the Ozarks. Towering over Main Street, it covered 10,000 square feet. Although grand in size, the store was not fireproof, and burned down in 1900. Not to be discouraged, the Missouri Lumber and Mining Company replaced the great commissary by an even larger 12,000-square-foot building.
The new store consisted of 20 regularly employed clerks, plus cashiers. it contained eight departments including shoes, furniture, millinery, dry goods, groceries, drugs and fountain, hardware and meat. Grandin residents could purchase a week's supply of groceries for only$2. Ice and feed also were sold. It was reported that the store was worthy of a city of 50,000 residents. Even though it did not have any show windows, it was as complete and advanced as any city department store.
The largest rush of the day came after the mill closed between 6 and 7 in the evening. The doors of the company store were locked promptly at 7 p.m. The female employees were dismissed at this time, but the male employees remained in the store until 8:30 p.m. to sweep, dust and restock the shelves. The store closed whenever a fire broke out in Grandin.
In lieu of cash payment, company workers often would receive coupons redeemable at the company store. These coupons provided an inexpensive and easy to pay employees and eliminated any competition from other merchants. The coupons were non-transferable and could not be cashed by anyone other than the designated recipient. If other merchants accepted the coupons in exchange for their goods, they were stuck with the coupons as the company refused to redeem them.
The store did not overprice its inventory, yet it was organized to make a profit. In 1890, daily sales averaged around $300. Thirteen years later, in 1903, average daily sales had grown to more then $500. The branch stores generated nearly half this amount every day.
W.C. Slagle supervised the business operations of the company store for 15 years until J.W. Bedell purchased it. Bedell bought the store from the Missouri Lumber and Mining Company during its move to West Eminence. It continued to operate on a smaller scale for many years.
Company Headquarters
The company headquarters of the Missouri Lumber and Mining Company was constructed in 1889. The two-story building was built with the finest materials and lumber available in the Ozarks. From the wood covering the outside of the building to the inside flooring, paneling and ceiling, the corporate headquarters was quite the show place of Grandin.
The building served s the company's heart of administration. It also served as the exchange place in Grandin. All financial transactions conducted in the town took place in this building. On the 10th of every month, Missouri Lumber and Mining Company employees would line up throughout the building to relieve their checks and credit.
The corporate headquarters housed the company's high-profile personnel. Department heads, the plant superintendent, and the general manager, J.B. White, all maintained offices in the building. When White moved to Kansas City to coordinate the Missouri Lumber and Land Exchange, he kept his office in Grandin. When the company moved away from Grandin, the finely constructed building was deeded to the Masons of Grandin.
Company Hotel
The company hotel was one of the few entities in Grandin to be contracted out. Although it eventually become known as the McKinney Hotel, the company originally owned and operated the hotel. It was used to lavishly entertain guests of the Missouri Mining and Lumber Company. It also served as housing for many of the company's single employees.
The hotel charged 25 cents for meals eaten by boarding guests and by occasional visitors, such as railroad officials, traveling dentists and retail lumbermen. These occasional guests were the only paying guests that stayed in the hotel. Because the company's customers were generally treated to the stay, their bills were paid entirely by the corporation.
The hotel lost money for the Missouri Lumber and Mining Company because hotel supplies were originally purchased from the company store at a 10-percent discount. The commissary soon discontinued the discounting pricing and required the hotel to purchase supplies at cost. Even with buying goods at cost, the hotel didn't become profitable, and at best, only broke even.
J.B. White, the company's general manager, was renowned for his profitable supervision skills, and typically dismantled failing businesses. However, White continued supporting the hotel. The hotel provided entertainment for Missouri Lumber and Mining Company customers and so its lack of profit was justified.
The hotel was later contracted out and became the McKinney Hotel. It continued to operate under this name after the Missouri Lumber and Mining Company left Grandin.
Tram Lines
When the lumber industry became rooted in Grandin, tram lines were quick to follow. At first, timber companies cut down trees near their mills. Before long, loggers found themselves farther into the deep woods. Lumber companies needed a way to transport logs out of the woods and to their mills. The railroad provided an efficient solution to the transportation dilemma.
In 1889, tram lines were small in scale and consisted of six miles of track running from Grandin into Ripley County. However, their use quickly expanded until 108 miles covered the area around Grandin.
Railway construction was not a quick process and continued throughout the entire life of the Missouri Lumber and Mining Company in Grandin. The company employed surveyors to select the best routes for the lines. Engineers built along ridges when possible to avoid the costs and hassles of building culverts and bridges. Tram lines cost the company about $600 a mile to construct.
As the lines ventured farther from Grandin, small replicas of the town were built at convenient places along the road. Several housing units were built to accommodate the working crew and their families. These temporary camps included a store, car repair shop and a blacksmith shop. Larger camps also had boarding houses for single employees and barns for the company mules.
The quality of Grandin tram lines was inferior to those of today. Tram lines were seen as temporary, so construction was not a main concern. The tracks were rough and bumpy and railway accidents were common. Work crews were often injured and logging equipment was ruined. There were two major types of wrecks; either rocks slid onto the tracks or livestock wandered into the train's path.
The train traveled from the woods with freshly cut logs until reaching the mill pond. There, the tracks tilted toward the pond and the logs were unloaded and fell into the water. After unloading its cargo, the train would begin its journey back into the woods.
Centennial Forests
In 1900, the forests of Missouri and the entire nation were being harvested with little or no thought to the future. In that year, the few professional foresters in the United States founded a group called the Society of American Foresters to promote sound forest management across the country. To recognize 100 years of forest conservation, the Missouri Department of Conservation and Missouri Society of American Foresters are organizing the Centennial Forests celebration. Participating in Centennial Forests activities, such as the driving tour of Grandin, is a way to better understand our forests and the profession that is devoted to their care and conservation.
Missouri Department of Conservation
P.O. Box 180
Jefferson City, MO 65102Missouri Society of American Foresters
P.O. Box 7063
Jefferson City, MO 65102
