Four C Mill

R.M. Keith, agent for Central Coal & Coke Company in Kansas City, Missouri, began purchasing the virgin pine timberlands of this region in October 1899. Lumber for construction of a new mill was cut by a small sawmill purchased from local landowner J.H. Ratcliff in January 1901. Although known as Four C Mill, it was operated by the Louisiana & Texas Lumber Company, organized by Keith in July 1901. The mill began sawing lumber in June 1902, producing 300,000 board feet per day. Nearby Ratcliff Lake was the millpond. The Texas Southeastern Railroad laid tracks from Lufkin; tram roads and tap lines were built into the forest to haul fresh-cut timber to the mill. The company built houses and a company store at the mill, and several logging camps in the forest to house and feed lumberjacks. Hostility erupted when the town of Ratcliff was begun nearby, competing for the workers' trade. The company erected a 16-foot fence between the mill and Ratcliff. It was dynamited several times, thwarting attempts to establish a company-controlled town. By 1917, the company had exhausted its 120,000 acres of land. Due to the shortage of good timber, the mill was shut down and dismantled in 1920.

Texas · United States