Vast forests of virgin white pine brought the first wave of white settlers to Northern Wisconsin, and although farms came later, for half a century the forests defined local history. In 1847, Knapp, Stout & Co. purchased thousands of acres of pinelands from the government for $1.25 per acre. In 1848 the company began logging operations in Barron County, and by 1870 it was said to be the greatest lumber corporation in the world and the undisputed lord of the thousands of square miles comprising the Red Cedar Valley. In 1901 the Knapp, Stout & Co. mills fell silent as the area's white pine was gone and the denudation of the area was regrettably complete. Today Barron County ranks high in the state in forestry, but agriculture is the area's main industry.