THE HARDWOOD RECORD. 



17 



DEVELOPMENT OF THE RESOURCES 

 OF WHITLEY COUNTY, KY. 



AliiMit a year ;i.uo. Justus S. Stearus. Ilie 

 pi-oiniiuMit Michigan luinbci'man. was at- 

 trautt'd l)y tlie \voii(l<'i'f'iil natural resources 

 of the state of "old Kaiutuck." Upon in- 

 vestisatiou he found his expectations more 

 tlian realized, and imjceeded to the devel- 

 opment of Whitley Cnunty on ji most ,gi- 

 .irantic scale. Ininiediately three compa- 

 nies were formed, namely, the Stearns 

 Lumber Company, the Stearn.s Coal Com- 

 pany. Limited, and the Kentucky & Ten- 

 nessee Railroad, the names suggesting tlie 

 lines of operation. 



A town site was selected on the Q. & C. 

 Railroad, near Pine Knot, and one hun- 

 dred and eighty-flve miles south of Cincin- 

 nati, and to-day there is a community of 

 one thousand people where less than 

 twelve months ago was a wilderness of 

 mountains. The town is called Stearns, 

 after its founder. Buildings have been 

 erected in a most substantial manner, a 

 system of waterworks and drainage lias 

 been planned, schools will be built and 

 maintained after the most approved meth- 

 ods, and everj- detail has lieen arranged 

 to make Stearns the model manufacturing 

 town of the South, which probably will 

 have no less than 4.iiiin inliabitants before 

 the close of VMH. 



THE STEARNS LUMBER COMPANY. 

 The Stearns Lumber Company is erect- 

 ing a double band saw null, a planing mill. 

 dry kilns and shingle and latli mills. The 

 work is being pushed with all po.ssible ex- 

 pediency and the plant will be in operation 

 by the middle of November of this year. 

 An extract plant for making tannic acid. 

 which will untilixe timber not suitable fur 

 lumber and waste material, is also one of 

 the features of this enterprise. 



Electric power from a central power 

 house is used for driving all machinery 

 and for lighting the town. 



THE STEARNS COAL COMPANY, LTD 



The Stearns Coal Company, Limited, is 

 now mining four hundred tons of coa! 

 every day. which output is being rapidly 

 increased, and lln' eompan.v expects to lie 

 producing 2,(Ml(l tons per day by October 1. 

 The coal is of exceptionally good bitu- 

 iiunous variety, all of it machine mined, 

 .screened and thoroughly cleaned. 



The mining town, Barthell, is four miles 

 frnm Stearns, with which it is connccled 

 b,\ the Kentucky iV: Tennessee Railroad. 

 I':ie(tric power for operating the mines is 

 furnished from the central power house al 

 Stearns. 



The Kentucky «.V Tennessee R.nih-oad Is 

 the outlet for all of the coal and linibei- 

 of the cond)ined comjianics. The i-oni 

 panics own and control "(i.tKXJ acres o! land 

 in almost one solid group, and these lands! 

 in connection with the holdings of the 

 individual members of the i-onipanies. will 

 .'ifford material for m.-inufacturing fr.r 



■ars to come. The coal supply is prac- 

 ; ally inexhaustible. 



Associated with Mr. Stearns in these en- 

 teiin-ises are his son. :\Ir. Robert L. 

 Stc.ii-ns. and Mr. Wilmer T. Culver of Lud- 

 ington. Mich., and Mr. Edward E. Barthell 

 of Nashville, Tenn. 



The Stearns Company of Grand Rapids, 

 Mich., of which Mr. E. C. Groesbeck is 

 manager, has opened a branch office in 

 Cincinnati, in connection with the Stearns 

 Coal Company. Limited. Mr. Groesbeck 

 will also have the management of the Cin- 

 cinnati office, and Mr. .1. (). .McCloskey 

 will 1)0 the sales agent, and through this 

 office will be handled the coal and lumber 

 from the Stearns enterprises in Kentucky. 



TO DEAL IN VEHICLE MATERIAL. 



The Vehicle Wood Stock Company. In- 

 corporated, w-ith headquarters in the Mar- 

 <iuette building, this citj-, is the name of 

 .1 new company organized to do Ijusiness 

 in the carriage and wagon wood material 

 line. .Mr. B. F. Von Behren of Evans- 

 ville. Inil.. is president: J. H. Himmel- 

 lierger of Morehouse, Mo., first vice-presi- 

 dent: E. K. Cunningham of I^'ostoria. Ohio, 

 second vice-president: Fred A. Curtis, Chi- 

 cago, secretary and treasurer. The com- 

 pany has numerous factories located at 

 c(>ntral points in different parts of the 

 country, and will manufacture bent rims 

 and bent hounds exclusively. As the com- 

 pany is composed of men wiio for many 

 years have been identified with the indus- 

 try, the announcement of their project will 

 be received by the trade with confidence. 

 They are now ready to receive and fill 

 orders, inasmuch as with the formation 

 of the company they also acquired a sup- 

 ply of the material they win handle at 

 various points in tlie country. 



WRIGHT-BACHMAN DEAL. 



The Wrighl-Bachman Luniber Ciini]iaiiy. 

 incorporated at Indianajiolis. Ind., in M.iy. 

 are in full operation at Portlanil. .\rk.. 

 in the vicinity of which they own 14.(10(1 

 acres of hardwood timber lands, the tim- 

 ber being largely white oak and gum. 



The members of the firm are well known 

 individually in hardwood circles, Mr. W. N. 

 Wright having been identified with the in- 

 terests of Scatcherd tV- Son of Buffalo. 

 X. ' v.. at .Memphis. Tenn., and later with 

 till' Empire Lumber Company of Buffalo 

 at the siime point, and still later as a 

 hardwood lumber dealer al .Meiniihis on 

 his own account under the tiriii n.iiiie of 

 W. N. Wright & Co. Me will have the 

 management of tlie Wright-Bachman Lum- 

 ber Company. 



Mr. V. -M. Bacliman. the president of 

 the company, is also president of the 

 I'. M, Baehman Company of Indianaiiolis. 

 Ind.. a lundier firm of long standing, that 

 is well known and highly regarded in the 

 northern tier of states. 



Mr. l'"red Baehman, the junior memlier 

 lit the lirm .ind its secretary and treasurer. 



is a son of .Mr. F. .M. Baehman. and a 

 meinl)er of the Indianapolis firm also. ' 



With the iiersonnel of the firm thus 

 identifi(^d. no further introduction is neces- 

 sary. They are all men of acknowledged 

 ability in the manufacture and sale of 

 lumber, and will rank at once as one of 

 the leading hardwood firms in the South. 



The mill is .1 double band mill and ample 

 yard room is included in their layout. 

 They will make a specialty of quartered 

 white oak and gum. 



GETTING DOWN TO BRASS TACKS. 



The following is being sent out to those 

 people in .\rkansas who are eligible for 

 membership in the House of Hoo-Hoo. by 

 William Starr .Mitchell of Little Rock, who 

 is one of the original six of Hoo-Hoo and 

 is chairman of the .\rkansas State Board. 

 .Most of the aigunient is applicable to 

 everywhere .ilike. the chief point of dif- 

 ference being outside of .\rkansas. Those 

 that ,ue fully imjiressed should send their 

 ten plunks to George K. Watson. TJ(l(i Fiil- 

 lertoii buililing. St. L(mis. Mo.: 



l>ear Sir:— The House of Hoo-Hoo is be- 

 ing liuilt at the World's Fair in St. Louis. 

 .mil when completed it will be a club for 

 lumberiiien. iiewspaiier men. saw mill sup- 

 lily men and railroad traffic officials, 

 whether iiieinb(>rs of the Hoo-Hoo or not. 

 (See marked paragraph on inclosed pros- 

 liectus. 1 



Vou will .ilsii note that the building is 

 for your comfort and convenience while at 

 the World's Fair, and that it is for this 

 purpose you are to pay .$!».!)!). complete 

 dues and membershi]) fee during the exist- 

 ence of the House. 



.1. .V. \'aii lOtten. 11. W. .Morrison. \V. S. 

 .Mitcliell. .1. F. Rutherford. H. .V. Culver. 

 W. R. Abbott. William ISuchanau. C. W. 

 (iates, Frank Wrape. .las. Briz/.olari and 

 H. G. Cad.v compose the Arkansas State 

 Board. Like lists are found in all the 

 other states. 'JC being represented. 



You will meet more p(^ople in your line 

 iif business through a membership in the 

 House of Hoo-Hoo in one da.v at the 

 World's I'"air tlian you would in any other 

 way in a month. .\ man gets along best 

 aii(l has the best time when he runs in his 

 own class: a tish out of water never has 

 a very enthnsi.istic time. Send me a $W 

 bill and 1 will enroll vou on the .\rkansas 

 list. • 



Inasmuch as the Order of Uoo-Hoo origi- 

 nated in .\rkansas. your state pride should 

 separate you from the $10. I shall expect 

 no refusals. Arkansas must have a good 

 representation from the ehgibles in this 

 House. -V iiroinpt remittance of .'flO will 

 be apiireciated. 



Viuirs for .1 home at the World's Fair. 

 WILI.l.V.M S. MITCHELL. II(k)-Hoo. 



The Henry .Maley Lumber Company of 

 lOvansville. Ind.. who some time ago leased 

 and are now operating the Schultze, 'Walt- 

 man A: Co. mill on the river, have leased 

 their old iil.int to May. Thompson & 

 Tha.ver, who will operate it in connection 

 with their own mill in the same section of 

 the city. The Malcy Company will in- 

 crease their capacity at the river mill by 

 adding a new band saw outfit and will 

 also put ill a handle factor.v. 



