32 



HARDWOOD RECORD 



April 25, 1917 



brackets, steps tor electric power lines and for telephone lines, tool handlps. 

 wooden toys and novelties, tree nails for shipbuilding, small dimensiim 

 lumber for many purposes where hnrdwuod is needed. 



George D. Burgess 



George D. Burgess, junior partner in Kusse & Burgess, Inc., Memphis 

 and London, and president of the National Lumber Exporters' Association, 

 died at his residence on Poplar avenue, Memphis, Tenn., Friday morning, 

 April 20, after a lingering illness. He was taken ill in a New York hotel 

 several months ago, was removed to the home of his wife's sister in 

 Baltimore as soon as he could stand the travel and some time later 

 was brought to Memphis. He was able to go out to the offlees of his 

 firm once or twice after reaching Memphis but he suffered a relapse several 

 weeks ,Tgo and since that time little hope of his recovery has been en- 

 tertained by his friends. 



Mr. Burgess was one of the prominent members of the lumber fraternity 

 in Memphis and was well known throughout this country and in many 

 of the lumber centres of Europe where he spent much of his time each 

 year prior to the outbreak of the European war. Some idea of his wide 

 affiliations and his acknowledged ability may be gained from the fact that, 

 besides being presiilent of the National Lumber Exporters' Association 

 at the time of his death, he had served as president of the Lumbermen's 

 Club of Memphis, president of the Southern Hardwood Traffic Association. 

 Memphis, treasurer of the National Hardwood Lumber Association and 

 trustee of the National Wholesale Lumber Deal- 

 er's Association. Mr. Burgess was also a mem- 

 ber of the Memphis Country Club and the Tennes- 

 see Club. 



lie was flft.v-five years old and is survived by 

 his wife, one son, .Tohn Early Burgess, and a 

 sister. Mrs. V. W. Douglas of Indianapolis. 



Mr. Burgess was born in Indianapolis in 1.S02. 

 entered the lumljer field when a comparatively 

 young man and formed a partnership with W. 11. 

 Kusse liefore the old firm of Rusee & Burgess i-e 

 moved to Memphis in 1S98. 



Funeral services were conducted Sunda.v after- 

 noon at St. Mary's Cathedral and private burial 

 in Forest Hill cemetery followed. In Ihe list of 

 iKuiorary pallbearers, besides (hose prominent in 

 other lines of business, were a number of lumber- 

 me'i who were close friends of the deceased and 

 also representatives of every lunibiT oiganization 

 having headquarfers in Memphis. 



The firm of Uusse & Burgess (Inc.) ranks in 

 the lead in hardwood exporting circles, although 

 the big operations in the South have of course 

 felt the pressure of exporting bans willi i he rest. 



The Pritchard & Wheeler Lumber 

 Company Formed 



The rritchard & Wheeler Lumber Company 

 has been formed at Memphis, Tenn., with a capi- 

 tal stock of $300,000, all paid in, and has made 

 application for a charter. The incorporators 



are: William Pritchard and C. L. Wheeler of .1. W. Wheeli'r & Co., Mem- 

 phis and M.iilison, .Vrk., Chas, (J. Kadel, formerly principal owner of the 

 Kiel-Kadel Lumber Company, and J. .M. Clements and M. S. McGehee of 

 Memphis. As soon as the charter has been issued organization will be 

 perfected. 



The company has purchased 27,000 acres of hardwood timberland in 

 Louisiana, Of this amount 15,000 acres are located near Wisncr, La., 

 while the remaining 12,000 are located near Bruin Lake, La. It is the 

 intention of the company to begin immediate development of this timber 

 and to this end a sawmill, with 73,000 feet capacity, will be established at 

 once at Wisner. The machinery has already been purchased for this 

 plant and will be shipped within the next few days. The plant will be 

 equipped with a re-saw and will have adequate dry-kiln facilities. 



As soon as the mill has been completed at Wisner, the company an- 

 nounces that it will proceed with Ihe erection of a second mill, of similar' 

 capacity and equipment, at Bruin Lake. It is proposed to establish a 

 veneer plant at Wisner or Bruin but definite decision as to the exact 

 location has not yet been made. It is estimated that twenty miles of 

 standard gauge railroad will have to be built to facilitate the develop- 

 ment of the timber in question. 



The tindjcr consists of southern hardwoods of practically all kinds and. 

 as one of the members of the company said, the development of the prop- 

 erty is a "straight southern hardwood proptjsilion." 



Headquarters will be niainfained in Memphis, at least for the present, 

 though Mr. Kadel will go (o Wisner to look after the installation of the 

 mill and also after the operation of the plant. 



The formation of the new company will not interfcTc In the leasl with 

 the operations of .1. W. Wheeler & Co., who have offices in Memphis and 

 a big band mill at Madison, Ark. The Kiel-Kadel Lumber Company, too, 

 will be eonllnui'd In operation bul It will be under new management. 



Shipbuilding Preparations 



TlIK LATE OEO 

 MEMl'll 



The proposed plan of the United States government to build not less 

 than 1.000 wooden steamers of uniform size as a means of gaining on the 

 destruction caused by the German submarines and providing tonnage ade- 

 quate for the shipment of supplies to the allies, has brought out a project 

 by the Baltimore Dry Docks and Shipbuilding Company, Baltimore, which 

 is engaged in the construction of steel vessels at Locust Point, to establish 

 a yard on the other side of the peninsula, in w'hat is known as the Spring 

 (Jarden district, for the building of wooden craft in accordance with the 

 scheme referred to. It is planned to expend about .?.'i.500,000 on the plant, 

 and the estimated capacity is eight ships a year. A force of about 2,000 

 skilled men would be emi)l<»yed. The p^ant proper would cost $2,000,000. 

 with a floating dry dock, and other improvements calling for an additional 

 outlay of $1,500,000. 



In this connection it is stated that a decidedly active inquiry for oak 

 has developed here of late, the supposition being that these inquiries are 

 prompted by the proposed ship construction. -V decided preference is being 

 shown for West Virginia oak, which has a longer and tougher fiber than 

 what is known as Chesapeake Bay oak or the more southern stocks. It 

 is expected that the demand growing out of the building of wooden ships 

 will create a lug demand for West Virginia oak. and. as the capacity of 

 the mills there is limited, it is thought altogether probable that the other 

 sections noted for their hardwoods will also be benefited. 



.\nother yard, which is thought will be devoted to the construction of 

 such wooden ships is to be established at Quan- 

 tieo, 22 miles south of Fredericksburg, Va., on 

 the I*otomac river. Tlie Potomac Shipbuilding 

 Comi'any has been chartered l>y the Virginia 

 State Corporation Commission witli an autlior- 

 izeil capital stock of $3,000,000, The .principal 

 othce is to be at Fredericksburg. Orren G. 

 Staples of Washington is president of the new 

 company, with II. King Cornwell, Washington, 

 vice-president, and George Purvis, Frederii'ks- 

 biirg, secretary and treasuriM-. 



Around West Virginia 



It is reported from Huntington that a group of 

 New Yorkers has secnired an option on the factor.v 

 tbf .National interior Finish ('omitany, and will 

 eularge it and soon put a large force to work. 



The report comes from Independence, Pa., via 

 West Virginia points, that Duncan & I'.urt have 

 IHirchased a ecmsiderable tract of tlndier on a 

 I'iinn near Independence. It consists of very fine 

 ...ik and will cut about 1,250,000 feet. 



It is reported fnmi Ilorton, W. Va.. that train 

 si^rvlce was instituted again along about the 

 seventh of the month after one of the greatest 

 Hoods known in that section. There has been no 

 train service to Ilorton, according to the reports, 

 since March 10, Lumber interests in that sec- 

 tion were badly damaged by the high water. 

 lOugene J, Fourney of the Meadow Klver Lum- 

 ber Comiiany, Kalnelle, W. Va., was married on Monday, April 10, to Miss 

 IMna Louise Lynch of Blue Jay, W. Va. The couple will take up residence 

 in Kalnelle about May 1. 



From Diana. W. Va., comes the report that the H. B. Nichols Lumber 

 Company will have its new mill completed and working by about the tii'st 

 of May. 



The Iloll.^'wood Lumber Company, which operates in the vicinity of 

 Wheeler, W. Va., is reported to have about completed rebuilding of briiiges 

 ami trestles which were washed away by the recent flood. 



Lumber Commissioners Appointed 



The Bureau of Foreign ami Dtanestic Commerce has annovmci'd the ap- 

 pointment of four special trade commissioners for estimating the amounts 

 of American lumber that will be needed in Europe for reconstruction pur- 

 I)oses. These commissioners are : John K. Walker, Washington, V. C. ; 

 .Nelson C. Brown, Syracuse, N. Y. ; Roger E. Simmons, Ilagerstown, Md. ; 

 and A. II. Oxholm, San Francisco. The investigation is to be financed 

 jointly by the National Lumber Manufacturers' .\ssociation and the Bureau 

 of Foreign and Domestic Commerce, the association paying the expenses 

 of three of the commissioners. 



The appointees are now prei)aring to visit every luniber producing cen- 

 ter in the I'nlted States, the ol)Ject being to get in touch with all lumber 

 concerns that are inlc>rested in foreign trade. They will study at first 

 hand the districts in Europe that will be in greatest need of lumber after 

 Iieaee is restored, ascertain the kind of lumber that will be demanded, and 

 they will estimate the nature of the compedtlon that will he encountered. 

 It is thought that the Investigation will require two years. 



Commissioner Walker, in addition to practical experience in the lumber 

 Industry and to considerable actual exporting experience, has appeared 

 before the Interstate Commerce Commission in behalf of every branch of 

 the lumber business. Commissioner Brown has the advantage of having 



KC.E D. BURGESS, 

 IS, TENN, 



