Morgansfork Lumber Co.
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36" gauge, 30-lb rail Headquarters: Brookhaven, MS Mill Locations: near Meadville, MS (Franklin Co.) Sontag, MS ( Lawrence County) Mill Capacity: 25,000 ft/day Years of Operation: Meadville- 1909-1913 Sontag- 1913-1916 Miles Operated: 3 miles at Sontag Locomotives Owned: 1 |
Equipment:
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History by Gil Hoffman: Meadville Mill: The Morgansfork Lumber Company took its name from Morgan Fork Creek which flows through the western part of Franklin County. The company was incorporated "near Meadville" on August 7, 1908 by D. F. Guice, S. E. Moreton and W. I. Hutson. Authorized capital stock was set at a minimum of $5,000 and a maximum of $10,000. Sam Moreton was an officer of the Central Lumber Company, Ira Hutson was the logging superintendent at the Celco mill of the Central Lumber Company and D. F. Guice was a landowner and merchant in western Franklin County. The Morgansfork Lumber Company was formed as a feeder mill to supply cants to the Brookhaven planing mill of the Central Lumber Company. Mississippi Central called the mill location "Morfalco". In return for $2,250 in capital stock in the company, Guice deeded the company its first tract of timber, on November 26, 1909. The Guice tract was about three miles north of the Mississippi Central. William B. Covington, a business associate of Sam Moreton, was in overall charge of operations, arriving at Meadville from Lawrence County in the summer of 1909. Soon after his arrival, construction began on a circular sawmill which was completed in late 1909. It was on the north side of the Mississippi Central due south of the Guice tract. Other facilities were a dry kiln, a loading shed, a blacksmith shop and a group of company houses for employees. In addition to the Guice tract, the company purchased timber rights on several hundred acres nearby. The last tract was bought in January 1913. During 1913 the sawmill mysteriously burned to the ground and was not rebuilt. That same year operations were moved to Sontag, in Lawrence County, at which time Guice withdrew from the company. Sontag Mill: The charter of the Morgansfork Lumber Company was amended on November 11, 1913, to change its place of business to "near Brookhaven" in Lincoln County. In actuality this meant Sontag, in Lawrence County. At that time Sam Moreton was president of the company, Will Covington was vice president and general manager, and M. J. Hale (an officer of the Central Lumber Company) was secretary. During the latter part of 1913 a circular sawmill with 25,000 feet daily cutting capacity was completed at Sontag, on the north side of the Mississippi Central, near the depot. The mill also had a dry kiln. Like its predecessor in Franklin County, it was built to supply cants for the Brookhaven mill of the Central Lumber Company. Timber for the Sontag mill consisted of a tract of about 600 acres of longleaf yellow pine, most of which was located two to three miles north of Sontag, on the south side of Big Bahala Creek. The Sontag operation lasted about two years before cutting out sometime in 1916. On April 28, 1917, the company was officially dissolved.
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| ROSTER by Gil Hoffman: Meadville Mill: ? 2T Shay Lima 16000
Probably scrapped about 1913.
Sontag Mill: 1 2T Shay Lima 622 11-1900 24 3-7x9 30000
Returned to same in 1916.
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For more information contact Tony Howe at howe6818@bellsouth.net or David S. Price at dsprice46@bellsouth.net