11/17/2024
We had a recent inquiry about the people who worked for Big Creek Logging (a subsidiary of Crossett Timber, who also owned the original Wauna (lumber) Mill. If any of you recall names of those that worked directly in the Knappa operation for Big Creek, feel free to add their names. One interesting post about a timeline of news articles on the operation, including employee names, is found in the files of "Oregon Timber Country". As you read on, it is evidence of what a dangerous job it was.
Unfortunately the link no longer works. The text is as follows.
October 16, 1912: "C. L. Houston, who has the contract for building about five miles of railroad for the Big Creek Logging company, leading from tide water to Knappa to the Crossett Timber company's holdings, expects to have the road completed in about two weeks. The company has established its camps and has a force of men at work felling and cutting timber so that it will be ready to commence hauling logs in about another month.
The Big Creek Logging company is a subsidiary of the Crossett company, and the latter owns approximately 2,500,000,000 feet of standing timber in that district, sufficient to keep its camp running for 50 years and still take out 50,000,000 feet of logs annually. This timber tract is among the largest and most valuable individual holdings of the kind in the state." (Spray Courier)
November 14, 1912: "Concerns filing articles of incorporation in the corporation department of the secretary of state's office yesterday were: Big Creek Logging company Portland. $250,000," (Statesman Journal)
April 5, 1914: "Contract for building a three mile extension to the logging road of the Big Creek Logging company, has been given to C. L. Houston of Astoria, and 150 men will be employed on the job this summer." (The Oregon Daily Journal)
February 8, 1916: "The Big Creek Logging company at Knappa is expected to begin operations tomorrow. Men were sent to the camp several days ago." (The Oregon Daily Journal)
October 31, 1919: "A fatal accident occurred at the Big Creek Logging company's camp near Knappa, when Charles Fulton was instantly killed and his companion, John Warner, was so severely injured that death is expected to result." (The Athena Press)
November 23, 1919: "Walter Hunt, aged 28, son of John Hunt of Westport, met instant death at the Big Creek Logging company's plant in Clatsop county Friday in an effort to stop a runaway flatcar." (The Oregon Daily Journal)
February 9, 1920: "Charles Anderson, 22, of Kalama, Wash., was struck by a logging train Saturday at the Big Creek Logging company. One of his feet was crushed and he was taken to a Portland hospital." (The Oregon Daily Journal)
February 20, 1920: "Antony Valuatich, head rigger at the Big Creek Logging company's camp near here, was killed today by the fall of a sapling which struck and crushed his head." (Statesman Journal)
August 5, 1920: "J. A. Blair, a choker setter, employed at the Big Creek Logging company camp in Clatsop county, was instantly killed when he was caught between two heavy logs and crushed." (The Oregon Daily Journal)
September 6, 1920: "Nikolai Mikithyk, a timber faller, employed at the Big Creek Logging company;s camp near Knappa, was instantly killed yesterday afternoon when his skull was crushed by a falling limb. The deceased was a native of Russia and his only known relative is a sister residing in Portland." (Albany Democrat-Herald)
September 21, 1920: "Attachment proceedings were filed against the Sam Connell Lumber company Monday afternoon in the federal court by the Big Creek Logging company of Iowa to collect $9070.69, said to be due on a log bill. Deputy United States Marshall John Mann served the papers on Connell and closed the mill pending further orders from the court. Shortly before noon orders were given to allow the mill to operate.
According to the complaint, Connell purchased the logs August 7 and declined to pay the bill September 7. Connell said this morning that owing to car shortage he was unable to move his finished product and therefore could not get ready cash to pay the bill. Several cars were delivered to the mill Monday, Connell said, which, when shipped, would have brought returns enough to have settled the account.
The mill is located at Burlington, employes 60 men and has a capacity of 60,000 to 75,000 feet a day. The complaint gives D. E. Stewart as manager and C. H. Watzek as secretary of the Big Creek Logging company. The logging company is incorporated under the laws of Iowa, but operates extensively in the forests of Oregon." (The Oregon Daily Journal)
October 1, 1920: "A stipulation was filed in the federal court Thursday by attorneys for the Big Creek Logging company, requesting Judge Wolverton to dismiss the suit without prejudice which was recently brought against the Sam Connell Lumber company. In the suit the mill was attached for alleged non-payment of a log bill. The matter has been settled outside the courts. Connell said the day the suit was filed the shortage of freight cars prevented him from moving his finished product, and therefore prevented him from making payments on the log bill. The railroad company brought relief when the emergency arose, so Connell now has his mill back." (The Oregon Daily Journal)
October 14, 1920: "Harry Morgison, a logger employed at the Big Creek logging company's camp near Knappa, was instantly killed yesterday when a log rolled over him. The deceased who had worked at the camp for several months, left a family residing at Seaside." (Albany Democrat-Herald)
February 8, 1921: "Practically every logging camp in the lower Columbia river district has a force of men at work overhauling machinery, repairing tracks and equipment and in some instances extending railroads further into the timber, according to a survey completed today. The only camp cutting timber is that of the Big Creek Logging company, Knappa, which is operating one side. The general plan now is to resume operations about March 1, but much will depend upon the conditions of the log market and the demand for logs." (Morning Register)
February 26, 1921: "The Big Creek Logging company in Clatsop county, which is about the only one in the lower Columbia river district that is cutting logs, is turning out only sufficient to supply the company's mill at Wauna." (The Oregon Daily Journal)
March 15, 1921: "The Big Creek Logging company at Knappa started one camp last week and plans to begin operating another one this week." (The Oregon Daily Journal)
March 15, 1921: "The Big Creek Logging company at Knappa started up camp No. 5 today, making three camps it will have in operation." (Albany Democrat-Herald)
July 2, 1921: "James Kazantas, employed at the Big Creek Logging company's camp near Knappa, was instantly killed Sunday afternoon by a falling tree." (The Oregon Daily Journal)
April 28, 1922: "A rolling sawlog in the timber in which the Big Creek Logging company's camp No. 5 is located, Thursday morning crushed out the life of one man and seriously injured a second. The scene of the accident was 10 miles south of Knappa.
E. J. Gustafson, 30, was killed. He is thought to have relatives at Amity, Or.
James F. Reser, 62, suffered a crushed arm and shoulder." (The Oregon Daily Journal)
October 6, 1922: "Ben P. Leabo, storekeeper at camp 3 of the Big Creek Logging company, nine miles back in the hills from Knappa, suffered several fractured ribs and a bad cut over the right eye as well as severe bruises about the body, Thursday when a gasoline speeder on which he, Mrs. Leabo and a camp employe, Heinie, were riding from the company camp to Camp 1, five miles from Knappa, crashed head on into another speeder on which five or six men, composing the section crew of the logging company were riding.
Mrs Leabo was thrown from the speeder, but aside from minor scratches was unhurt. The members of the section crew escaped without a scratch, as did Heinie, operator of the car the Leabos were on. Leabo was brought by ambulance to St. Mary's hospital.
Both speeders were traveling at a fast clip when the smash occurred at a curve, which prevented either crew from observing the approach of the other." (The Oregon Daily Journal)
November 11, 1922: "Two logging companies filed suit in the circuit court Friday against the Larkins-Green Logging company, Russell Hawkins and David C. Whitney asking for over $125,000 for alleged damages caused by forest fire. The Crossett Timber company claimed it lost $39,162.77 and the Big Creek Logging company $25,325.54. Under provisions of the state statute they ask for double the amount of the actual loss in such cases." (The Oregon Daily Journal)
April 25, 1923: "The Big Creek Logging company at Knappa gave short shift to two dozen I. W. W.
Twenty-four alleged syndicalists left camp without taking thought to the order of their going. They were escorted by Sheriff Harley J. Slusher, Deputies Lewis M. Kletzing, Oscar Hanson and Constable W. E. Blackstock.
W. A. Erwin, superintendent of the Big Creek company, determined on the identity of the trouble makers in the camp. He telephoned the sheriff's office here (Astoria), the four officers responding. The party made its way to the camp, routed the twenty-four wobblies from their beds, told them they were summarily fired and conveyed them to the company's headquarters at Knappa. There the men were paid off at 1:30 in the morning, loaded into a waiting bus and sent to Portland.
While there is no doubt in the minds of the company officials that the men would have struck in accordance with their threats and the wide spread semi-soviet propaganda being spread over the northwest in favor of a May 1 strike, the swift action of the company in firing the entire malcontent crew thwarted any such action and prevented any possible damage from sabotage to the company's property." (The World)
September 7, 1923: "The biggest fire in years in the vicinity of Knappa is still burning fiercely in the holdings of the Big Creek Logging company's Camp Number nine will be endangered unless the wind shifts." (Albany Daily Democrat)
January 3, 1924: "Big Creek Logging company, Portland; incorporators, D. E. Stewart, Harrison G. Platt, Palmer L. Fales; capitalization, $1000." (Statesman Journal)
February 13, 1924: "A deed filed for record in the Clatsop county clerk's office entails the transfer of property, which is valued at $8,974,500. By it the Crossett Timber company, the Big Creek Logging company and the Crossett Western Lumber company all their timber land holdings, sawmills, logging railroads and camps and other property in Clatsop, Washington, Tillamook, Linn and Yamhill counties, Oregon, and Cowlitz county, Washington." (The Lebanon Express)
August 21, 1925: "Marian P. Hendrickson, a bride of two months, was killed instantly today while riding on a speeder on the Big Creek Logging company's logging road with her husband and Mrs. Roy McCary.
According to her husband, the speeder struck a derail switch which has been slightly opened. Mrs. Hendrickson was thrown forward and off the car by the slight jar and the front wheels of the speeder crushed her chest, death resulting almost instantaneously.
The body was brought to Astoria by County Coroner Hughes, who tonight declared that he did not believe an inquest would be held." (Statesman Journal)
September 9, 1925: "Clyde 'Wh**ey' Watson, ex-prize fighter and alleged deserter from the navy, was arrested at the Big Creek logging camp near here late yesterday by detectives, who stated he had been positively identified as one of the four men who robbed the State Bank if Aurora at Aurora, Or., on October 29, 1924, stealing $150." (The Capital Journal)
June 4, 1938: "Two hundred men tonight were combating Clatsop county's first forest fire of the season, which last night and today burned over an entire section of land.
The blackened area included a tract of good standing timber in the logging area being operated by the Big Creek Logging company 15 miles southeast of Astoria. Three donkey engines belonging to the logging company and other equipment were destroyed." (The Klamath News)
February 3, 1939: "Two feet of snow in the hills south east of (Astoria) delayed the scheduled reopening of Crossett-Western's Big Creek logging camp toady. About 300 men were to have returned to work." (Statesman Journal)
July 28, 1941: "After 30 years of lumbering in Oregon, the Crossett Western company has sold its Wauna property to the Wauna Lumber company, it was announced today. The sale will become effective at midnight on July 31.
Although it is retiring from the lumber manufacturing business, the Crossett firm will continue its timber and logging operations at Big Creek Logging company, Knappa, and the Gales Creek Logging company and partial ownership of the Consolidated Timber company." (The Capital Journal)
Clatsop County - Knappa
