Grandfather and Dad were both sometime loggers. Both were employed in this profession at times when jobs were hard to come by and money was tight. But the job was a natural thing for them because of their respect of nature and interest in the forest. They were able to work at thinning a forest and at the same time manage it to help it become more healthy. Back in the day many smaller logging companies actually seemed to care about the land they cut upon, unlike today when large conglomerates clear cut and hack away.
When it came to Brookwood Grandfather made sure the forest was properly managed. Trees that were cut down were appropriately replaced with diverse trees of a type that were natural to the area and grew at different rates.
Grandfather later allowed other logging companies to come in and log on Brookwood, or to come through Brookwood to get to the site of their logging. But since it was his land he once again controlled the manner of cutting, what was cut, how it was replaced…..and the way in which those huge trucks tore through the forest. The trucks were capable of making a huge mess and causing a lot of damage if not controlled. We must have had good forests because even with those constraints there was still some logging at Brookwood. It was far enough from the cabin that one rarely saw them- you had to be in that area.
Grandfather bought a sawmill at some point. I have the feeling from what I have read in family records that the mill was already outdated before he bought it. I believe it must have been a hobby for him. Most milling jobs were for trade of one kind or another. In the 1960′s my Dad had tongue and groove pine paneling cut to finish the second floor of our home in Illinois. It may have been one of the last jobs turned out by the mill. Grandfather died in 1963.
Dad inherited the sawmill and the 40 acres on which it sat. We would go over occasionally on trips up, look over the mill, take a gander at the rusting Doodlebug and Dad and my brother would talk about restoring it, maybe fish in the Sauble River (on the banks of which the mill sat)…….just kick around a bit. The Sauble has great trout fishing! Then we would leave. I can remember being terrified to enter the sawmill because of the large wasps nests that inhabited it!
After Dad died my husband, myself, Brent (my brother) a friend and my husband’s brother went there for a weekend of rough camping. We had a blast! It was husband Lou’s first ever rough camping experience and he enjoyed it- and he learned a lot about camping out in nature. I can remember too Lou and his brother Jeff chasing a snake along the river bank and me having a fit. I knew that was probably a rat snake of some kind but I wasn’t very comfortable with them chasing a snake and trying to catch it when they didn’t know what it was!
Shortly after that my brother planned a camping trip to the forty…..and Mom informed him she had sold the property. It was sad to see the last of the Michigan property leave the family. I think she said she sold it to someone in the Tuckey family (the were related to us but we didn’t know them very well). Zahn Tuckey and his sons did not live far from the mill. And so the last of our piece of Michigan fell through our fingers…………
Ed Hawks said,
October 8, 2008 at 5:03 pm
I know the area pretty well, but am not familiar with Brookwood. Is this a ghost town? Where abouts on the Sauble River was this mill?
Ed Hawks said,
October 21, 2008 at 5:02 pm
Dawn, I think you should revisit you comments on logging of today vs years ago. Perhaps your dad and grandfather had the foresight to be conservationists but that was not the norm in the 1800′s. They clear cut everthing that got in their way only to take the pine. Anything else was cut down and just to lay there and rot. This has all been very well documented. As far as the lumbing business today goes check out Weyerhausers website to see what they are doing for conservation, sustainability and replanting. I would say they are a model of what one comes to expect of a modern day logging company.
http://www.weyerhaeuser.com/
Thanks,
Ed Hawks
dawnmk said,
October 24, 2008 at 3:29 am
I am not sure when Grandad logged. I know he attended MSU for agriculture and forestry. Dad logged in the 20′s and 30′s. The sawmill was basically an after thought but Grandfather just cut logs that were hauled to him, he didn’t cut them himself normally. Some were cut. I guess that wainscotting that covered the walls of our home was Brookwood pine.
Clear cutting by Weyerhauser decimated areas of Mt St Helen in the 1980′s- before she blew her top. I was there. I saw it and saw them at work. BUT I am sure that they have become more concious of what they are doing and probably apply better forestry management practices than they once did. I don’t dispute that. Most loggers have learned that properly managed forests produce new trees for cutting down the line, as well as a healthy environment. But Weyerhauser isn’t the only logging company out there- just the largest. In Michigan in the 1960′s there was still quite a bit of clear cutting. Or the loggers would cherry pick the land and leave it with such baby trees that it would be decades before there was a forest as you or I might expect. And if they reforested it was with the cheapest trees they could get their hands on.
Worse yet was watching loggers (and I did) cut logging roads. They would just push their way in with bulldozers if they could, leaving uprooted trees where they fell, huge ruts, and a muddy mess behind.
Grandad and Dad did not allow this. Loggers cutting a road had to properly fell trees, trees that weren’t useful to them were mulched and the mulch was spread in the forest not just piled. Roads had to be cut after cutting and stump removal and they were properly compacted. (Those trucks weigh tons of pounds). Retreating loggers replanted the roads.
I am thrilled to see how logging has progressed- it really has changed a lot in recent years. Dad and Grandfather would have been really happy too!
Dale Tuckey said,
October 17, 2009 at 3:32 pm
Dear Dawn (regarding your Sept 2008 story):
I greatly appreciated your story about your father and grandfather and their logging experience on the Sauble River. I am a Tuckey family researcher and have always found the name “Zahn Tuckey” to be exciting to follow, along with his descendants.
Is the Sauble River in Lake County? About when did the sawmill get sold to Zahn Tuckey and his sons?
Thank you for sharing your memories. They have helped me in ways you could never have known about!
Dale Tuckey
dawnmk said,
October 20, 2009 at 5:00 pm
I equally am thrilled to speak with a Tuckey
I’m glad you enjoyed the story about the sawmill. We don’t have any photos of the actual mill- the one in the blog is for interest only. Our mill was a large corrugated metal shed with long low overhanging eaves. I remember we kids stayed clear of it because it was filled with wasp nests! But Grandad kept his Doodlebug there and when he was gone the property went directly to Dad who I think dreamed of running it again. Dad had lots of Michigan dreams that sadly never came true for him.
Hmmmm. Is the sawmill at Sauble in Lake County? I think so, altho it may be Mason((?). I am not sure to be honest. I would have to hold a plat map right up to a county map to figure that out. The sawmill was sold to the Tuckey’s in the 1980′s. I’ll ask Mom if she remembers the year.
I’m glad you enjoyed my memories. By the way we actually have some Tuckey’s on our family tree. If you leave me a comment with your email (it won’t be public) I can invite you to the Bartlett family tree on Ancestry. My cousin Lisa has done most of the work on the tree and it is immense!