Record #:

8122

Author(s):

Hairr, John

Abstract:

By the late 1880s and early 1900s, accessible forests in the state's eastern sections had been cleared by loggers. Much of the remaining virgin forests lay in the remote, rugged western counties. Transporting this timber to market was neither safe nor economical. To overcome this problem, flumes were developed. A flume is a wooden trough, built in a V-shaped manner and filled with water, by which the logs could be transported safely and efficiently. They resembled train trestles and could reach heights of forty feet. In 1907, the Giant Lumber Company constructed the longest flume ever built in North Carolina. It reached nineteen miles across Wilkes County from the company lumberyard into the vast timber properties. In June 1916, a catastrophic flood, produced by a hurricane, washed the flume out in several places. The flume was never rebuilt.

Source:

Our State (NoCar F 251 S77), Vol. 74 Issue 5, Oct 2006, p124-126, 128-129, il Periodical Website

Subject(s):

Flumes--Wilkes County; Logging--Wilkes County