Redwood, King of Humboldt County

Redwood, King of Humboldt County

By George A Kellogg, Secretary, Humboldt County Chamber of Commerce
From the 1914 edition of the Davis Commercial Encyclopedia of the Pacific Southwest

Excelsior Redwood Company lumber train and camp operating out of Freshwater, approximately 1890.
Ericson Photograph Collection, Humboldt State University Library.

Prior to 1889, no attempt was made to record the output of the mills, or the shipments of lumber from the county. But by figuring from the amount of land cut over during the period, it is estimated that the total lumber production from 1855 to 1888, inclusive, was about 2,500,000,000 feet, at an approximate value of $40,000,000.

Beginning with 1889 fairly accurate records have been kept of the shipments from the county, no attempt being made to include the amounts being used within the county, although the amount so used is considerable, as practically every building and structure in the county is built, in whole or in part, of redwood. It should be remembered that the following figures include not only what is commonly known as "lumber," but also any and every form of manufactured timber, such as shingles, shakes, posts, bolts, ties, etc., that is capable of reduction to approximate lumber feet. The figures from 1889 to 1913, both inclusive, are then as follows: