| History: | The Knox Lumber Company, having cut out its timber in Polk County, closed its mill and shortline there and moved operations to East Mayfield, in Sabine County. Lillian Knox, wife of Hiram Knox and daughter-in-law to William Knox, owner of Knox Lumber Company, was the driving force behind the construction of the Knox company's new tapline in Sabine County. When she suggested to her husband the need for a railroad, Hemphill not having one, Hiram allegedly laughed and told her to do it herself. She convinced her father-in-law, and the railway company, named the Lufkin Hemphill & Gulf Ry Co., was chartered on October 14, 1912. Principals were Hiram Knox, W. M. Cady of Keenan, and C. B. Collins of Lufkin. The line was unofficially referred to as the “Lillie, Hiram and Gussie” (Gussie was the Knox cook), and also the “Left Hemphill and Gone.”
The intent was to build from Kindred in Sabine County thirty-six miles eastwardly to the Sabine River at Godwin's Ferry. Hiram Knox died in 1913, when nine miles had been constructed east from Bronson. Hiram Knox had to overcome financial difficulties before a final two miles to Hemphill were built in 1916, a mile from the Knox Lumber facility at East Mayfield.
Temple Lumber Company at Pineland, in Sabine County, a companion company to Southern Pine Lumber Company at Diboll, in Angelina County, bought the Knox Lumber Company and its shortline in 1921. The officers of Southern Pine's shortline, the Texas Southeastern at Diboll, managed the business affairs of both lines from their offices at Diboll. The Temple Lumber Company facilities at Pineland and East Mayfield handled their own logging along the Lufkin Hemphill & Gulf . The Temple Lumber Company's first major Sabine County logging camp was opened at Rebecca in 1918. In 1936, Temple Lumber Company at Pineland opened another logging camp at Evadale, in Jasper County. The Gulf, Colorado & Santa Fe shipped the logs from Evadale north to Pineland.
The mill at East Mayfield burned in 1937. With a great amount of local timber having been cut by 1938 coupled to the lack of industrial and agricultural development in the region, Temple Lumber Company at Pineland decided that it was no longer financially feasible either to rebuild the mill or to continue operating the Lufkin Hemphill & Gulf Ry Co.. Pineland exchanged logging trucks for abandoning its own tram lines along with the shortline that year and closed the camp at Evadale. In 1964, Temple Lumber Company contracted out all logging operations. |