Historicial Development: | A group operating under the name of the Sturgis Lumber Company through at least 1957 had a mill at Jasper. That year, the name had been changed to Ealand-Wood Lumber Company. The company at Jasper had, in 1966, ten lift trucks, three kilns, four hogs, 200 electric motors, ten compressors, one molder, twelve logging trucks, and 300 employees. It worked with longleaf pine, shortleaf pine, oak, beech, walnut, ash, gun, cypress, sycamore, and magnolia. Other operations included remanufacturing, cut-up plant, wood preserving, oak flooring.
The plant was sold to Georgia Pacific. In 1969, Georgia Pacific, at Jasper, cut rough lumber, dressed lumber, produced pulp chips, and saleable shavings. In 1971, the plant had cut more than 142,000,000 board feet. It was still employing 155 workers in 1973. The company was operating as a part of Louisiana-Pacific Corporation in 1975. It was still working 155 employees but had cut only 45 million feet in in 1973. Production slightly decreased to 44.26 million feet in 1975, using the same equipment from 1966.
By 1987, Louisiana-Pacific was operating two pine mills at Jasper: one site producing lumber and the other site producing plywood sheathing with a medium plywood sawmill and a large lumber sawmill. One cut plywood sheathing and studs, while the other was cutting lumber and softwood plywood. Production continued into the 1990s. Jim Stubbs and E. R. Journee were the site managers. Some of the operation were combined, and by 1990, one plant was making softwood plywood products, common and select boards, dry dimension, dry studs, and timbers. In 1993, Bill Norrington was managing 398 employees, who worked with loblolly, making common and select boards, dry dimension, dry studs, timbers. The plywood plant produced forty million square feet annually.
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