Lumber Industry
By the mid-nineteenth century, ichigan had become one of the leading producers of lumber in the United States. The state's vast forests of white pine were a highly prized commodity and Michigan's interconnected river systems meant that logs could be conveniently transported to sawmills and shipping ports on the coasts of the Great Lakes. By exploiting these natural attributes, the state's lumber industry accounted for a large section of Michigan's economy during much of the 19th and early 20th centuries. Indeed, much of the housing built throughout the Midwest relied on lumber supplies from Michigan.
Michigan's lumber industry created many jobs for the state's citizens, created capital that was often used to develop other industries, and it altered the ecology of the state forever. The Clarke Historical Library contains many important records that pertain to diverse aspects of the lumber period. For example, the archives house the business records of the Olds Lumber Company of Cheboygan as well as many personal papers of the M. D. Olds family. Such records contain much information on the lumbering process, the transportation of felled logs and finished products, life in the lumber camps, and the tools and vehicles that were a part of the process. In addition, the Clarke contains photographic resources, such as the Mershon Collections, which visually document many aspects of the industry as well as the life of a Michigan lumber baron. Printed works, such as Shanty Boy, one of the earliest first-hand accounts of life in a lumber camp, also tell the industry's story.