Damascus in Washington County, Virginia — The American South (Mid-Atlantic)
Wood Products Industry
Photographed By Tom Bosse, September 3, 2022
1. Wood Products Industry Marker
Inscription.
Wood Products Industry. . Damascus owes its development to the forests around it, which gave it decades of economic growth. These forests had been logged in the 19th century, but only with the coming of the railroad in 1906 could large-scale logging be profitable. Soon after the railroads came wood processing, and Damascus was home to mills for making doors, sashes, furniture and other wood products. There were also mills for tanning leather, using the tannin extracted from hemlock tree bark. But the depletion of the timber would come surprisingly quick: within twenty years o their establishment, several manufacturers were losing money, and by the 1950s very little of Damascus' wood processing capacity remained. By the turn of the twentieth century, all of these businesses were gone. And, ironically, the forests had finally recovered the hillsides.
Damascus owes its development to the forests around it, which gave it decades of economic growth. These forests had been logged in the 19th century, but only with the coming of the railroad in 1906 could large-scale logging be profitable. Soon after the railroads came wood processing, and Damascus was home to mills for making doors, sashes, furniture and other wood products. There were also mills for tanning leather, using the tannin extracted from hemlock tree bark. But the depletion of the timber would come surprisingly quick: within twenty years o their establishment, several manufacturers were losing money, and by the 1950s very little of Damascus' wood processing capacity remained. By the turn of the twentieth century, all of these businesses were gone. And, ironically, the forests had finally recovered the hillsides.
Erected by Virginia Department of Conservation & Recreation.
Location. 36° 38.522′ N, 81° 47.982′ W. Marker is in Damascus, Virginia, in Washington County. Marker is on Virginia Creeper National Recreation Trail west of West Laurel Avenue
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(U.S. 58), on the right when traveling west. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Damascus VA 24236, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Credits. This page was last revised on February 2, 2023. It was originally submitted on November 23, 2022, by Tom Bosse of Jefferson City, Tennessee. This page has been viewed 56 times since then and 9 times this year. Photos:1, 2. submitted on November 23, 2022, by Tom Bosse of Jefferson City, Tennessee. • Bernard Fisher was the editor who published this page.
