Mercer in Iron County, Wisconsin — The American Midwest (Great Lakes)
Roddis Line Lake of the Falls
Iron County Heritage Area
Photographed by Paul Fehrenbach, August 22, 2011
1. Roddis Line – Lake of the Falls Marker
Inscription.
Roddis Line Lake of the Falls. Iron County Heritage Area. The felling of Iron Countys great stands of timber began in the late 1870s. The white pine was the first to be cut. Down the Turtle River and over Lake of the Falls, buoyant pine logs were floated to sawmills further south.
Spring, when the rivers were highest, was log driving time. Dams were constructed on the Turtle River here, at the Lake of the Falls, and upstream at Sheas Dam to provide the flush of water needed to push the logs downstream.
The colorful pinery days were intense, but short. By 1906 the last stands of white pine had been cut.
The valuable virgin hardwood timber that remained offered a bigger challenge – it did not float like pine. The Roddis Lumber and Veneer Company solved the problem as early as 1903 by creating a “logging railroad” extending into the timberlands west of Lake of the Falls.
By mid-1920s the “Roddis Line” railroad had spread like branches on a tree connecting 15 logging company camps to the mainline track. Timber continued to flow, by rail instead of water, to sawmills. Dwindling supplies of wood and the Great Depression forced the Roddis Line to abandon its operations in 1938, ending Iron Countys logging railroad era.
The felling of Iron Countys great stands of timber began in the late 1870s. The white pine was the first to be cut. Down the Turtle River and over Lake of the Falls, buoyant pine logs were floated to sawmills further south.
Spring, when the rivers were highest, was log driving time. Dams were constructed on the Turtle River here, at the Lake of the Falls, and upstream at Sheas Dam to provide the flush of water needed to push the logs downstream.
The colorful pinery days were intense, but short. By 1906 the last stands of white pine had been cut.
The valuable virgin hardwood timber that remained offered a bigger challenge – it did not float like pine. The Roddis Lumber and Veneer Company solved the problem as early as 1903 by creating a “logging railroad” extending into the timberlands west of Lake of the Falls.
By mid-1920s the “Roddis Line” railroad had spread like branches on a tree connecting 15 logging company camps to the mainline track. Timber continued to flow, by rail instead of water, to sawmills. Dwindling supplies of wood and the Great Depression forced the Roddis Line to abandon its operations in 1938, ending Iron Countys logging railroad era.
Location. 46° 8.994′ N, 90° 9.629′ W. Marker is in Mercer, Wisconsin, in Iron County. It can be reached from County Route FF 4 miles west of U.S. 51. Marker is located in Lake of the Falls County Park near the boat launch. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Mercer WI 54547, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Regionally, this marker is in Wisconsin’s Copper Country and on the North Shore. It is also in the American Midwest and in the Corn Belt. Globally, it is in North America, the Great North Woods, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once the territory of the Mississippian Culture and also the Northwest Territory.
Credits. This page was last revised on June 16, 2016. It was originally submitted on August 30, 2011, by Paul Fehrenbach of Richfield, Wisconsin. This page has been viewed 960 times since then and 54 times this year. Photos:1, 2. submitted on August 30, 2011, by Paul Fehrenbach of Richfield, Wisconsin. 3. submitted on August 31, 2011, by Paul Fehrenbach of Richfield, Wisconsin. • Bill Pfingsten was the editor who published this page.
