Near River Falls in Covington County, Alabama — The American South (East South Central)
The Horse Shoe Lumber Company / River Falls Power Company
Photographed By David J Gaines, May 14, 2011
1. The Horse Shoe Lumber Company Marker - Side A
Inscription.
The Horse Shoe Lumber Company, also, River Falls Power Company. .
The Horse Shoe Lumber Company. E.L. More, president of the A&F Division of the L&N Railroad, arrived in River Falls from Nashville in 1897 to spearhead the construction of a branch line of the L&N. Recognizing a business opportunity in the large quantity of virgin longleaf pine timberland in the area, he purchased a half-interest in a small mill located on Buck Creek near River Falls. He was encouraged by his long-time friend and mentor Major E.C. Lewis, president of the NC and STL Railroad and L&N board member. From this beginning until its closure following the disastrous flood of 1929, the Horse Shoe Lumber Company along the river and near this marker was one of the largest, most modern sawmills of its time. The mill operated an extensive logging rail system using as many as eight locomotives over the years. In addition to More, key mill personnel included his long-time associate Cyrus A. O’Neal as company vice president, Henry Stanley as company secretary, and E.W. Arwood as private secretary to Mr. More. Gus Henderson of Andalusia was mill superintendent. John Miles Cooper, also of Andalusia, served as woods foreman.
River Falls Power Company. E.L. More organized the River Falls Power Company in 1920 to provide a grid system to furnish electricity to nine counties along the FL/AL state line. Leslie Cheek of Nashville joined More and Cyrus A. O’Neal in providing the start-up capital. More became the company’s president and O’Neal its vice-president, while Henry Stanley served as secretary. The arrival of electricity served as an invitation to industry to locate in the area and More’s own Horse Shoe Lumber Company was one of the earliest customers. More constructed a modern all-electric sawmill on the same site where his old mill had burned in 1924. The power was supplied by the company’s Gantt and Point “A” dams built upstream on the Conecuh River in 1924 and 1926, respectively. To ensure uninterrupted electrical service, a large auxiliary steam plant was added to the system in River Falls. A third dam up the Patsalagi was envisioned for the future by the company, but those plans were abandoned after the 1929 flood.
The Horse Shoe Lumber Company
E.L. More, president of the A&F Division of the L&N Railroad, arrived in River Falls from Nashville in 1897 to spearhead the construction of a branch line of the L&N. Recognizing a business opportunity in the large quantity of virgin longleaf pine timberland in the area, he purchased a half-interest in a small mill located on Buck Creek near River Falls. He was encouraged by his long-time friend and mentor Major E.C. Lewis, president of the NC & STL Railroad and L&N board member. From this beginning until its closure following the disastrous flood of 1929, the Horse Shoe Lumber Company along the river and near this marker was one of the largest, most modern sawmills of its time. The mill operated an extensive logging rail system using as many as eight locomotives over the years. In addition to More, key mill personnel included his long-time associate Cyrus A. O’Neal as company vice president, Henry Stanley as company secretary, and E.W. Arwood as private secretary to Mr. More. Gus Henderson of Andalusia was mill superintendent. John Miles Cooper, also of Andalusia, served as woods foreman.
River Falls Power Company
E.L. More organized the River Falls Power Company in 1920 to provide a grid system to furnish electricity to nine counties along
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the FL/AL state line. Leslie Cheek of Nashville joined More and Cyrus A. O’Neal in providing the start-up capital. More became the company’s president and O’Neal its vice-president, while Henry Stanley served as secretary. The arrival of electricity served as an invitation to industry to locate in the area and More’s own Horse Shoe Lumber Company was one of the earliest customers. More constructed a modern all-electric sawmill on the same site where his old mill had burned in 1924. The power was supplied by the company’s Gantt and Point “A” dams built upstream on the Conecuh River in 1924 and 1926, respectively. To ensure uninterrupted electrical service, a large auxiliary steam plant was added to the system in River Falls. A third dam up the Patsalagi was envisioned for the future by the company, but those plans were abandoned after the 1929 flood.
Erected 2010 by Covington Historical Society, Inc. and the Alabama Historical Association.
Location. 31° 20.943′ N, 86° 31.929′ W. Marker is near River Falls, Alabama, in Covington
Photographed By David J Gaines
2. River Falls Power Company Marker - Side B
County. Marker is at the intersection of U.S. 84 and Red Level Road (County Road 107), on the right when traveling west on U.S. 84. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: River Falls AL 36476, United States of America. Touch for directions.
3. View from marker East towards the Conecuh River Bridge.
Photographed By Mark Hilton, February 28, 2021
4. View from marker looking west on US-84/AL-55.
Credits. This page was last revised on February 28, 2021. It was originally submitted on May 18, 2011. This page has been viewed 3,135 times since then and 169 times this year. Last updated on August 8, 2020, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee. Photos:1, 2. submitted on May 18, 2011, by David J Gaines of Pinson, Alabama. 3, 4. submitted on February 28, 2021, by Mark Hilton of Montgomery, Alabama. • J. Makali Bruton was the editor who published this page.
