CAMP 51
Domtar Woodlands Limited, Nipigon, Ontario October 31, 1968 - one millionth Cord was cut by Camp 51
About Camp 51
While the early history of Camp 51 is sketchy, it is known that the original buildings were erected on this site in 1944 by Northern Forest Products Limited. This was a one year pole cutting operation, but no record of the quantity that was cut is available.
In 1945, local contractors, Rask and Sundstrum, moved their wives and 14 children onto the site and spent the entire winter producing 320 cords which were hauled to, and shipped from Jellicoe.
On April 9, 1946, Roy L. Tansley & Sons Limited, represented by Son T.E. "Tom" Tansley and W. E. "Bill" Sinclair, moved onto Brompton Pulp and Paper Company Limited limits to salvage 7,000 cords of blow-down at Camp 51 and produce lumber and pulpwood. This was a great boost for the nearby community of Jellicoe which had almost become a ghost town since the wartime closing of near-by mines. 1946 production of 10,670 cords was a very respectable operation at the time.
Although the "Bull of the Woods" era was past, camp buildings were constructed of rough lumber in those days and insulation and indoor plumbing was still in the distant future. Kerosene and pressurized gas lanterns provided the illumination, but even then, the horse barn enjoyed electricity produced with a gasoline powered generator. Horses were in one part of the barn and pigs in the other. It was rather common practice for a camp to raise its own pork.
The first night the generator was installed, it seems that one teamster who was slightly under the weather, went to the barn to check on his horse. The story goes that he thought all the unexpected brilliance was caused by demons. As he tried to escape, he fell over a low partition into the pig pen, passed out, and spent the night with the pigs.
The 1947 season produced 17,777 cords of forest products, the greater part of which was pulpwood. Horses, of course, played a major part in moving the logs to the river banks and skidways. Mechanical equipment was in very short supply during the early post-war years. Power saws were not here yet, and the tubular steel bow saw frame and narrow raker tooth blade was used exclusively to fell and buck. Although the turnover of workers was high, as men searched for greener pastures, some did stay, and left camp in the spring with well-stuffed wallets.
Fellers like Ken and Rocky Anderson hand loaded 40 cords of eight foot pulpwood a day, and one day set a record of loading 65 cords. When it is considered that a cord of pulpwood weighs about 3,500 pounds, it isn't too hard to determine the effort put into a feat of this kind.
It was about this time that a Miss Barbara Bradbury, a comely Montreal Miss, riding a pony to Vancouver, stopped over at Camp for a short rest. She stayed on as a cookee and worked a year. Later, Miss Bradbury published a book of her experience - much of her story was about Camp 51.
1948 introduced a new era in logging when the first power saw arrived at camp. A cumbersome man killer, weighing all of 45 pounds, it heralded the move of the forest industry towards more mechanization and the end of the old 'Bucksaw".
Men were scarce, and the first displaced persons were now arriving from Europe. These people had lost all their worldly possessions during the war, and had chosen Canada in which to make their new home. Camp 51 received its share of the 400 which Brompton undertook to employ.
Living conditions in camp again showed a marked improvement. Eight brand new 8 - man sectional bunkhouses were constructed on the hill overlooking the river. Centrally located washrooms were built, to make living away from home just a little easier.
It was also in 1948 that a new cookery to accommodate 100 men, was constructed. Here again, this seemed to be a matter of dire necessity. A family of skunks had established residence under the old cookhouse. It appeared to be easier to build a new one than to move the skunks.
And, this was the year the first portable Nesco Slasher arrived on the limits - the cost, $7,260.72. Probably on the market before its time, this piece of equipment did not prove to be economical and was seldom used again. However, it did prove that an evolution was taking place and the horse era would soon be a thing of the past.
Art Steinke, Neil Arthur, Connie Ropret, Paul Lewicki, were already well up on the seniority ladder. Connie eventually established the longest run for any cook - 19 years.
1949 was a slack year. Limit production ground to a halt, and had it not been for the sawmill operation, Camp 51 would have closed its doors. However, mine timber and lumber was in demand, and 2,730 cords of forest products were produced for conversion to building materials.
Although production picked up in 1950, it was slightly below the 1948 figure. These were the years of the "Jammer" loading operations, and winter horse hauls where men could still pride themselves with having the best team in the camp.
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| Nipigon Historical Museum photo |
A great deal of affection existed between horse and man then. Today, of course, you don't give your Wheeled Skidder a friendly pat, or cover it over with a blanket to protect it from rain and snow. Jammers were the noon day meeting places, and lunches - often hot - were served around a roaring fire. However, the Jammer's day was also numbered. In 1951, a mechanical giant made its first appearance. Referred to as a "Bundle Yarder" or "Cable Yarder", this self-propelled leviathan, literally dragged one cord bundles of pulpwood off the strips, for distances of up to 700 feet and loaded the wood on the decks of waiting trucks.
The use of these machines resulted in radical changes in logging methods and introduced parallel all-weather roads and increased summer pulpwood delivery. Gradually the need for horses was diminishing. Fortunately so, because the western farmers were rapidly moving toward total mechanization and horses were in short supply. However, it would be some time yet until Dobbin disappeared.
1952 introduced more improvements in the bundle yarding techniques, and more sophisticated 'Drott" front end loaders started to make their appearance. The move towards total mechanization was becoming more rapid. St. Lawrence Corporation Limited had purchased Brompton assets the year previous, and the influence of the larger Company was becoming evident.
1953 saw production increasing and facilities expanding. New wash and dry rooms were constructed that year, and flush toilets appeared for the first time. Goodbye at last to the outdoor biffies. Another era had passed. This was the year when the sawmill went up in flames, but Tansley and Company gamely started new construction on the same site.
During 1954, production remained constant, but the lumber market was giving very little return for the investment. In 1955, the sawmill closed its doors, never to re-open. However, demand for pulpwood was stronger than ever, and Camp 51 produced 61,810 cords - an amount far in excess of any previous year.
1956 and 1957 were normal operating years, with production slightly lower. This was the last year for the truck owner-driver. In 1958, a new fleet of tandem trucks was purchased to provide for bigger pay load and more efficient operation. During 1959, 73,235 cords of forest products were produced, surpassing by far any previous cut. This equalled the production of ten or more camps in the early days and was certainly a new record for our limits.
1960 may best be described for the great fire hazard. The largest fire in standing timber ever to occur on Company limits, broke out at Camp 51 this year, and raged uncontrolled through 60,000 cords of potentially merchantable pulpwood. At one time, over 500 fire fighters were on the 51 blaze. Perhaps one of the greatest salvage operations ever, followed all the devastation and 30 to 40,000 cords of fire-killed timber was picked up.
1961 was truly the end of the horse and buggy days. The last horse was retired at Camp 51. While horses were still used elsewhere on the limits, Camp 51 was now completely mechanized. The "Tree Farmer" had finally taken over.
The years just past, will probably be remembered with more nostalgia than any other period. It seems so hard to have any affection for the wheeled monsters we see now.
A modern two-story centrally located bunkhouse now appeared on the hill above the cookery. Two men to a room offered more privacy that the former eight-bed plan. Some liked the change - others preferred the old life. But, we can't stand in the way of progress.
Late in 1962, it became evident that St. Lawrence Corporation was to be purchased by Dominion Tar and Chemical Company Limited. Officially, the change took place on October 1, 1962.
July 12, 1963, was celebrated as "Domtar Day", and Camp 51 was honoured by a visit from Mr. W. N. Hall, President of Dominion Tar and Chemical.
The next few years were quite uneventful as the Camp continued to produce its share of limit wood. The old garage had burned down, and had been replaced by a new one. The last of the Yarders was scrapped and new trucks and Skidders were replacing the older types. Production was becoming more efficient, power saws and machines were improving continually.
In 1965, a new modern cafeteria style Cookery was erected across the road from the old one - same"good grub" but better surroundings. Staff quarters were constructed on the hill to make the Foreman's lot a little easier, also.
It was 1966 when the first portable lunch shacks appeared on skidding sites. Workmen could use these shelters in case of rain.
1967 saw the completion of another two-storey bunkhouse, to accommodate 88 men. The old eight-man bunkhouses are scrapped, abandoned, but certainly not forgotten by many of the workmen. But what was considered modern 20 years ago, certainly looks obsolete now. So times change.
This year, a new "Nesco" Slashmobile made its appearance. Remember the old ones that cost $7 -8,000? The new machine is worth ten times that amount, but what a difference in performance!
Tom Tansley, who has worked much too hard, has decided that this is his last year as a Contractor. There is nobody quite like Tom. We say "Goodbye" to a fine gentleman.
1968. The old eight-man bunkhouses are burned. Camp 51 has produced its 1,000,000th cord. (October 31, 1968) And, so ends another era.
We are not sure that the production of 1,000,000 cords from one camp, is a record. But, for us it represents many things. Over the years, workmen have come and gone, but many lasting friendships have developed.
For a camp that was opened to salvage blowdown, it has been operating for a long, long time. Best of all, these are still several hundred thousand cords to produce from this location, so it is likely this Camp will go on for a few years more.
To the newcomers, you may never see the 2,000,000th cord produced , but we hope your stay with us is a happy one. But, what will the next decade bring?
The Nipigon Historical Museum wishes to thank the author of this piece.
DID YOU KNOW?
1,000,000 Cords piled 4' high and 4' wide, would stretch for a distance of 1,515 miles, or from Camp 51 west to Banff, Alberta. Or, following Highway 11 to the East through Montreal, it would stretch from Camp 51 to Moncton, New Brunswick.
The individual sticks to make up 1,000,000 Cords, if laid end to end, would reach 90,910 miles, or FOUR times around the earth at its circumference.
1,000,000 Cords of Pulpwood would produce 1,818,182,000 pound of Newsprint.
This is equal to 4,675,325,142 issues of a 28 page Newspaper, which is the average size of a weekday issue of the News Chronicle or Times Journal (these are Port Arthur and Fort William - now Thunder Bay- newspapers).
And it would keep the newsprint machine at Red Rock in production for 13 years.
The Newsprint produced from 1,000,000 Cords, if laid flat, would cover 3,912,960 acres, or 6,114 square miles.
