Sugar Pine Lumber Company

Not to be confused with Madera Sugar Pine Company.

Sugar Pine Lumber Company
Hauling logs over Bass Lake Dam in 1926.
Overview
LocaleSierra National Forest
Dates of operation1923–1933
Technical
Track gauge4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge
LengthMinarets and Western Railway, 43.45 mi (69.93 km)
Sugar Pine Lumber Company Railroad, 10.82 mi (17.41 km)[1]

The Sugar Pine Lumber Company was an early 20th century logging operation and railroad in the Sierra Nevada. Unable to secure water rights to build a log flume, the company operated the “crookedest railroad ever built."[2] They later developed the Minarets-type locomotive, the largest and most powerful saddle tank locomotive ever made.[3]: 39  The company was also a pioneer in the electrification of logging where newly plentiful hydroelectric power replaced the widespread use of steam engines.

The company founded two towns. They built Central Camp, a permanent logging camp with lavish amenities, and Pinedale, site of the company lumber mill. They operated two railroads: the Sugar Pine Railroad, which connected Central Camp to the switching yard in Bass Lake, and the Minarets and Western Railway, a client carrier that transported whole logs from the Sierra Nevada to the company lumber mill.

The Sugar Pine Lumber Company became one of the most notable boom-and-bust stories of the 1920s logging industry. After an $8 million investment in 1923, it set records for California's annual lumber cut but quickly exhausted its timber holdings.[1][3]: 56  By 1933, the company was bankrupt, overwhelmed by debt and high operating costs. Despite its advanced facilities, the expense of maintaining the camp and railroad made it impossible to turn a profit.[2][4]

  1. ^ a b "Sugar Pine to Start Operations June 10". Madera Mercury. May 13, 1923. Retrieved September 27, 2022.
  2. ^ a b "Lumber Company Built a Railroad Instead of a Flume". Madera Tribune. Madera, California. June 11, 1968. Retrieved September 29, 2022.
  3. ^ a b Johnston, Hank (2011). Rails to the Minarets: The Story of the Sugar Pine Lumber Company (Fourth Edition (Revised) ed.). Fish Camp, California: Stauffer Publishing. ISBN 978-0-9846848-0-9.
  4. ^ "Lecture - Hank Johnston". Sierra Historic Sites Association. April 27, 1980. Retrieved September 29, 2024.