THE DUBUQUE LUMBER REPORTER

June 23

    The lumber new of the past week may be summed up nearly in one word, “Water.”  Nothing else much has occupied lumbermen’s attention but the great floods, of which the full particulars have appeared in our columns.  At the present writing the water has passed the mark of 1870, and bids fair to go several inches higher.  At the lumber yards everything is afloat, and it is impossible to get about in them to fill orders, even if the cars could run on the overflowed switch tracks.  The loss to log men and mill owners has been very heavy, but so far the loss at this point has been comparatively light.  All the saw mills have suspended operations; in fact everything, trade included, has been brought to a perfect standstill.
    The Dubuque Lumber Company have the most of their yard under water, but enough is left on dry ground to ship from, and we believe they are the only yard in the city that was loading cars today. 
    Shipments last week were 73 cars; same week last year 145, cars and in 1878, 124 cars.

July 14

    The market is very firm and trade fair for the season.  Stocks are in better shape as regards dryness, and everything is in good supply except best A shingles which continue very scarce with an advance of 25 cents, quoted now at $3.00.
    The movement of lumber is light hardly anything going by but logs are moving freely.  The water is still high and drivers commenced piling today for the first time in over a month.  From a letter received by Geo. Burch, dated Saturday last, on the upper Wisconsin, it would appear that another flood of smaller proportions was coming.  The letter

states that it has rained hard for two or three days and that a flood is feared.
      Shipments last week were 180 cars.  Same week last year 89 cars, and in ’78, 77 cars.

September 1

    The lumber market is active, firm and advancing.  The tendency in this direction is more persistent and marked than has been the case for ten years, and it needs no great amount of the prophesying gift to foretell even higher prices than now rule.
    The streams are no doubt rising some, probably a good deal, form the late heavy rains, and an abundance of water is not an unlikely event for the balance of the running season, in which case the supplies of both logs and lumber would be liberal enough to supply the present demand.
    In Chicago the demand for lumber is said to be the largest for any August since the great fire.
    Shipments last week were 183 cars; same week last year 168 cars, and in 1878, 99 cars.

Previous                                                             4                                                                 Next

Explorations in Iowa History Project
Malcolm Price Laboratory School
University Of Northern Iowa
Cedar Falls, Iowa
©COPYRIGHT 2003 University of Northern Iowa
Lynn.Nielsen@uni.edu
Duplication for Instructional purposes only.
Credits: Logo and site design by ITS CET
Documents courtesy of the State Historical Society of Iowa