Consolidated
Lumber
Co.
Consolidated
Lumber
Co.
Before my grandfather owned his farm on Mount Spokane it had been logged by the Consolidated Lumber Co. and its successor the Edwards and Bradford Lumber Co. By the time I was old enough to notice, most of the evidence of the logging was long gone, but my granddad and I took many hikes through the woods, wandering along the abandoned 3 foot gauge roadbed, searching for relicts from a earlier time. We never found much more than a tin cup and some rusty metal, but regardless of our success, the outdoor search was always followed up with stories of days past and a few bowls of ice cream. Every now and then Mr. Gallagher would visit from up the road and talk about watching the loggers on his way to and from school just after the turn of the century. All and all, a great way to spend a day.
The Consolidated Lumber Co. lasted fourteen years from 1902 to 1916. Operating out of Elk, Washington with18 miles of track of 3' gauge track, the company logged the slopes of Mount Spokane in eastern Washington until 1916 when the company was bought out by Edwards and Bradford Lumber Co. The Edwards and Bradford Lumber Co. expanded the track to 25 miles and integrated the railroad in with its other operations. In 1932 the Long Lake purchased the Edwards and Bradford Lumber Co. and shortly thereafter shut down the rail operation.
| Shay 1 | C/N 62 built 2/10/1883 | 8x8, 26 dia. wheels | built for Henry Sherry & Co.,Vesper, WI, sold to CLC, then to Pine Tree Lumber in Bend, OR |
| Shay 2 | C/N 1746 built 9/6/1906 | 9x8, 26 1/2 dia. wheels | built for the Consolidated Lumber Co. |
| Shay 3 | C/N 2152 built 3/25/1909 | 8x12, 28 dia. wheels | built for Consolidated Lumber Co. |
| Shay 4 | C/N 2569 built 6/19/1912 | 8x10, 27 1/2 dia. wheels | built for Consolidated Lumber Co. |
 |
72 dpi |
Shays number 2 and 1. Frank Palmer Photo, Robert Pearson Collection, Owens Museum. |
 |
72 dpi |
Shay number 3 making up a train. A boxcar is already in the train and they are ready to pickup the caboose. The stack of another shay just shows up behind the caboose. Frank Palmer Photo, Robert Pearson Collection, Owens Museum. |
 |
72 dpi |
Same train heading back to the mill. Boxcar is lettered CLC RR, eight loaded log cars. Ed Beaver, timekeeper on the locomotive. Frank Palmer Photo, Robert Pearson Collection |
 |
72 dpi |
Same train and trip. Frank Palmer Photo, Robert Pearson Collection, Owens Museum. |
 |
72 dpi |
Shay number 2 at the switch ready to return to the mill. The caption on the photo read" The dinky Edward and Bradford Co. use to haul logs to the Elk mill. Frank Palmer Photo, Robert Pearson Collection |
 |
72 dpi |
Shay No. 2 heading into the woods with a string of log cars near Elk, Washington. The Consolidated Lumber Co. used Russel Wheel and Foundry Co. #2 pattern cars. Click here for plan. Frank Palmer Photo, Robert Pearson Collection |
 |
72 dpi |
Crane number 4, a AH&D Co. Model D loader, loading a car. First, a string of empty cars would be placed behind the crane. Then the crane would swing an empty car out in front and load it. The loaded car would be moved away and another empty car swung into place. This was repeated until all the cars were loaded. Photo taken in 1915 just east of Mr. Gallagher's house by AH&D Co photographer for their catalog. John Cummings Collection |
 |
72 dpi |
View of mil at Elkl, drying shed and dry kilns. Homemade caboose in entrance to shed. Robert Pearson Collection |
 |
72 dpi |
Mill at Elk Robert Pearson Collection |
 |
72 dpi |
Mill at Elk Robert Pearson Collection |
 |
72 dpi |
Hotel at Elk Robert Pearson Collection |
 |
72 dpi |
Locomotives 2, 3, and 4 sitting on the dead track in the 1930's. D.S. Richter Collection, from John Lewis |
