Diamond Lumber Co. (1901-1904)
Greene County Lumber Co. (1904-1918)
J. M. Hemphill (1918)
Standard gauge, 30 & 35-lb rail Headquarters: Bexley, MS Mill Location: Bexley, MS (George County) Mill Capacity: 50,000 ft/day Years of Operation: 1901-1918 Miles Operated: 4 miles in 1903 Locomotives Owned: |
Equipment:
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History by Gil Hoffman: The
Diamond Lumber Company was incorporated at Bexley, Greene County on
November 27, 1901, by John O. Grisham, J. J. Bexley and Charles R. Hall with
authorized capital stock of $25,000. J. O. Grisham was president and general
manager. A longleaf yellow pine sawmill of 50,000 feet daily cutting
capacity was operated. On
October 27, 1902, the company mortgaged its sawmill plant, timber and
logging railroad to George S. Leatherbury, Jr., of Mobile, Alabama in return
for a loan of $10,000. Evidentally this mortgage went into default, because
on October 3, 1903 the entire assets were sold at foreclosure at
Leakesville, Greene County, to Leatherbury. To
operate this property, the Greene County Lumber Company was
incorporated at Bexley on January 17, 1904, by George S. Leatherbury, Jr.,
Charles A. Cunningham and John Shearer with authorized capital stock of
$50,000. Leatherbury, who became president of the company, deeded the
Diamond Lumber Company property to the Greene County Lumber Company on March
16, 1904. In 1917, the sawmill cutting capacity was 55,000 feet per day. The mill shut down in 1918 and the site was sold to Mrs. J. G. Leatherbury who in turn leased it and the mill buildings to J. M. Hemphill on March 19, 1918. On
March 19, 1918, John M. Hemphill, of Mobile, AL, leased the mill site
and buildings of the old Greene County Lumber Company, at Bexley,
George County from Mrs. Joseph G. Leatherbury. The lease was to run for five
years at an annual rental of $1,000. This lease was only held for less than
a year, after which Hemphill established a new operation at Byrd, Greene
County, on the new Blodgett branch of the Gulf, Mobile & Northern
Railroad.
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ROSTER by Gil Hoffman:
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For more information contact Tony Howe at howe6818@bellsouth.net or David S. Price at dsprice46@bellsouth.net