“Hunt and Son Lbr. Co. Takes Lease for New Mill Site Near Dodson,” Winn Parish Enterprise, August 14, 1958, A3.
Hunt and Sons Lumber Co this week took a 50 year lease on a 46.4 acre side between Dodson and Wyatt. The lease was taken on land owned by W. J. Horton in Section 16-13-3W. The new mill will be under construction soon and will represent a quarter-million dollar investment.
“Begin Logging at New Hunt Mill,” Winn Parish Enterprise, November 13, 1958, A1.
Work began this week on banking a two-million board feet stockpile of logs for the new Hunt & Sons Lumber Co, which is scheduled to begin operation around January 1 near Dodson, it was learned from the Dodson Mayor Carthal Payne.
Construction of the new quarter-million dollar plant is well under way. The contractor began this week erecting steel for the mill shed and work is to start soon on setting the mill’s machinery, Payne said. The new mill, located on the west side of Highway 167 about two miles north of Dodson, is slated to employ 150 persons when in full operation. It will be a complete plant, sawmill, dry kiln, and planer mill, for lumber manufacture. Hunt Lumber also operates sawmills at Zwolle and Danville.
To serve the electrically operated mill, Louisiana Power and Light Co is installing a new $40,000 power substation near Dodson on the Sikes Highway, within the corporate limits of Dodson.
“Winn Industry is Optimistic for ’59,” Winn Parish Enterprise, January 1, 1959, A1.
Industry heads in Winn Parish generally expressed optimism for prospects curing 1959, reflecting the feeling prevalent throughout the country at the upturn following 1958’s recession. While indication for the already going industries seemed good, the Parish also looks forward to industry expansion during 1959.
The new quarter-million dollar Hunt & Sons Lumber Co sawmill near Dodson is slated to begin operations early this year with a resulting “shot in the arm” expected for Winn’s economy. The new mill is to employ around 100, with the Village of Dodson already seeing some of the affects of the expansion.