Logging in Hinckley
The village of Hinckley
was platted in 1869 and named for Isaac Hinckley, an eastern railroad man
who also held stock in the Duluth and St. Paul Railway. At this time Hinckley
was but a clearing in the wilderness.
Tall pines waved a welcometo all who came and Camp Comfort, a huge logging camp, furnished bed and board for weary travelers who ventured from the stage station three miles east of Hinckley on the Government road. Very little that is reliable can be obtained concerning the early history of Hinckley due to the destruction of all the village records as a result of the fire. However, its history is known to be one of hardships and fluctuating conditions. Not until the railroads began cutting their way through the forests from St. Paul to Duluth did Hinckley begin to flourish.
Being strategically located in the middle of the white pine timber region, halfway between St. Paul and Duluth, Hinckley eventually became the trade center and "hub of Pine County." The young town had grown to a population of nearly 1,700 before it was consumed by fire in 1894. To most of the permanent residents Hinckley seemed the ideal place to put down roots and raise a family. All the elements necessary for the good life were there for the enterprising, industrious homesteader.
The numerous lumber camps sprinkled through the forests of Pine County attracted a robust species of men. In the 1890's a large majority of lumberjacks were Scandinavians, along with lesser numbers of Germans, Irish, Finns and other nationalities. Many of the men were transients who worked in the lumber camps in the winter and moved onto the Dakota fields in the summer. Others were local settlers who earned extra money by winter logging.
Logs were hauled over the frozen ground to the rivers and streams to await the spring thaw and the river drive. Occasionally contests developed between the loggers to see which camp could haul the largest load of logs over iced logging roads. In 1892 a crew from the Rutledge Lumber Company, working north of Hinckley, gained national distinction by loading 56 logs scaled at 37,120 feet on one sled drawn by four horses. The load was larger than the Michigan load displayed at the Chicago Exposition in 1893.
The life of the lumberjack was rigorous, with long hours, crude living conditions, and strict camp rules. Even the lumberjack and his bottle of "Hinckley Bone Liniment" (purported to be for man or beast, a remedy of great thaumaturgic power - good for anything and everything, including hangovers) couldn't cure the lonely isolation felt during the winter months. The lumberjack had few compensations. One of them was food - it was always ample and usually good. If it wasn't, the cook was fired.
There developed a camaraderie with the other men that bolstered the spirit. And the men welcomed the visits of the "sky pilot," a preacher from Duluth who made the rounds of the camps. He led the men in singing lumberjack songs, then hymns, followed by a bit of prudent advice. Since the lumberjack had no place to spend money all winter, he usually had quite a sum on deposit at the end of the season. In the spring when logging stopped, most of the single men headed for the large cities and spent the winter's earnings in a few nights of riotous pleasure.
More:
Lumbering in Minnesota: A Chronology
Minnesota Historical Society Logging (and Lumberjacks)
An museum near Duluth: TOM'S LOGGING CAMP & Old Northwest Company Trading Post
(Be sure to sotp in at Tobies on the way.)