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End of an era for Nelson Hardwood Lumber Company

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The sawmill building at Nelson Hardwood Lumber has served the company well for nearly 40 years. (Photo by Ted Pennekamp)

By Ted Pennekamp

 

After nearly 40 years of serving Prairie du Chien and the surrounding area, Nelson Hardwood Lumber Company is going out of business. 

Brian Nelson said there is an auction May 25 at which the contents of the sawmill and the rolling stock are being sold. Tentatively, the land will also be sold, said Nelson. 

“We have been up for sale for about a year, but we couldn’t find a buyer,” said Nelson. “We had been thinking about moving on for awhile.”

Nelson said Nelson Hardwood will still run the dry kiln in Richland Center for the time being.

It will be the end of an era, said Nelson who noted that Nelson Hardwood has gone from 50 down to 10 employees recently. 

“We will continue logging for the time being,” said Nelson. “We have the resource, the timber base, but there just isn’t anybody who wants to work in the woods anymore.”

Nelson said he is 66 and his brother Steve is 72, and it’s time to retire. He noted that it’s a bit sad, however, that there is nobody to pass the company on to.

“Over the years, we’ve had a good bunch of guys work here,” said Nelson. “Several have worked here for over 25 years.” Nelson said most of his employees have found jobs or anticipate getting a job soon. 

Nelson said he and his brothers Kent and Steve purchased the property from Weyerhaeuser Forest Products at 305 E. Frederick St., Prairie du Chien in October of 1982.

Nelson Hardwood’s operation involved logging, a sawmill and trucking. They had their own logging crews but also hired independent loggers.

Nelson Hardwood Lumber was a wholesale producer of high quality lumber. They specialized in thick stock red oak, white oak, walnut and white hard maple. Nelson Hardwood Lumber was also a leading buyer of standing timber and open market logs within a 100-mile radius of Prairie du Chien. Other species they bought included cherry, aspen, ash, basswood and soft maple. Nelson Hardwood’s radius ran roughly from Decorah, Iowa to Galena, Ill., to Madison to La Crosse.

Nelson Hardwood worked with state foresters and their company foresters to procure logs to supply the mill. Nelson Hardwood has a facility in Richland Center where green lumber is hauled so it can be dried in a kiln in order to reach a stable moisture content so it can be used for finished wood products such as furniture, flooring, moldings and other uses. Special orders also occur on occasion.

Over the years, Nelson Hardwood Lumber had seen a steady expansion at each location (Prairie du Chien and Richland Center).

The facility in Prairie du Chien operated a double band sawmill. This facility was used to produce random length grade lumber in several thicknesses along with railroad ties and timbers of various sizes.

The Richland Center plant has 250,000 board feet of kiln capacity. The dry kiln location is complete with surfacing facilities and adequate dry storage. Mixed truckloads and container sales are available.

In addition to timber harvesting, Nelson Hardwood Lumber also provided forest management plan development services for Wisconsin’s Managed Forest Law program.

Nelson Hardwood Lumber was known for its old time value and dependability.

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