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ECONOMIC GROWTH
In the 1850?s, numerous kilns were to be found in this area. These kilns produced large quantities of pine tar, with charcoal being a by-product from the fire under the kiln. Turpentine was another product of the area. This was apparently distilled in stills from the resin or sap of the many virgin yellow pine trees that were so plentiful all through this area. One such turpentine still, and a large one by all reports, operated on the banks of the river by Rotten Bayou, not far from the location of St. Joseph Church in Fenton The river and its tributaries, including the bayous, seem to have silted up considerably since those days, as reports exist of many schooners travelling this route along the bayous to load their cargos for New Orleans. Captain Faye, a local resident of this area, apparently made this trip regularly in his masted schooner. There are also reports of how these schooners came up as far as the present-day bridge on the Kiln-DeLisle road, and used the turning basin there to begin their out-bound journey. The basin referred to would have been in close proximity to the present-day home of Mrs. Jessie Cuevas Kane, a 93-vear-old resident who was bom in the house she still lives in. The turpentine was used extensively as a basis for paint, while the pine tar was necessary for caulking the wooden hulls of ships of that time.
As time progressed, the harvesting of the virgin pine forest bccame the economic mainstay of this area, and with this came the advent of sawmills to produce lumber for construction and for export. France became the market, apparently, for much of this yellow pine. One of the earliest mills in the area was built by Sam Favre, who moved here from Mobile. His home, built sometime around 1859, was close to the banks of the river, not too distant from the present church. In 1950, this house (after the mill was gone) was moved to its present location and still stands as a fine example of building in that era. It is the house directly behind the church today. In all this time, little remodeling has been done to it - it still boasts of the high 10' ceilings of the time, as does the home of Mrs. Jessie Kane in Fenton. Soon after sawmills came to the area, particularly one owned by Mr. A. Guiterrez and Thompson, a more modem one was built by Mr. Francois Haas at Bayou Talla (the present home of his descendants) and later became known as the Herlihy-Haas mill. Mrs. Virginia Haas McLeod also operated a little store by the Jourdan River.
In the 1870?s, Mr. Emilio Cue also built, and was operating, a very successful mill in this area, and went on to become the first Postmaster of this area. Because schooners travelled the waterways regularly, transporting the cured lumber, it became necessary to have facilities to service these boats, and
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as a result two shipyards or repair facilities operated on the opposite bank of the river - one operated by Willie Curet and another at Bayou Talla owned by Jeremiah Haas. Another offshoot of all the lumber business became the operation of a shingle mill at an area on the bend of the river, just down river from the lumber yard. This area is still known to this day as Shingle Mill Lake, and some old wooden pilings can still be seen at its entrance when the water level is low. The owner and operator of this facility was one Salvadore Necaise. A turpentine store was also operated in this area by the McLeod family. Mam of the names just mentioned are still to be observed today among the grave markers and vaults in the nearby Bayou Coco Cemetery.(18)
In the year 1909, the W.W. Carre Co. from New Orleans purchased the Herlihy-Haas Sawmill and ran a successful export business from there, during w hich time they built a railroad track to the northern end of the county to facilitate the flow of raw timber. Up to this time it was difficult and slow to transport the huge trees such distances. This mill operated successfully until 1912 when it was severely damaged by fire, after which it was sold to the Edward Hines Lumber Co. out of Chicago in 1913, a few years before the arrival of Fr. Denis as Pastor of Annunciation. Under the Hines Co. the mill was rebuilt as a more modem facility, and soon went on to become one of the largest sawmills in the South. These were the years when this area flourished economically and population-wise. With the growth and prosperity of the mill came demands for many other facilities to service the needs of the large work force employed in the mill. A remarkable panoramic photo of the mill, taken in the 1920?s still exists in the rectory, and shows in great detail the expanse of the facility and the mountains of cut lumber. Little homes were built all along the river, along West River Road, and all along the present entrance to the church from the Kiln-DeLisle Road. These apparently were all painted the same shade of yellow (for the yellow pine tree) and are referred to in the property deeds as ?yellow row houses". One other photo still to be seen today shows many of these little houses semi-submerged by the overflowing river waters.(I9'
In these years (1912 - 1930) a new two-story school was built (wooden structure) at a cost of $10,000.00, that offered many subjects not previously available. Some of our more senior parishioners still remember attending school there, and one member of the graduating class from there in 1919 was Jessie Cuevas, already referred to in previous pages. In addition to the new school of 1918, the area boasted of two drug stores, two doctor?s offices, a 50-room white hotel, and a 40-room black hotel. The 50-room hotel stood almost directly across the street from the church where the Favre residence now stands,
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