Russell: You say you started with the Railroad?

Mears: At Pineland, Texas 1941

Russell: What types of Railroad logging operations were going on at that time at Pineland?

Mears: At Pineland Temple Lumber Company had a pretty good size saw mill there. They had their own locomotives and log cars and they had logging own lines. Their own lines out of Pineland to their timber holdings and also operated over the Santa Fe to Holdings near Evadale , Jasper, Browndell, Bronson, and San Augustine. They would operate trains over Santa Fe. Santa Fe had a conductor pilot stationed at Pineland and he was the only Santa Fe man on the crew. The Temple lumber company ran their engine cars and their equipment their caboose every thing. They were the old link and pin type log cars no air so it was a pretty slow operation. They eventually got some better log cars on the longer run to Evadale. They had car with air, flat cars with air, that speeded up the operations considerably.

Russell: How often would they run out on the Santa Fe?

Mears: About 5 days a week, some times six. They would go to a different point each day. They would make one trip to Evadale per week and one trip to the other points almost every week as I recall.

Russell: At these points they had other feeder lines?

     
Locomotive 1140, a former Santa Fe engine, shown here in 1981 on display at Pineland was used on the runs on the Santa Fe until damaged in an enginehouse fire at Pineland. This engine is belived to now in Shreport, La still in derelict condition and is owned by the Red River Valley Railroad Historical Society, http://www.rrvrhs.com

Mears: They had their branch lines out to in their timber holdings from these points. They would leave the Santa Fe and take their crews and go to the Timber holdings. The conductor pilot would leave the train when they left the Santa Fe. Then he would be their when the train came back to the Santa Fe and would have the return orders and ride the train back to Pineland

Russell: How long did this last out of Pineland?

Mears: It still going on in 1941 I expect late forties it might have lasted to 1950 but I think it was the late forties when the last train operated.

Russell: I understand they had a Roundhouse fire or something and ran diesels for a while?

Mears: Well I do not know, last I recall it was still steam engines but they might have gone to Diesel after I lost connection with that part of the railroad.

     

Russell: After Pineland were did you work

Mears: My next job I was on the extra board and went into Military service 1943-1946. I came out my first job after came out of Military service was agent at Pitkin. LA.

Oral history tape transcribed for the web by Russell Crump photos taken by Russell Crump in 1981 with exception of depot in park taken in 1996.

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