Mountain Monthly
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The History of Yates Sawmill
 In 1951 my grandfather Oscar Yates Sr. bought a sawmill, which was located near the Circle Cross Ranch (now Timberon). He also had mill locations at Burnt Canyon and on Highway 82 between Mayhill and Cloudcroft (on the Will Parker property). At the time he was the only lumber company that logged with horses (Belgium Draft horses). These horses weighed 1,700 to 1,800 lbs. and were able to handle the altitude. The Forest Ranger at the time in the Lincoln National Forest was Evert Hatley. He marked the timber that was to be cut. The Forest Service liked the fact that my Grandfather logged with horses instead of heavy equipment which did damage to the natural forest. The major customer of his lumber company was the Pot Ash Mines in Carlsbad (they bought cross ties). The rest of his customers were mostly individuals and a number of ranches in the Lubbock, Midland and Odessa, Texas areas. My father Oscar Yates Jr. worked at the sawmill also. In 1961, the sawmill was sold and we moved back to Arkansas. It was great growing up in the mountains and attending Cloudcroft Schools.  |