Carbur, Florida

Carbur is a former company town developed by the lumber industry in Taylor County, Florida,[1][2] which operated several lumber camps around the settlement. Carbur is named for the two companies that collaborated to exploit the swampy area's cypress forests: Carpenter-O'Brien Lumber Company and Burton-Swartz Lumber Company.[3]

Background

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In 1917, Carpenter-O'Brien sold its Florida operations to the Brooks-Scanlon Corporation after a damaging fire at its Jacksonville sawmill. Brooks-Scanlon negotiated with the Atlantic Coast Line Railroad for lumber transport but to no avail. In 1928, it removed its sawmill and rebuilt it south of Perry, Florida in the town of Foley, Florida, named for the president of Brooks-Scanlon J.S. Foley.[3]

The State of Florida photographic archives include images of logging operations and rail engines operating in the Cabur area.[4] Skidders were used to stack logs.[5] A 1914 letter in Florida health department publication Florida Health Notes lauded a doctors efforts to improve health conditions at the lumber camp.[6] In the 1916 State Board of Health annual report it was noted the entire area around Carbur was swampy and malaria was a problem. Screens and clearing around the settlement as well as upgraded healthcare services were recommended.[7]

Further reading

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  • Buckeye Fiberscope by Louise Childers, March 1975
  • Memoirs of an Octogenarian by Samuel Gilbert Register
  • Carbur; The Town That Logs Built by Russell Tedder

References

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  1. ^ "Carbur". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior. Retrieved May 9, 2018.
  2. ^ Drobney, Jeffrey A. (22 April 1997). Lumbermen and Log Sawyers: Life, Labor, and Culture in the North Florida Timber Industry, 1830-1930. Mercer University Press. ISBN 9780865545465 – via Google Books.
  3. ^ a b "Brief History of Taylor County, Florida". The Taylor County Historical Society.
  4. ^ Florida, State Library and Archives of. "Search Results". Florida Memory.
  5. ^ Florida, State Library and Archives of. "Skidder loading logs at Carbur". Florida Memory.
  6. ^ "Florida Health Notes". Health Program Office, Department of Health and Rehabilitative Services, State of Florida. 22 April 2018 – via Google Books.
  7. ^ Health, Florida State Board of (22 April 2018). "Annual Report - State Board of Health, State of Florida". State Board of Health. – via Google Books.
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29°55′06″N 83°25′41″W / 29.91833°N 83.42806°W / 29.91833; -83.42806