Lumberton ghost town – 1990

The ghost town of Lumberton BC was once home to a large sawmill operation. It was an orderly place, unlike like most mill towns in the province, and bits and pieces of it still remain. There are the mill buildings, which still stand, along with bits and pieces from the residential area, which have since been obliterated. After standing untouched for countless years, things here are disappearing fast, falling prey to the elements, vandalism and development.

These pictures date from 1990 and I am thankful I had the forethought (at least I think it was forethought), to snap them. The funny thing is that I had completely forgotten about them and they were only found recently when cleaning out a closet.

The first thing ones sees on entering Lumberton is the imposing mill structures. These are by far the largest buildings in town and they loom over an open field. It is very unusual in that they are built of concrete. Perhaps this helped make the place safer in case of fire? My understanding was the machinery inside was state of the art, reflecting the progressive nature of the mill owners. Their empty interiors are now home to some trees. Oh the irony.

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The next thing most people see on entering Lumberton is the old Case tractor. It sits near the road, on a concrete pad, almost like a pedestal, and greets all passers by. It’s been there since at least 1983-1984, at the time of my first visit.

The business end of Lumberton was on the west side of town. A logging road now split the place in two and the residential side sits to the east of it. In the woods one could walk in and find fire hydrants and old street signs and other indicators of former habitation. It was actually easy to see how the streets were laid out. There were no building remains or foundations here, even then. This area now has some development on it and the things mentioned likely are long gone or at least now inaccessible.

Not far away is the old rail spur line leading into the plant. It heads toward an number of concrete piers and I assume these were the bases of loading docks where the wood was transferred to waiting rail cars. On a building here an old faded sign could be seen. I think is said BC Spruce Mills, the onetime owner of the mill, however it’s hard to say since the lettering was very faded. This area too now has seen development take place.

The mill was served by a log flume, sort of a large water slide, and trees were floated down from the cutting area. In the winter, tractors and sleds were used to haul the wood in.

One thing of interest at the site is the concrete. In places where it has been broken once can see how they cement was poured. Large smooth river rocks were used as some of the filler, which is overall not as good an idea using smaller rough ones. Angular ones bind together better. Because smooth rocks make for a weaker structure, to compensate the walls were poured very thick. In one broken concrete pier, an old chain was found encased inside, which I guess was placed there as a binder. Sort of like rebar.

Founded close to a hundred years ago, Lumberton was originally known as Wattsburg. Laid out in a orderly fashion, the company town was a family friendly place. Quite a stark comparison to other mill town that were wild rip roaring places.

The town and mill were purchase by BC Spruce Mills in the 1920s and the ruins we see here date from that time. After lumber supplies dried up, the company shut and the town abandoned around the time of the second World War.

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The area here has had a fair deal of development since 1990, and some businesses have moved in and some houses built. Things have come full circle and Lumberton is now again host to not one but two logging operations. One sits just east and another south of of the site.

There used to be lots of placer gold activity in the area, and just east of town there were a large number of sample pits to be seen. I think these may have been covered over.

These images were scanned from 35mm prints and have many flaws in them. I am pretty sure they are from around 1990.

Exploring old ghost town can be dangerous. There is typically lots of debris one could injure themselves on, unstable structures, wild animals and so on. Be cautious and take nothing more than pictures.

To see our 2012 visit to Lumberton BC, follow this link…
Lumberton ghost town.

To see the nearby Moyie Falls, follow this link…
Mining under Moyie Falls.

If you wish more information on this place, by all means contact us!

Date: 1990.
Location: Lumberton, near Cranbrook BC.

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Lumberton BC

An empty residential street in Lumberton BC.

Fire hydrant Lumberton BC

An old fire hydrant nearby.

Street sign Lumberton BC

This section of Lumberton can no longer be explored.

Lumberton BC street sign

The streets were arranged in an orderly manner.

Street corner Lumberton BC

On the corner of “Who Knows Street” and “I Have No Idea Avenue”.

Lumberton BC fire hydrant

There were a number of these hydrants around.

Old sign Lumberton BC

An old faded sign near the entrance to town.

Lumberton BC building

This building may or may not exist today.

Concrete ruins Lumberton BC

Metal junk was used as a binder in the concrete (note the chain).

Remains Lumberton BC

Piers that supported something.

Lumberton BC ghost town

Some remains are gone or inaccessible now.

Rail line Lumberton BC

The remains of an old rail spur leading into the mill.

Case tractor Lumberton BC

The famous Lumberton Case tractor has beem here for decades.

Lumberton BC mill

The imposing Lumberton mill ruins.

Lumberton BC sawmill

The irony of a tree growing inside an old sawmill.

Mill building Lumberton BC

This mill was built in the 1920s and closed in the early 1940s.

Lumberton BC remains

These walls could stand forever.

Ghost town Lumberton BC

A hole in the wall shows how thick the concrete is.

Ruins Lumberton BC

Keep out!

Sawmill Lumberton BC

One last look at the Lumberton mill buildings.

9 responses

  1. Gordon Stevens says:

    I’ve been there several times in the last decade. I first thought it was some sort of church in the woods. The last time I visited was because my girlfriend had a picture of the mill and beehive burner with a full crew of saw miller’s in front. The entire area around the mill was initially flooded. The water allowed the logs to float. The columns of concrete arranged like small obelisks were to support the wood deck that the logs were pulled onto for debarking and sawing.
    If you approach from the Lumberton Road, there is a road leading to a large garage. The owner is often there working as a heavy duty mechanic. He might let you roam around freely with permission. The historian at the CP museum in Cranbrook has some good stories of the place. Watts had the tree cutting rights for as far as you could see. The town at its inception was even bigger than Cranbrook at the time. It had many homes and even a Hotel where highway 3 now passes by.

    • We’ve explored the area a great deal for decades and always find something new each time. We’ve been back to Lumberton many times since this post and most recently have spoken with that person who let us revisit this old haunt and wander about the property. Someone sent us old photos from a family collection showing when Lumberton was still a happening place. Yes, it’s was something else. Thanks for commenting.

  2. Opalgal says:

    I was amazed at this very large building when I first saw it. More memories. Thanks for the photos.

  3. Cecil A Collinson says:

    My uncle owned Lumberton in the 1960s and 1970s. The old tractor you are talking about, I helped my uncle put it on that slab.

    • Awesome, thank you so much for commenting. Was it put there for a specific reason?

      • Cecil A Collinson says:

        Was one of two that were on the place when my uncle bought the place it was in the way and put it there instead of the scrap yard

        • Interesting. My first visit to Lumberton was about 83-84 and it was there then, so you must have done that quite some time ago. Thanks for commenting.

  4. Komas Nuts says:

    I love that the street signs were still in place! Yet they were totally blank.
    Koma

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