In the development of Union and Cumberland, a great amount of lumber was needed for housing, buildings, trestles, mine shafts, and railroads associated with the enterprise.

In 1888 Grant and Mounce Sawmill manufactured the lumber from logs cut near the site of the town. Over the years between 1888 and 1911, the logging company supplied the timbers for the railroad trestles, the Union Wharves and all buildings connected with the mines and city of Cumberland.

The major development phase, introduced by Canadian Collieries Limited after they purchased the Cumberland area mines from James Dunsmuir, included the construction of Bevan, Puntledge Townsite and No.8 Mine, and Puntledge Power System. In order to supply lumber to these operations, mills were built near the construction sites.

The logging operations located near Cumberland were important to the people of this community, for they provided jobs for members of families who did not wish to work in the mines. When the mines began to closed, many miners become loggers out of necessity. Eventually there was a much greater dependence was placed on the forest industry.

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Copies of the following books used to research this article are available for use and/or purchase at the Cumberland Museum:


One Hundred Spirited Years: A History of Cumberland
D.E. Isenor, E.G. Stephens, D.E. Watson

The Friendly Port: A History of Union Bay 1880-1960
Janet Glover-Geidt

Cumberland Heritage: A Selected History of People, Buildings, Institutions & Sites 1888-1950
Jennifer Nell Barr

Voices from Bevan
Betty Annand

Land of Plenty: A History of the Comox District
D.E. Isenor, W.N. McInnis, E.G. Stephens, D.E. Watson