# Cypress Logging circa 1925



## firemedic

This is just awesome! Gives a new appreciation for the guys of old. It's a video of the original swamp loggers of Louisiana. These guys are the reason there are sinker logs at the bottom of the bayous of Louisiana. 

Part 1
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HF3-0NISvs4

Part 2
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FxSP08zJ5tE

I'm so glad someone uploaded this to youtube for us to appreciate it! Enjoy!


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## firemedic

Yeah, rb. I grew up in the swamp too. I've always been intrigued by this and I recently started diving for them buggers too so the history is all the more interesting to me.

Thanks for watching!


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## LoneStar

You have any luck diving for logs ?
Pretty neat to see the old videos. Lots of cool old videos on www.folkstreams.net from Dulcimer making, to chain gangs felling trees.
Heres one from 1949 showing a pirogue made by hand.
http://www.folkstreams.net/pub/FilmPage.php?title=188


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## Mike1950

I have a book with pictures of logging in PNW in the 1800's-1940's some of the logs take up a whole train car. I will scan some of them and post-they are unbelievable trees. I wonder what the life expectancy of a logger was then???


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## Daren

Pretty cool vids Tom, I find old logging stuff interesting.

.


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## CodyS

mike1950 said:


> I have a book wit pictures of logging in PNW in the 1800's-1940's some of the logs take up a whole train car. I will scan some of them and post-they are unbelievable trees. I wonder what the life expaectancy of a logger was then???



probably 10

cool vids though! thanks.


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## firemedic

Lonestar, as a matter of fact yes finding a couple!

I sure would have loved to have seen those virgin Cypress trees back in the old days! It was supposedly almost as impressive as the western red wood Forrest.

Glad y'all enjoyed em!


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## firemedic

Well... The pictures didn't upload...


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## firemedic

There are pictures of some of the sinker on my facebook page:

www.facebook.com/toulousest


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## cabomhn

firemedic said:


> There are pictures of some of the sinker on my facebook page:
> 
> www.facebook.com/toulousest



Thanks for sharing the videos as well as the link! It's pretty awesome that you're finding logs that someone a hundred years ago cut down by hand, really cool stuff.


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## firemedic

As an addition to this topic I got my hands on a copy of "Andrew Brown and cypress lumbering in the Old Southwest" by
John Hebron Moore. It's a great read despite the occasional dry spells.

If your are interested in early logging and particularly in Louisiana it's worth a look. 

To the thorough reader it holds a wealth of information on even small details of technique.

It was printed by LSU press some year ago and copies are hard to come by. I managed to find one through the state's library loan system.


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