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C. C. Mengel Box Company and Mengelwood
Last month, we explored Dyersburg's roots and how it was shaped by the currents of the Forked Deer and Mississippi Rivers. This month, we'll dive deeper into how this connection fostered major industries, bringing us to a truly colossal player in the timber world: The Mengel Company, and its profound impact on Dyer County.
The story begins with a remarkable individual, Charles Christopher Mengel. Born to German immigrants, C.C. Mengel moved to Louisville, Kentucky, at the age of 19 from Gloucester, Massachusetts. Just two years later, in 1877, at age 21, he founded the Mengel Box Company. What started as a modest venture rapidly grew into the largest box company in the world. Mengel's empire eventually spanned 8 states and even reached international shores, with operations in far-flung places like Belize, the Yucatan in Mexico, and the west coast of Africa.
Charles Christopher Mengel Source: "History of Kentucky and Kentuckians", Volume II, Pages 605-606
The sheer scale of Mengel's operations demanded an equally vast supply chain. Their search for raw materials led to significant expansion. Beyond their international holdings, Mengel established critical processing sites closer to home. They owned and operated a veneer plant in Hickman, Kentucky, leveraging its position on the Mississippi River.
As the demand for timber grew, Mengel's reach extended further and further south from Western Kentucky, directly into the rich hardwood forests of West Tennessee, through Trimble and Obion and right here into Dyer County. To facilitate this massive enterprise, Mengel wasn't just a lumber company; they were a vertically integrated giant. They owned and operated their own fleet of vessels, including both ocean-going ships and riverboats. One such sternwheel towboat, aptly named the "Mengel Box Company," was built in 1909. This vessel plied the rivers, likely transporting logs and finished products, until its unfortunate loss in a storm at Plum Point, Tennessee, on February 28, 1918.
Mengel Box Company (Towboat, 1909-1918)
Here in Dyer County, Mengel's presence was substantial. We know that the Mengel Box Factory operated a sawmill just north of Big Boy Junction (an area now owned by the Dallas Castleman Trust). This wasn't just a logging site; it was a community built around the industry. While Mengel had numerous lumber camps globally, one unique location earned its own name: Mengelwood, Tennessee.
Census enumeration map from 1940 showing Mengelwood and Band Mill communities.
Tigertail and Chic communities.
Lumber yard at the Bandmill in Mengelwood, Tennessee, 1920 (photo U of L Website)
Worker housing at Mengelwood, 1920. (photo U of L Website)
Train cars used for temporary housing on site. 1920 From the ramshackle housing to the train cars used for temporary housing on-site, they illustrate the mobile and industrial nature of these timber operations.
At the heart of this community was the Mengel Company Store, providing necessities for the workers and their families. Workers were paid in company script that could only be used in the company store.
After a few years, Mengel expanded beyond boxes and raw timber. Mengel's manufacturing prowess extended into diverse product lines, including furniture, exemplified by the elegant dresser manufactured by Mengel Furniture Company, and even whimsical items like toy boats from Mengel Playthings.
The era of the independent Mengel Company, a true titan of industry that played a significant role in shaping communities like ours, came to a close in 1956. In that year, Mengel Manufacturing was acquired by the Kroehler Manufacturing Co. of Naperville, Illinois. While the name lived on for some of its product lines, the independent "Mengel" entity became part of a larger corporate structure.
The legacy of companies like Mengel Box Company underscores just how deeply our region's history, economy, and even the very landscape were connected to the mighty rivers that define us.