FOUST LUMBER

Left:  F.T. Daniell managed Foust Lumber for many years starting in June 1921.   He is shown seated at his desk.  The calendar behind him, when blown up shows the month of January and although the year is not visible, January 1 was on a Sunday.   Visible through the open door are the buildings on the west side of Austin.  Destroyed in the Reid Auto fire of 1929 they had been rebuilt.  According to Hiram Smith Jr. that was about 1938.  So the photo must have been taken in 1939 as that was the last year that January 1st fell on on a Sunday until the 1950s.

Early De Leon Lumber Yards

De Leon’s first lumber yard was started in 1881 by a Mr. P.H. Miller.  It is believed he initially sold lumber off a railroad flat car before constructing a building.  Miller sold his yard to J.I. Campbell, son of Cyrus Campbell.

John D. Ham opened his lumber yard in 1882 and competed with Campbell for a while before the two companies merged to become Campbell & Ham Lumber.  The company operated out of what was then only a single story building and had a small shed behind the building (not shown).  Lumber was also stored in piles across the street (right side of the picture).  Campbell left the business and moved to Houston sometime after May 1900 and Ham operated the company for a period as Ham Lumber.

By July 1905 Ham had partnered with W.C. Streety and the company became Streety and Ham Lumber.  The storing of lumber in piles on the opposite lot had been replaced with sheds on both the right and back sides of the office building as shown above. 

By April 1911 Ham returned as sole owner of the yard employing Will Nabors to manage the company.

Ham owned or operated the business for 34 years before retiring in 1917. At that time the lumber yard was sold to C.G. Foust of Dublin who had a chain of lumber yards in this region.  Nabors continued to manage the business for Foust until his death in February 1920.  Charlie G. Foust Jr. took over in the interim until Frank T. Daniell was hired as manager in June 1921.

Mac Foust took over management of the upon Daniell’s retirement.  The yard was closed in the mid 1950s.

Above:  The lower floor of this building constructed in 1882, was one of the earliest buildings in De Leon.  It was built by John D. Ham as his lumber office.  The second floor and balcony are believed to have been added during the oil boom.  The structure was torn down in the 1960s.  The building stood on the northeast corner of Gonzales and Austin.

CHRONOLOGY

1881-

P.H. Miller opens first yard

ca. 1882-

Miller sells to J.I. Campbell

1882-

John Ham opens yard

ca. 1885-

Campbell and Ham merge yards under name Campbell & Ham

ca. 1903

Campbell sells out company returns to name Ham Lumber

ca. 1905

Ham partners with W.C. Streety under name Streety & Ham

1911

Partnership dissolves and yard reverts to Ham Lumber Co.

1917

Ham retires after 34 years and company is sold to C.G. Foust

Above:  The La Salle and Austin Street view of the yard in 1909 during the Streety & Ham era.  Notice the office was a small one story building.

Left:  The lumber yard during the Streety & Ham era.  The office had not been enlarged.