William Russell Pickering (1849–1927), referred to as W. R. Pickering, was an American miner,

lumber baron A business magnate, also known as an industrialist or tycoon, is a person who is a powerful entrepreneur and investor who controls, through personal enterprise ownership or a dominant shareholding position, a firm or industry whose goods or ser ...

, developer, railroad owner and banker. From his first business adventure in mining lead, in

Joplin, Missouri Joplin is a city in Jasper County, Missouri, Jasper and Newton County, Missouri, Newton counties in the southwestern corner of the U.S. state of Missouri. The bulk of the city is in Jasper County, while the southern portion is in Newton County. J ...

in 1872, and his partnership with Ellis Short in the merchandise business at Joplin, the empire grew across several states, including

Missouri Missouri (''see #Etymology and pronunciation, pronunciation'') is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it border ...

Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the West South Central region of the Southern United States. It borders Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, Texas to the southwest, and Oklahoma ...

Indian Territory Indian Territory and the Indian Territories are terms that generally described an evolving land area set aside by the Federal government of the United States, United States government for the relocation of Native Americans in the United States, ...

Louisiana Louisiana ( ; ; ) is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It borders Texas to the west, Arkansas to the north, and Mississippi to the east. Of the 50 U.S. states, it ranks 31st in area and 25 ...

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

, and

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

Early life

Pickering was born on December 31, 1849, in St. Louis County, Missouri but when he was ten the family moved to

Waynesville, Missouri Waynesville is a city in and the county seat of Pulaski County, Missouri, United States. Its population was 5,406 at the 2020 census. Located in the Missouri Ozarks, it was once served by Route 66. History Waynesville was platted in 1839. The ...

where he grew up. In 1872, he ventured into mining

lead Lead () is a chemical element; it has Chemical symbol, symbol Pb (from Latin ) and atomic number 82. It is a Heavy metal (elements), heavy metal that is density, denser than most common materials. Lead is Mohs scale, soft and Ductility, malleabl ...

. In 1880 Pickering entered a partnership with Ellis Short in the merchandising business and expanded into northern Arkansas. They purchased a tract of land in

Stanley, Oklahoma Stanley is an unincorporated community in northern Pushmataha County, Oklahoma, United States. The community is on Oklahoma State Highway 2 seven miles southwest of Clayton. The Kiamichi River flows past the southeast side of the site. History ...

and entered into the lumber business.

Lumber businesses

In 1894 the W. R. Pickering Lumber Company was established with yards in at Springfield,

Lebanon Lebanon, officially the Republic of Lebanon, is a country in the Levant region of West Asia. Situated at the crossroads of the Mediterranean Basin and the Arabian Peninsula, it is bordered by Syria to the north and east, Israel to the south ...

, Deepwater

Ozark The Ozarks, also known as the Ozark Mountains, Ozark Highlands or Ozark Plateau, is a physiographic region in the U.S. states of Missouri, Arkansas, and Oklahoma, as well as a small area in the southeastern corner of Kansas. The Ozarks cov ...

and

Pierce City, Missouri Pierce City, formerly Peirce City, is a city in southwest Lawrence and northwest Barry counties, in southwest Missouri, United States. The population was 1,251 at the 2020 census. According to the 2024 census population estimate, the town is ho ...

, as well as

Fayetteville Fayetteville may refer to: *Fayetteville, Alabama *Fayetteville, Arkansas ** The Fayetteville Formation *Fayetteville, Georgia *Fayetteville, Illinois *Fayetteville, Indiana *Fayetteville, Washington County, Indiana *Fayetteville, Missouri *Fayette ...

and

Van Buren, Arkansas Van Buren ( ) is the second-largest city in the Fort Smith metropolitan area, Fort Smith, Arkansas–Oklahoma Metropolitan Statistical Area and the county seat of Crawford County, Arkansas, Crawford County, Arkansas, United States. The city is lo ...

. The W. R. Pickering Lumber Company was incorporated in 1899, for a period of 25 years, with W. R. as president, W. A. Pickering, as vice president and manager, T. M. Barham as secretary, and R. E. Browne as general sales agent. 30,000 acres of virgin longleaf yellow pine was purchased and a modern sawmill erected in Vernon Parish, Louisiana, producing 200,000 board feet of lumber a day. The sawmill was located on the Kansas City, Pittsburg & Gulf Railroad, that is now the Kansas City Southern, and the village was named Pickering. By 1904 the Louisiana Central Railroad had 75 miles of lines and 12 engines running at Neame, Hornbeck, Barham, Pickering, and Cravens. In 1905 the Pickering Land and Timber Company was incorporated. Additional tracts of land were added and a second sawmill erected. The sawmill town was named Barham in honor of the secretary T. M. Barham. In 1905 41,000-acres of Wright-Blodgett Lumber Company (from Illinois) land was acquired 20 miles southeast of Pickering, on the

Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railway The Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway , often referred to as the Santa Fe or AT&SF, was one of the largest Railroad classes, Class 1 railroads in the United States between 1859 and 1996. The Santa Fe was a pioneer in intermodal freight tra ...

, and a third mill erected, with the village being named Cravens. The Sabine Valley Timber and Lumber Company was incorporated in 1909 for a period of 25 years operating mainly in Shelby County, Sabine County, and

San Augustine County, Texas San Augustine County is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2020 census, its population was 7,918. Its county seat is San Augustine. History San Augustine County was formed in 1837. It was supposedly named after Saint Augu ...

. Other businesses were located in

Modoc County Modoc County () is a county located in the far northeast corner of the U.S. state of California. Its population is 8,700 as of the 2020 census, down from 9,686 from the 2010 census. This makes it California's third-least-populous county. The co ...

and

Siskiyou County Siskiyou County ( ) is a county located in the northwestern portion of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 44,076. Its county seat is Yreka and its highest point is Mount Shasta. It falls within the Casca ...

, The Pickering Lumber Company purchased the West Side Lumber Company and railway in 1925.

Other interests

Pickering founded a bank at

Marionville, Missouri Marionville is a city in Lawrence County, Missouri, United States. The population was 2,225 at the 2010 census. Marionville is known for its large population of white squirrels. History Marionville was platted in 1854. The city name has been ...

(1893-1897), and had a large amount of stock in the Bank of Springfield.

Business associates

Thomas M. Barham, joined the W. R. Pickering Lumber Company as secretary on February 1, 1897. He had been a clerk in a grocery store, a salesman at a hardware store, a bank teller, a dry goods store worker, bank teller, the treasurer of the lumber company as well as secretary of the Louisiana Central Railroad Company and the Pickering Land & Timber Company. The town of Barham, Louisiana was named in his honor.

Personal life

W. R. Pickering married Jane Coggburn in 1870. He was a Republican and a member of the

Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints Community of Christ, known legally and from 1872 to 2001 as the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (RLDS), is an American-based international church, and is the second-largest denomination in the Latter Day Saint movement ...

. He died at his home in Kansas City on April 1, 1927, and was buried at Forest Hill Cemetery.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pickering, W. R. 1849 births 1927 deaths American businesspeople in timber Businesspeople from Kansas City, Missouri People from Waynesville, Missouri People from Columbus, Kansas Philanthropists from the Kansas City metropolitan area