Bogalusa sawmill killings

The Bogalusa saw mill killings was a racial attack that killed four labor organizers on November 22, 1919. It was mounted by the white paramilitary group the Self-Preservation and Loyalty League in Thibodaux, Louisiana. They were supported by the owners of Great Southern Lumber Company, a giant logging corporation, that hoped to prevent union organization and the Black and White labor organizations from merging.

The Great Southern Lumber Company was chartered by the Goodyear family in 1902 to harvest and market the virgin longleaf pine forests in southeastern Louisiana and southwestern Mississippi. Bogalusa, Louisiana was developed from the ground up as a company town and was the location for Great Southern Lumber Company's sawmill, which began operation in 1908. Other company interests included a railroad and paper mill. The company ceased operation in 1938 when the supply of virgin pines was depleted. Bogalusa became the site of a paper mill and chemical operations, followed by other industry. The Great Southern Lumber Company was the largest sawmill in the world from its opening in 1908, until 1938, when it ceased operation. Even though the company had made incredible profits supporting the war effort its workers still only made 30 cents an hour .

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