About Us

History of Bell Lumber and Pole Company

The founder of Bell Lumber & Pole Company, MJ Bell, began work in Maine as a lumberjack at the age of 13 in 1883. When he was 16 he moved to Wisconsin. In 1895 he set up his own logging camp in Northern Wisconsin and by 1900 had set up the first of 7 sawmills that he would eventually operate. The business was incorporated in 1909 with operations centered first in Bellwood and then Ashland, Wisconsin. By 1919 facilities were set up in New Brighton, Minnesota ~ a country suburb of Minneapolis and St. Paul ~ to take advantage of rail transportation. In the early 1920s, branch operations were set up in Idaho and Washington and by the mid-20s facilities were in place in Enderby and Lumby, British Columbia. 

Since incorporation, various Pole Yards have been established and operated in Newport and Conway, Washington, Lumby, Nakusp, Hazelton, Revelstoke, Haney, Valemount, Terrace, Topley, McKenzie and Fort St. James, British Columbia, Carseland, Alberta, Barron, Wisconsin and Shingleton, Michigan. Pole treating plants operated in Lumby from 1930 to 1993 and in Calgary, Alberta from 1961 until 1977. The New Brighton treating plant has been modified and rebuilt on numerous occasions such that it is a highly efficient, modern and productive plant.

While founded on Northern White Cedar, the Company’s focus quickly moved to Western Red Cedar and then expanded to include Lodgepole Pine, Red Pine, Douglas Fir, Southern Yellow Pine and, lately, laminated poles (utilizing dimensional lumber).