At one time the site most of us know as the Bradley Mill was the location of the largest hardwood saw mill in the world. Potlatch Corp. constructed the mill and operated it for a number of years. It ended up being sold and later burned. A majority of the 130 acre site, which is all within the Warren City limits, is now owned and operated by Oasis Trading, LLC. The ownership and management rest in the hands of Stanley and Matthew Anderson. They are working hard to make the plant productive.
They have been using the kilns and are in the process of constructing a new sawmill. Oasis has facilities in Hermitage and plans to continue their operations there. The new mill will be capable of putting out one half million board feet per week and should be ready for test runs in 6-8 weeks. The company works several people on site now and should end up with around 40 employees in the future.
Oasis exports products and sells domestically as well. The new mill will primarily cut pine timber although it could also utilize hardwood. According to a company spokesman Oasis is blessed with great contract loggers and a very capable workforce. They expect to grow.
Two other timber related businesses have manufacturing operations within the 130 acre property. Floyd Dale Ashcraft has a speciality wood products plant on the northwest corner of the property and Danny May uses a portion of Oasis's land to run another facility.
D. May, Inc. is owned and operated by Danny May. The firm currently works 8 people and primarily cuts hardwood for use by various mills in the area. The company rents space from Ossis and is currently constructing a new facility just west of Highway 63 south of the overpass.
Ashcraft Wood Products is operated by Mr. Floyd Dale Ashcraft, a longtime employee of Potlatch, His company makes a variety of wood products and is working 17 people at this time. The Ashcraft facility sits on 14 acres of the original mill site.
In addition to the three manufacturers that operate on the property, Midland Railroad utilizes a portion of the rail facilities that were a part of the Warren & Saline River Railroad in the past.
When Armstrong, Ouachita and Townsend along with Bradley Brand Furniture and our numerous loggers are considered, it is obvious Warren remains a timber economy. There is a reason we are the Warren Lumberjacks!
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