TPL's Al Nolon R,etires After

46 Yeors in Horness

One of the true veterans of the West Coast lumber industry, and a man whose lifetirne devotion to the industry has won him the admiration and respect of all those connected with it, hasdecided that it's about time for some well-deserved leisure. Albert J. Nolan-better known as "the little Senator" to his many friend5-17vssfg1n sales manager of The Pacific Lumber Company, announced his retirement from the lumber business on June 30. n4r. Nolan hasspent practically his entire working career with TPL.

Al Nolan is a native San Franciscan, born there on NIay 11, 1891. He received his schooling in San Francisco public schools and, in 1904, enrolled at the old St. Ignatius College on Van Ness Avenue (now the lJniversity of San Francisco). However, even then the lumber businessbeckoned, so in 1910 Nolan joined The Pacific Lumber Company as a clerk's helper at Pacific's 5th & Channel yard in San Francisco. This yard was closed shortly after the NWP was put through to Eureka, so Al then went to TPL's big Scotia mill, which at that time was cutting redwood only.

Des,iring to gain a knowledge of other species, Nolan left Scotia in 1916 and headed for Raymond, Washington, where he intended to work for the Willipa Harbor Lumber Co. En route to Washington, Al stopped in Portland to visit friends. One of them was manager of Johns-\{anville Corp. at Portland, and he talked Al into deserting lumber for asbestos. For the next year and a half, Al worked out of the J-M Portland office and serviced all of the area shipyards with J-M products.

In 1917, Al made application to the air services of both the Army and Navy. His first call came from the Army, so he enlisted on December 8 and received his ground school training at UC in Berkeley. ,l:[e won his wings "flying by the seat of his pants" in a Jenny, at Love Field, Texas, and he was teaching flying at Ebert's Field, Loanoke, Arkansas, when November 11, 1918, arrived.

Shortly after the Armistice, Al returned to Johns-Manville at Portland. A year later, the late Pete McNevin contacted him and asked him to rejoin TPL at San Francisco. Nolan went back to Pacific and traveled the late Andy McNair's Coast Counties territory for several years. He came into TPL's 100 Bush Street offices as assistant western sales manager in the late 20s and, several years later, moved on up to western sales manager.

Al Nolan likes to reminisce about the days when he worked a six-day week, t hours a day, for $2.50 per day in San Francisco, and a six-day week, l0Jrour day, for 35c an hour in Scotia.

In those days, and before the railroad connected Scotia to the Bay area, Pacific had owned five wooden steam schoonersthe SS Prentice, which ran to Pacific's San Francisco yard; the SS Aberdeen, which serviced TPL's Oakland yard, and the SS William H. Murphy, the SS Dispatch and the SS Temple E. Dorr, all of which ran from E,ureka to Wilmington harbor.

When these vessels made ready to return north, they were loaded with mill nrachinery and materials for the new mill and factory at Scotia. In addition, cargoes also included steel and materials for the NWP Eureka extension. All of this loading was under the supervision of Nolan, who checked all freight aboard at the San Francisco docks. For several years, Al averaged three nights aweek sleeping aboard where loading went on until midnight and resumed again at 7 a.m. next morning.

All of this work was without overtime pay (that hadn't been invented yet) and was in addition to his regular job at Pacific's San Francisco yard.

But extra work was no discouragement to A1. He knew that it was a prerequisite and the key to a tremendous future. And

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