Along present-day Hardin Store Road in Pinehurst, it is still possible to see a couple of historic log cabin-style homes—a nod to the once-thriving timber industry that brought settlers to the area.

According to Magnolia historian Celeste Grave’s book, “Magnolia Memories,” one of the first sawmills in the area was built by C.W. Winkler along the road in the late 1800s. Winkler’s grandson, Fred Neidigk, later inherited the land and began his own sawmill business.

“The mill[s] held great economic promise for the area since it provided a market for timber, jobs for residents and a market for farm products, such as eggs, butter and fresh meat,” Graves wrote in her book.

Because the lumber business was based on the availability of timber, Neidigk went on to open a number of lumber mills in Decker Prairie and Tills Prairie in the early 1900s, according to Graves. These mills often included housing for employees and a commissary where residents and mill workers could shop.

The mills were bought by the Grogan Cochran Lumber Company in the mid-1920s, and the Neidigk family moved to Tomball to start a new lumber business, which still stands at 1100 W. Main St.

Paula McDonald, owner and real estate broker for the Chevaux Group in Magnolia, said the land’s history dates back to the early 1800s.

“Most people don’t even know that a sawmill was on the land for many years,” McDonald said.  “[The land has] been in the same family since Texas was a republic in 1836. It’s a really interesting and unique piece of property.”

For now the road mainly serves as a thoroughfare from Hwy. 249 to FM 2978 with a few houses and businesses filling in the open land along the way. Since the mills have left the area, the road is now lined with tall trees as a reminder of the industry that helped build Decker Prairie.