Visiting Brunet Island State Park in Cornell, Wis. last week, I took a side trip to Big Falls County Park in Eau Claire, where you’ll find a small waterfall and swimming area on the Eau Claire River. Using a tripod and a 10-stop neutral density filter, I was able to get some long exposures, which makes the moving water look like strands of cotton.

Approaching Brunet Island State Park, on the Chippewa and Fisher rivers, I couldn’t help but notice a menacing black metal structure looming over the Little League ballfield — the Stacker. This local landmark is an artifact from the days when paper companies would float logs down the river.

Cornell’s pulpwood stacker dominates the view of visitors entering the city from Highways 64, 178 and 27. The stacker, which was used from 1912 to 1971 was a mechanical conveyer that stacked logs in piles. The logs‘ then were placed in waterways and floated to a nearby paper mill. The stats of the stacker are as follows: height 175 feet, width 36 feet at the base, 10 feet at the tip, angle 45 degrees, power: 35 horsepower electric motor, located at the tip of the stacker. The conveyor uses 1-inch wire cable that has iron discs attached. Logs were carried up the chutes into piles. Workers made repairs by using a catwalk on the upper side of the left truss frame.

https://cityofcornell.com/index.php/history-of-the-stacker/