George Willis Pack was a second-generation timberman in Michigan's Lower Peninsula. His father, George Pack

George Pack

George Pack, Jr. was a businessman, landowner, sawmill operator, and postmaster in the Lower Peninsula of Michigan. The town of Pack's Mills of which he was also postmaster, was named after him.Pack had moved to Michigan from upstate New York in 1848...

 had established two sawmills outside of Lexington, Michigan

Lexington, Michigan

Lexington is a village in Sanilac County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 1,104 at the 2000 census. The village is located within Lexington Township.-Geography:...

, in a place known as Pack's Mills

Washington Township, Sanilac County, Michigan

Washington Township is a civil township of Sanilac County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 1,636 at the 2000 census.-Geography:According to the United States Census Bureau, the township has a total area of , all land.-History:...

. After years of working with his father, in 1860 George Willis Pack, together with John L. Woods, established Carrington, Pack & Company, in Sand Beach, Michigan

Sand Beach Township, Michigan

Sand Beach Township is a civil township of Huron County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 1,470 at the 2000 census.The city of Harbor Beach is within the township, but is administratively autonomous.-Geography:...

. In 1864, with Woods and Jeremiah Jenks, George Willis Pack established a second sawmill, Pack, Jenks & Company, also near Sand Beach. A third firm, Woods & Company, in Port Crescent, Michigan, was formed in 1870. In 1876, Pack, Woods & Company was formed in Oscoda, Michigan

Oscoda, Michigan

Oscoda is an unincorporated community in the U.S. state of Michigan located on the northern side of the Au Sable River where it enters Lake Huron. The community of Au Sable is on the other side of the river. Oscoda is in Oscoda Township in Iosco County, and not in Oscoda County, which is to the...

, on the Au Sable River

Au Sable River (Michigan)

The Au Sable River in Michigan runs approximately through the northern Lower Peninsula, through the towns of Grayling and Mio, and enters Lake Huron at Oscoda. It is considered one of the best brown trout fisheries east of the Rockies and has been designated a blue ribbon trout stream by the...

. George Willis Pack grew to be a wealthy man; he "would be remembered as one of the few millionaires who had lived in Huron County

Huron County, Michigan

-Highways:* M-19* M-25* M-53* M-142-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 36,079 people, 14,597 households, and 10,144 families residing in the county. The population density was 43 people per square mile . There were 20,430 housing units at an average density of 24 per square mile...

.

Firms, Places, and Dates

• Carrington, Pack & Company, Sand Beach, Michigan, 1860–70
• Pack, Jenks & Company, Sand Beach, Michigan, 1864–70
• Woods & Company, Port Crescent, Michigan, 1870–78
• Pack, Woods & Company, Oscoda, Michigan, 1878–1901

Landholdings

• Huron County, Michigan
  Huron County, Michigan
  -Highways:* M-19* M-25* M-53* M-142-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 36,079 people, 14,597 households, and 10,144 families residing in the county. The population density was 43 people per square mile . There were 20,430 housing units at an average density of 24 per square mile...
  
   - 5000 acres (20.2 km²) of timber
• Pinnebog River
  Pinnebog River
  The Pinnebog River is a river in the Thumb region of the U.S. state of Michigan. The river flows into Lake Huron on the west side of the "tip" of the "thumb"....
  
  , Michigan - 25000 acres (101.2 km²) of pine lands

External links

• "George Willis Pack: A Name That Will Endure", A Virtual Exhibit, University of North Carolina at Asheville, August 2006

Reference

• Eyle, Alexandra. 1992. Charles Lathrop Pack: Timberman, Forest Conservationist, and Pioneer in Forest Education. Syracuse, NY: ESF College Foundation and College of Environmental Science and Forestry. Distributed by Syracuse University Press. Available: Google books