The Angelina and Neches River Railroad was founded in the late 1880's by Joseph H. Kurth, Sr., S. W. Henderson, and brothers Sam and Eli Wiener as a logging route serving their Angelina County Lumber Co. in Keltys, near Lufkin. In 1900, when lumbering reached its peak, the A&NR line was chartered as a common carrier. At that time, the company purchased 10 miles of track from Keltys to Manton, a settlement east of Lufkin. By 1911, the line had been extended to Chireno, some 30 miles from Keltys. The A&NR ran a "mixed train" daily until 1952, hauling miscellaneous freight to and from the communities along its route. Occasionally a few passengers rode in a passenger coach or the railroad's caboose. During the Depression of the 1930's, the line also used an automobile with railroad wheels to transport passengers. A typical logging train on the A&NR consisted of about 20 cars of logs powered by a steam engine. In addition, the line hauled lumber, cotton, foundry products, and other goods to Cotton Belt and Southern Pacific connections at Lufkin, providing a much-needed freight service for businesses and villages in the Lufkin area. With the founding of Southland Paper Mills, Inc. in 1940, the line added paper to its manifests, and plywood in the 1960's. (Jacobs, Fred W. "Railroad History in Angelina County: Angelina & Neches River Railroad." The History of Angelina County, Texas 1846-1991. Dallas: Curtis Media Corporation, 1992. p.48).