J.M. Jones Lumber Company Is 5 Generations Strong

Leading a forestry and lumber business that began in 1911 requires a deep commitment and expertise from Vice President Howard Jones. J.M. Jones Lumber Company keeps it in the family with Jones’ father, H. Lee Jones Jr., serving as president, and Howard’s son, Lee, works for the company as well. Together, they mark five generations who have participated in the company, performing timber management and milling high-quality grade hardwoods. 

A Century of Forestry for J.M. Jones Lumber Company

“I got a forestry degree from Louisiana State University and started off working in the woods; I became a procurement forester,” Howard Jones says. “I’ve had to do a lot more office work in the last 10 years, but there’s no question that I like being in the woods the best.” 

Jones was quick to point out that no two companies handle their lumber businesses exactly the same way, but for his company, the work begins with the 150,000 acres of forest for which they have timber management contracts. 

They began working with various landowners decades ago, helping them with forest management plans, hunting leases, appraisals and boundary lines. Essentially, they help with anything the landowner needs assistance with to manage their land. 

“We manage six logging crews. Every day, we go out and determine which timber stands need to be thinned and selectively mark trees before logging,” Jones says. “Now, we work on a 15- to 18-year rotation, bringing the hardwood to our mill and selling other products to other manufacturers for things like pine or pulpwood.” 

While every industry experiences shifts, the Jones family brings decades of experience to their work. That knowledge has proved invaluable while navigating the changes in the forestry and timber industries in the past five years. 

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Cutting, Milling and Selling

The timber industry is subject to the ebb and flow of demand of all kinds. For instance, sweet gum timber was very popular in the 1960s and is now more likely to be used in pallets or railroad ties due to the shift in market demand. 

“Red oak is king in the South, and 50% of every board we produce is a red oak board,” Jones says. “The market in China is huge because they buy a lot of American grade hardwood.” 

With China levying tariffs in the past few years on American lumber, and then COVID-19 shaking both demand and available supply chains, many hardwood producers were forced to pivot.

“A lot of the grade mills closed, and the ones that made it through diversified to a more industrial approach, even if they still cut some grade,” Jones says. “We really haven’t done that. It was the management contracts we have that helped us through, the steady and reliable source of timber and our long relationships with the landowners. We try to take really good care of our clients.”

Their hardwood mill has taken advantage of some technological innovations enabling more of the milling process to be automated, but they are still evaluating how much to shift to this approach.

“The labor market isn’t what it used to be, and people don’t always want to do the types of jobs we have available, but we’ve not jumped in fully to automation – we’re kind of old school,” Jones says.

The company, like many others, works hard to find the truckers and loggers they need to fulfill key roles on their team. They hope to see more people joining the industry after recent labor shortages. 

Family Passion

Even with all the challenges, the Jones family wouldn’t trade it for anything.

“I love getting up and going to work, being in the woods on a cool fall day and the smell of fresh cut lumber at the mill,” he says. “It’s something that I really enjoy doing.”

Despite market challenges and labor uncertainty, J.M. Jones Lumber Company stands out as an example of Mississippi’s long-standing history of agricultural excellence.

“With a lumber company, any business like this, it just gets in your blood. It’s a family thing and something I’ve been doing since I was in high school,” Jones says. “Dad jokes that we keep doing it because we haven’t made enough money to retire and we’re not smart enough to do anything else, but I love it.”

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