 As the 19th century progressed , fewer pines were left and more hemlocks and hardwoods were cut and processed locally . By 1810 there were 11 sawmills in the Pine Creek watershed , and by 1840 there were 145 , despite a flood in 1832 which wiped out nearly all the mills along the creek . Selective harvesting of pines was replaced by clearcutting of all lumber in a tract . The first lumbering activity close to what is now Colton Point was in 1838 when William Dodge and partners built a settlement at Big Meadows and formed the Pennsylvania Joint Land and Lumber Company . Dodge 's company purchased thousands of acres of land in the area , including what is now Colton Point State Park . In 1865 the last pine spar raft floated down the creek , and on March 28 , 1871 the General Assembly passed a law which allowed construction of splash dams and allowed creeks to be cleared to allow loose logs to float better . The earliest spring log drives floated up to 20 @,@ 000 @,@ 000 board feet ( 50 @,@ 000 m3 ) of logs in Pine Creek at one time . These logs floated to the West Branch Susquehanna River and to sawmills near the Susquehanna Boom at Williamsport . Log drives could be dangerous : just north of the park is Barbour Rock , named for Samuel Barbour , who lost his life on Pine Creek there after breaking up a log jam . Hemlock wood was not widely used until the advent of wire nails , but the bark was used to tan leather . After 1870 the largest tanneries in the world were in the Pine Creek watershed , and required 2 @,@ 000 pounds ( 900 kg ) of bark to produce 150 pounds ( 70 kg ) of quality sole leather . 
