In addition to its current name, the community was believed to have been known as "Russville" at a point. The official usage has been "Fullerton" since 1975, when the Board on Geographic Names ruled against the usage of "Russville." Although the reasoning behind the attempted name change is unclear, there is evidence that the name Russville was used on a map. The term "official" usage comes about because of the ruling but the mill and community known as "Fullerton" has been the common name since the beginning. The name "Russville" possibly came about because of an error.
History
The sawmill
Fullerton mill opened in 1907 by Gulf Lumber Company, with headquarters in Missouri and owned by Samuel Holmes Fullerton, was ahead of its time especially for a sawmill. Built entirely of steel, iron, and concrete with no combustible materials Samuel invested 3.5 million dollars to build the mill. On a 10-hour shift the mill produced 400,000 board feet. A 50,000 gallon water storage tank provided water for the mill with a 1000-gallon per minute fire pump. There were 25 planners and 12 dry-kilns capable of processing 400,000 board feet. The loading dock was protected by a roof and was built so that thirty rail cars could be loaded at one time. A trolley system was in place so a loaded rail car could be transported to different location in the mill according to need. It is estimated that the mill cut 2.25 billion board feet consuming 4.2 million trees in the 20 years of operation.
The community
400 houses were built for white workers of from five to seven rooms that included running water to every house and a bathroom and toilet. There were 144 cottages for the "colored workers" and all the houses had electricity. The layout of the community was well planned with streets and avenues. There was a two-story hospital, a 45-room two-story hotel, and a church that seated 1000. There was also a school, commissary, department store, drug store, meat market, cold storage room, barber shop, billiard hall, and post office.
Turpentine still
There was a turpentine still that was part of the Fullerton mill, but situated approximately two miles south, and a supporting community in between that included 129 cottages, a commissary, church, school, meat market, and a building that provided cold drinks and ice cream. There was also a train depot. This community was known as Rustville. The turpentine still and community was named after Paul D. Rust, the secretary of Gulf Lumber Company, from Boston.
Alcohol
The Fullerton mill also produced drinking alcohol from wood chips and sawdust. In 2019 Japanese researchers "invented" a way to make potable wood grain drinking alcohol.
End of an era
The final log, that had been saved for twenty years for the occasion, was cut on Friday, May 6, 1927. The final whistle blew signaling the end of an era as well as the demise of a mighty sawmill and community.
