By Stephen D. Bowling

The fire was described as “a hot one,” and it moved quickly through the offices and spread to a nearby storage building.

By the time the Jackson Fire Department and Chief James C. “Jimbo” Burnett arrived, there was little they could do but try to save the other buildings in the complex.

The fire, which started late Monday night, March 17, 1980, destroyed the Grigsby Lumber Company offices, and all the inventory stored there was a total loss.

The owners, including Orville Grigsby and Dallas (Grigsby) Landrum, could do nothing but stand and watch it all go up in flames.

The first call was received at 11:10 p.m., and the fire department arrived eight minutes later.  Chief Burnett said the building was filled with smoke, and flames were visible coming from several windows. 

“The black smoke was so thick,” he told The Jackson Times, “That we could not enter the building.”

Volunteer firefighters started their attack on the fire but were soon withdrawn as the flames climbed high into the night sky and melted overhead power, television, and telephone lines.  Crews relocated their truck and hoses and focused on saving as much of the large lumber shed near the office building as possible.

Firefighters battled the blaze for more than 5 hours with the help of many community volunteers, crews from Kentucky Power and South Central Bell Telephone Company, and the Kentucky State Police.

Power and telephone services were knocked out to more than 1,000 customers in Breathitt County as a result of the blaze.

For the business, the damage and consequences were far more serious.

Owner Orville Grigsby told reporter Delores Chandler of The Times that the building was covered by “some insurance” but not enough to rebuild.  He asked all those who had outstanding balances with the company to “pay on their accounts, especially now, to aid in this rebuilding effort.”

When the building burned, the Grigsby family had been in the lumber business for more than thirty years.  In 1946, Johney Grigsby, former Sheriff of Breathitt County, started selling lumber to the Breathitt County Fiscal Court.  Grigsby cut timber on his expansive land holdings on Quicksand Creek and specialized in thick oak planks, which were used on bridges.

Johney Grigsby constructed an office and “wood yard” on Highway 15 about a mile and a half south of Jackson, where he sold “lumber, rough and finished, for every building purpose.”  At some point, they also had a “show floor” in South Jackson to sell finished lumber and planed molding in a building next to the Standard Oil Depot.  Delivery was also an option for would-be lumber purchasers, and Grigsby freely advertised the number and reminded builders that they could be reached at “75-J.”

Grigsby’s added a wide variety of home and farm supplies, including tile, linoleum, shingles, concrete pipes, metal tiles, nails, glue, cabinets, and much more.

Johney Grigsby, his sons, and other relatives owned and operated the lucrative business until Grigsby’s retirement in 1955. He died February 11, 1972, at the age of 77, at Ellenton in Manatee County, Florida, where he moved after leaving the lumber business. He was brought home to Jackson for the funeral and buried in the Watkins-Grigsby Cemetery less than a half mile away from the business.

Ownership and management passed to Johney Grigsby’s family.  Orville and John Grigsby, Jr. operated the company for many years and helped it grow into the largest home and lumber supply center in eastern Kentucky.  They advertised the business as the “Giver of Friendly and Courteous Service.”  As the business expanded, so did the need for more space, and the Grigsbys added to the lumber shed south of the main store and to the showroom.   

On February 3, 1978, John Grigsby, Jr., part of the driving force behind Grigsby Lumber Company, died at his home in Jackson.  He was 48.  Services were held at the Bob Gabbard Funeral Home on Quicksand Road on Sunday, February 5, and he was buried in the Watkins-Grigsby Cemetery near his father and mother.

Operation of the business fell to his brother, Orville, and sister Dallas (Grigsby) Landrum.

At the time of the 1980 fire, the lumber business had changed for the Grigsbys.  The construction of the new road through Jackson to Hazard diverted much of the traffic that once traveled on Highway 15 (now called Old Quicksand Road).  To capitalize on that change of traffic, a new business, Pacific Building Supply, opened its doors and was growing rapidly by 1981. 

The Grigsbys faced a difficult decision as they looked at the smoldering ruins of the office and a portion of the lumber barn as the sun rose on the morning of March 18, 1980.  They decided to rebuild, but on a smaller scale.

In December 1980, the heirs in the business created Grigsby Lumber and Building Supply Incorporated, a family corporation with active participation by other family members and descendants of Carrie Grigsby Hunt, David and Geneva “Jean” (Grigsby) Watts, Treva (Grigsby) Collins, and others.

The new building was completed in 1981, and Grigsby Lumber Company celebrated its grand reopening on November 27.  They gave away many door prizes and served coffee and snacks to the crowds of people who attended to see the new building.  The newspaper reported that the event drew “over one hundred” people.

The fire bug would find the Grigsby Lumber Company once more in 1984.  The Jackson Fire Department recorded a busy week during the first week of February, including a quick run to the Grigsby Lumber Company on February 1.  Firefighters reported that they extinguished a small fire on the “lower outside corner of the lumber storage building” using a “dry chemical” extinguisher shortly before 10:28 p.m.  The company suffered some damage, but the buildings were saved.  The fire department would make one more run that night and three more that week.  

Sadly, sales did not improve, and the family corporation decided to close the business in 1985 due to “retirements and deaths.” 

On June 22, 1985, Combs Real Estate Company of Jackson held an auction of the “Grigsby Lumber Company property and improvements” along with several vehicles and connected properties.  The centerpiece of the sale was the 45 x 55 feet office building and its large, full basement.

A good, but mostly curious crowd, attended the auction, and one group in particular was interested in the building and property.  They had already approached Lester Smith at the First National Bank of Jackson and had gotten approval to purchase the property.  All that was left was the final sale price.

The bidding was quick, and the Jackson Lions Club was the top bidder, purchasing two tracts of property and, more importantly, the building to use at their clubhouse.  The winning bid was $74,500 for one tract and $20,000 for a second.

On July 27, 1985, the deed of transfer was completed.  The same day, the Jackson Lions Club mortgaged the property to the First National Bank for $94,500.  President Verdie Deaton said the club would immediately begin upgrading the building.

Following the touch-ups, the Jackson Lions Club moved into its permanent home in August 1985. 

Since then, the club, under the leadership of several Lions, such as R. J. Combs, Dean Spencer, David Caudill, Bobbie J. Combs, Burton Herald, Jr., Bobby Thorpe, and many others, has aided and supported the community in accordance with the Lions Club charter. They used the space to expand the annual Lions Club Radio Auction. They added softball fields and a picnic shelter to the grounds and hosted a variety of community-based events.

On September 15, 1992, the leaders of the Jackson Lions Club gathered at the club hall and ceremoniously “burned the note” of indebtedness after repaying the loan with interest.

The Jackson Lions Club continues to meet in the building.  The old Grigsby Lumber Company is now only a memory, but the legacy of the property as a community center continues through the Lions Club’s work.

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© 2026 Stephen D. Bowling

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