Stamps like this were used to mark each end of the rough logs after they were chopped down. By marking the logs with a stamp that usually had a symbol or initials on it, companies would be able to keep track of their own logs in the midst of the lumber jams on the river systems. These would also be helpful in making sure the logs made it to the right mill along the river, as floating was typically the easiest way to transport the raw lumber from forest to finishing mills. The rivers that they used to transport the logs were the Chippewa, Black, St. Croix and the Mississippi Rivers. The John Paul Lumber Company was one of many who used this system of transport for their logs. As their unique symbol, they marked their logs with an impression of "PAUL". At certain points along the river, at either natural or artificial stopping points, workers called boom tenders sorted the logs so they would go to the correct sawmill.

During the mid and late 19th century, the logging industry both attracted people to and put La Crosse on the map. With multiple lumber mills competing in the La Crosse area, companies did whatever they could to leave a positive good with their customers. An example of this is this ceramic pitcher that the Seeman Lumber and Coal Company gave out to their customers during the holidays. There is no known date of the pitcher, but it can be assumed that it is from the late 19th or early 20th century. The text saying, "PHONE 30" was the company's phone number. In the early 1900s, most small towns had a telephone office with a switchboard. When making a call, one would call the telephone office and tell the operator what number or name they want to call, and everyone in the town either had a two-digit or three-digit number.

While men were floating log bundles to and from mills, there were specific people who would stand on and guide the logs as the went along, wearing special shoes created to prevent injury and death. These logging shoes such as these were made of leather with inset metal spikes on the sole and heel; they were helpful when logs were being floated up or downriver, as they could be used to both help loggers walk on the slippery surfaces and break apart log jams. This particular pair was custom made in Onalaska, WI by Tobias Nelson, a Norwegian shoemaker that hadn’t yet switched to fully-automated shoe making processes. Records show these shoes belonged to a Canadian logger named Theodore Comeau, who shuttled felled logs along the Black River, likely bringing the wood from midland forests down to the mills on the Mississippi. Logging shoes, with the grip the spikes gave the workers, were fundamental in the creation of the log-rolling sport, which is still around today.