Built this whole town on pulp and pine, sweat and steam and the paper line. 

My dad punched in, and his Dad too, whistle blew like it always knew.

Smoke stopped risin' about 2009, 

Shut those gates and leave it all behind.

We stood there staring down that chain,

Empty hands in the cold cold rain.

The smoke don’t rise, but I still see—

The mill in my dreams, callin’ me.

We were more than the work we did,

But it built this whole damn town,

and help raise all our kids  - zah !

Six a.m., and the line was dead, no more paychecks and no more bread.

Folks packed up or they just drank a lot, some just ran and jumped right off that there dock. 

Smoke stopped risin' about 2009, 

Shut those gates, and leave it all behind.

We stood there staring down that chain,

Empty hands in a cold cold rain.

The smoke don’t rise, but I still see—

The mill in my dreams, callin’ me.

We were more than the work we did,

But it built this whole damn town,

and help raise all our  kids - zah ! 

400 people out of work today, all because of some corporate jerk.

A community's been ground into pulp, people moved or just lost all hope.

Smoke stopped risin' about 2009, 

Shut those gates, and leave it all behind.

We stood there staring down that chain,

Empty hands in the cold cold rain.

The smoke don’t rise, but I still see—

The mill in my dreams, callin’ me.

We were more than the work we did,

But it built this whole damn town ... it built this whole damn town ... don't ya know it built this whole damn town . . . 

and helped raise all our kids !