Opened in 1916, it ran 16 miles (26 km) eastward from the Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR) mainline at Pakesley, Ontario to the logging camp and mill at Lost Channel on the Pickerel River.
The line operated until 1933, when plunging prices of wood during the Great Depression caused the company to enter bankruptcy.
In 1916, Schroeder purchased the land outright from the Victoria Harbour Lumber Co., and to service this work, Lauder, Spears and Howland began construction of a new mill at Lost Channel.
Unable to raise the cash, the mill and railway became the property of the bank, who immediately sold it to Schroeder.
A smaller mill was built in its place and continued operations until 1933, when the effects of the Great Depression resulted in 40,000,000 square feet (3,700,000 m2) of unsold lumber piling up in Pakesley, forcing the company into bankruptcy.