JAY – Workers at the Otis mill said Wednesday they were afraid Wausau Paper would gut the place and sell it for salvage, ending more than 120 years of papermaking.

“It would break my heart if they sell this place for junk,” said Debra Kendall of Livermore as she left the mill after her shift Wednesday afternoon.

“It’s a sad day. I’ve worked here 25 years,” she said. “We’ve been struggling. I thought they would give us more time to try and make money.”

On Tuesday, the Wisconsin-based company announced it would shut down the last machine at its Jay mill and permanently close the doors.

Sonny Newcomb of Livermore Falls, who has worked at the mill for 32 years, predicted the closing would mark the end of more than a century of papermaking at the mill, which was built in 1888 by Hugh Chisholm.

It was the third-largest in the country at the time, and became the founding mill of International Paper in 1898. IP sold it in 1978 to James River. Wausau took over after that.

“They’ll strip this mill just like they did in Groveton, (N.H.),” last year, Newcomb said. “They’ll make it so we cannot make paper here.”

Wausau Paper spokesman Perry Grueber said that was one of several options. The company plans to close the mill and equipment and sell it, but not to a paper industry competitor, he said.

The Groveton mill was sold in 2008 to a Connecticut-based auction and appraisal firm for a reported $100,000, according to the Web site www.blnz.com.

“If people came by here and saw the mill torn down and gone, they would be so sad,” Kendall said. “There is so much history here.” Many members of her family have worked at the mill, she said.

Newcomb said that when Wausau bought the Route 4 facility, workers knew that “if things got really bad, we would be the first to go.”

Still he was taking the loss in stride. “I have no regrets,” he said. “I love this mill. It gave me a great life, financially. I made very good money. It’s a dream job. The dream job is gone. Life goes on.”

Workers have thought there was a possibility the mill would close, Kendall said, but they had hoped for the best.

“Nobody here has been in denial,” she said. “Every day, everybody has been wondering.”

Mark DeMillo of Jay said he was not surprised by the announcement. “I didn’t feel secure for the last five years or so,” said the 32-year worker. “I hope it works out good for everybody. Let the pieces fall where they will.”

Rick Couture, another longtime Wausau worker, said he thought employees would make it until a new contract was signed with the local United Steelworkers Union on June 1.

The union is one of two at the mill.

“Of course, all the people at Otis are disappointed with the situation that has come up,” said Dean Ouellette, president of Local 3 Chapter 247 of the Firemen’s and Oilers Union.

“We have worked hard over the years to overcome obstacles in manufacturing,” said Ouellette, who has worked at the mill for 32 years. “We’ve been very successful over the years with dealing with situations with business, but the slowdown in the economy is very difficult to overcome. It’s affecting not only Wausau Paper but other industries and as they work to overcome this, Otis Mill in particular, wasn’t able to overcome this. We’re trying to make the best of a bad situation.”

School Superintendent Robert Wall said the closing will have a long-term effect on the ability of the Jay school system to sustain and support the current level of programs and services.

“We know the effects will be continuing beyond the closing as the (state education) subsidy formula reconciles to our local conditions,” Wall said. The formula is heavily based on valuation and student enrollment. The closing is likely to affect both, he said.

“The biggest impact in my mind is the additional 96 people for whom expenses, including real estate taxes, are going to be difficult,” said SAD 36 Board of Directors Chairman Ashley O’Brien, referring to the laid-off workers.

Priscilla Mosher, owner of The Flower Barn in Jay, said, “I am sure every business will feel an effect.”

“There’s not much left here,” said Fred Franchetti, owner of Franchetti’s Home Town Variety. “It used to be a nice, little vibrant town. I just feel bad for the workers and the town. We cannot afford to keep losing businesses and jobs.”