Sometimes the census taker can mislead researchers by lazy markings in the 'occupation' column. Many of the lumbermen will be listed simply as 'laborer' or 'common laborer'. In a lumbering town, these men are probably involved in the wood trade also. In the larger companies, there will be plenty of horses at work too, which means some of the men will be teamsters. More background can be found in directories of the area, which will list hotels, and the maps in the directories will give you a good idea of what the locale was like at the time.
Local newspapers are also helpful.
Many papers are now easily available on microfilm through interlibrary loan, so you do not even need to travel far to get the informaton you need. Once you have established a relative living in a place, get a reel or two of the microfilm. The newspapers will provide lengthy and detailed accounts of accidents, and incidents which resulted in violence and jail-time for some of the lumbermen. Kuhn also said that court records, including coroners' records, were very useful in finding these wandering boys. There are often lists of letters left at the post office and awaiting pickup.