Mobile logging camps had several characteristics and institutions that could be found in many of the permanent communities in the Southern Appalachians. For example, the camps would have stores for necessities, churches for worship, schools for the children, places to eat, and other things that made living in a logging camp seem like living in a regular Appalachian community for its residents and their families.

First of all, each camp had a company store, which was the place that the employees and their families could buy the materials that they needed for everyday use, such as soap, dry goods, foods, and other materials. It was like a small general store, or similar in function to a modern-day convenience store. The workers could pay either with cash or "scrip," which was like a company store's line of credit that was taken directly out of the worker's paycheck. Misuse of the worker's scrip could lead to a longtime debt for a worker towards his employer, which employers frequently used to guarantee continued labor. The company store would have its materials shipped into the camp from the permanent settlements by the same railroad system that moved the camp from place to place.

Occasionally, you would find enough children to have a small school in the mobile camp. Usually, in this situation, only one or two teachers were needed, because most students would usually go into the nearest permanent community to go to school. When needed, the logging company would hire their own teachers to teach the students. The company also hired ministers, doctors, dentists, lawyers, and other professionals on the same hire-only-when-needed basis.

The logging camps also had a few (but not many) forms of entertainment available for the workers. Each camp had a social car, where the workers could go after their day of work, to relax, play cards, or play music with the other workers. The social car was usually located between the dining car and the dormitory cars. The camps had different forms of athletic entertainment as well. Also, the workers usually had Sundays off so that they could spend time with their families.