A man inspects a large stack of Hemlock boards in the yard at the St. Paul Lumber Company. The boards are ready for dry kilns where they would remain 2 to 4 days. Each tier of lumber is stripped to separate the pieces, which allows heat and steam to circulate freely when the load is in the kiln. After drying, the load is ready to be unstacked and sent to the planers. (Tree Life Hemlock, St. Paul & Tacoma Lumber Co.)

Lumber industry--Tacoma--1950-1960; St. Paul & Tacoma Lumber Co. (Tacoma);

A large stack of lumber in the yard at the St. Paul Lumber Company. The lumber is separated at even intervals to insure even drying.

Lumber industry--Tacoma--1950-1960; St. Paul & Tacoma Lumber Co. (Tacoma);

Truck loaded and dumping lumber, St. Paul & Tacoma Lumber, Helgeson. Three large logs are loaded on the trailer of a Rucker Brothers truck. The enormous logs are on their way to the St. Paul & Tacoma Lumber Company. Robert G. Helgeson was a forester with St. Paul & Tacoma Lumber Company. TPL-8290

St. Paul & Tacoma Lumber Co. (Tacoma); Rucker Brothers (Tacoma); Logs; Lumber industry--Tacoma--1940-1950;

A huge log sent spray flying into the air when it plunged into the large log pond next to the St. Paul & Tacoma Lumber Company on the tide flats in this photograph from June, 1949. Logs were dumped into one of the three log ponds at the waterway near St. Paul & Tacoma Lumber. The log ponds had a total area of 75 acres and combined log storage capacity of 15,000,000 feet. The logs would later be removed from the water when it was their turn in the lumber mill. Other parts of the lumber mill facility are seen in the background. Ordered by Helgeson. (American Lumberman, 5/21/1921)

St. Paul & Tacoma Lumber Co. (Tacoma); Logs; Lumber industry--Tacoma--1940-1950;

Plastic plywood being applied as siding in dry kiln at St. Paul & Tacoma Lumber Co., DFPA, Hal Dixon.

Building construction--Tacoma--1940-1950; St. Paul & Tacoma Lumber Co. (Tacoma); Lumber industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; Douglas Fir Plywood Association (Tacoma);

Plastic plywood being applied as siding in dry kiln at St. Paul & Tacoma Lumber Co., DFPA, Hal Dixon.

Building construction--Tacoma--1940-1950; St. Paul & Tacoma Lumber Co. (Tacoma); Lumber industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; Douglas Fir Plywood Association (Tacoma); Building materials--Tacoma;

Plastic plywood being applied as siding in dry kiln at St. Paul & Tacoma Lumber Co., DFPA, Hal Dixon.

Building construction--Tacoma--1940-1950; St. Paul & Tacoma Lumber Co. (Tacoma); Lumber industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; Douglas Fir Plywood Association (Tacoma);

An aerial view of St. Paul and Tacoma Lumber Company. Colonel Chauncey Griggs, Addison Foster, Henry Hewitt, Jr. and Charles Hebard Jones purchased 83,000 acres of timber in 1888 from the Northern Pacific Raillroad company in the largest purchase of timberland in the nineteenth century. Then they built a giant sawmill on "The Boot", a low island off the main tideflats, bordered by branches of the Puyallup River and Commencement Bay. They built the first standard-guage logging railroad and introduced the band-saw to Pacific Northwest lumber operations. They built the St. Paul & Tacoma Lumber Company. (The Mill on the Boot, Murray Morgan)

Aerial photographs; Lumber industry--Tacoma--1950-1960; St. Paul & Tacoma Lumber Co. (Tacoma);

A worker at the St. Paul & Tacoma Lumber Co. retail yard walks on top of a large piece of timber, preparing to hook up the hoisting machinery to it, and move it from the truck to a stack of lumber. St Paul's three mile long lumber yard was believed to be the largest in the world by the 1940's. St. Paul was a pioneer in the plywood industry, and also in reforestation.

Lumber industry--Tacoma--1950-1960; St. Paul & Tacoma Lumber Co. (Tacoma); Hoisting machinery;

Rucker Brothers lumber truck at St. Paul & Tacoma Lumber Co. sawmill. Photographer, possibly from Richards, is standing on top of the truck cab probably photographing the other pictures in this series. Work seems to have stopped as lumber employees stand and watch the show.The hoisting machinery used to move the timber off of the truck can be see at the right rear of the picture.

Lumber industry--Tacoma--1950-1960; St. Paul & Tacoma Lumber Co. (Tacoma); Trucks--Tacoma--1950-1960; Photographers--Tacoma;

St. Paul & Tacoma Lumber Co. lumber yard where hoisting machinery moves a long piece of lumber from one location to another. St. Paul & Tacoma, established in 1888, was one of the first sawmills on Commencement Bay.The company prospered until its MIll "C," located on the Thea Foss Waterway, became the largest in the world, cutting a million board feet of timber a day.

Lumber industry--Tacoma--1950-1960; St. Paul & Tacoma Lumber Co. (Tacoma); Hoisting machinery;

In October of 1950 organized labor encouraged all its members to do their part in supporting the Community Chest during its annual fund drive. Maxine Knauf signed up C.I.O. members, (l to r) Pat Ward, George McCann and Andrew Monset, at the St. Paul and Tacoma Lumber Company mill for membership in the "21 Club." To obtain membership, each participant promised to donate at least 25 cents to each of the 21 Red Feather agencies, for a minimum total subscription of $5.25. A club emblem was given to each member who reached his goal. Money donated to the Community Chest was disbursed to agencies such as the Boy Scouts, the Boys Club, the Tacoma Day Nursery and the Y.M.C.A., among others. (TNT 10-8-50, A-15, TNT 10-1-50, p. 1)

Tacoma Community Chest (Tacoma); Membership campaigns--Tacoma--1950-1960; St. Paul & Tacoma Lumber Co. (Tacoma); Knauf, Maxine; Ward, Pat; McCann, George; Monset, Andrew;

A man, wearing a Douglas Fir Plywood Association lab coat, is adjusting the tension during plywood testing at St. Paul & Tacoma Lumber warehouse. Ordered by Douglas Fir Plywood Association, Tom Sias.

Douglas Fir Plywood Association (Tacoma); Plywood; Product inspection--Tacoma; Testing--Tacoma--1950-1960; St. Paul & Tacoma Lumber Co. (Tacoma); Lumber industry--Tacoma--1950-1960;

Detail showing break points of stress tests on plywood at St. Paul & Tacoma Lumber. Ordered by Dave Countryman, civil engineer with Douglas Fir Plywood Association.

Douglas Fir Plywood Association (Tacoma); Plywood; Product inspection--Tacoma; Testing--Tacoma--1950-1960; St. Paul & Tacoma Lumber Co. (Tacoma); Lumber industry--Tacoma--1950-1960;

Five men watch intently while one of them is tightening the pressure during plywood testing at St. Paul & Tacoma Lumber warehouse. Ordered by Douglas Fir Plywood Association, Dave Countryman.

Douglas Fir Plywood Association (Tacoma); Plywood; Product inspection--Tacoma; Testing--Tacoma--1950-1960; St. Paul & Tacoma Lumber Co. (Tacoma); Lumber industry--Tacoma--1950-1960;

Detail of plywood testing at St. Paul & Tacoma Lumber warehouse. Ordered by Douglas Fir Plywood Association, Dave Countryman.

Douglas Fir Plywood Association (Tacoma); Plywood; Product inspection--Tacoma; Testing--Tacoma--1950-1960; St. Paul & Tacoma Lumber Co. (Tacoma); Lumber industry--Tacoma--1950-1960;

New bulletin board being erected near time clock and time cards at Saint Paul and Tacoma Lumber Company, photo ordered by Tacoma Community Chest. Tacoma Community Chest was promoting enrollment and participation in Tacoma's Boy Scouts, the bulletin board asks the question "How Does Your Boy Use His Time?" Two men are standing by the board, one is holding a hammer, Tacoma Community Chest was displaying community information throughout Tacoma businesses.

Bulletin boards; Charitable organizations--Tacoma; Signs (Notices); Tacoma Community Chest (Tacoma); St. Paul & Tacoma Lumber Co. (Tacoma);

St. Paul & Tacoma Lumber Company. Several railroad carsloaded with logs are standing in the yard at the St. Paul & Tacoma Lumber Company. The City of Tacoma can be seen in the background. Since the company had their own rail spur they could deliver the logs to whatever part of the plant they needed or they could even dump them into the waterway which was nearby.

Lumber industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; St. Paul & Tacoma Lumber Co. (Tacoma);

St. Paul & Tacoma Lumber Company. Several railroad cars loaded with logs are standing in the yard at the St. Paul & Tacoma Lumber Company. The waterway can be seen at the right. The St. Paul & Tacoma Lumber Company was founded by Col. Chauncey W. Griggs in 1889. He had been working in Minnesota with coal and railroad concerns when he came to the Northwest. He was interested in starting a lumber producing operation so he purchased 80,000 acres in 1887 and another 20 acres on the tideflats one year later.

Lumber industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; St. Paul & Tacoma Lumber Co. (Tacoma);

St. Paul & Tacoma Lumber Company. Several railroad cars loaded with logs are standing in the yard at the St. Paul & Tacoma Lumber Company. The railroad tracks run from further inland directly to and through the plant.

Lumber industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; St. Paul & Tacoma Lumber Co. (Tacoma);

St. Paul & Tacoma Lumber Company. Several railroad cars loaded with logs are standing in the yard at the St. Paul & Tacoma Lumber Company. Large off-highway trucks, too large for state highways, brought logs down from forests to reload centers where logs were shipped to mills by railroad cars or on smaller trucks. This site of St. Paul & Tacoma Lumber was used as a large pulp mill.

Lumber industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; St. Paul & Tacoma Lumber Co. (Tacoma);

St. Paul & Tacoma Lumber Company. Railroad cars have brought logs to the log pond in this August of 1946 photograph. The railroad cars have false bottoms that can be lifted by the crane allowing the logs to plunge into the log pond.

Logs; Lumber industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; St. Paul & Tacoma Lumber Co. (Tacoma); Hoisting machinery;

Founded in 1888, the St. Paul & Tacoma Lumber Company located on Tacoma's tideflats was one of the largest lumber companies in the Pacific Northwest. Railroad cars have brought logs to the log holding area, called a log dump, in August of 1946. The company's plant is seen in the background. To the right of the buildings is a long ramp that conveys the logs into the facility from the holding pond. Lumber was still king in the late '40s among Tacoma industries. About 100 plants were involved in the production of raw lumber or finished lumber products. Lumber was needed to build millions of homes and buildings. The plywood industry was progressing with more and more uses found for the product and pulp was used for heavy wrapping paper, explosives and rayon. The lumber industry provided employment for thousands including the 1,000 working for St. Paul & Tacoma. (T.Times 8-30-46, p. 12-article on lumber industry)

Logs; Lumber industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; St. Paul & Tacoma Lumber Co. (Tacoma);

Transporting finished lumber on rail cars from the St. Paul and Tacoma Lumber Company mill to its lumber ship the "Lake Frances."

Lumber industry--Tacoma--1930-1940; St. Paul & Tacoma Lumber Co. (Tacoma); Shipping--Tacoma--1930-1940; Railroad freight cars--Tacoma;

This happy group of unidentified lumber mill workers, entering the yards of the St. Paul & Tacoma Lumber Co. on August 5, 1935, were returning to work after the settlement of a strike that lasted 13 weeks. Some employees proudly wear their Union buttons on their hats, celebrating their new contract. The agreement called for a 50 cent minimum wage, a 40 hour work week, an 8 hour day, time and 1/2 for overtime, reemployment of striking employees and recognition of the union. The vote on the contract was 1391 to 97. (T. Times 8/5/1935, pg. 1)

Labor unions--Tacoma; Lumber & Sawmill Workers Local 2633 (Tacoma); Lumber industry--Tacoma--1930-1940; Strikes--Tacoma--1930-1940; St. Paul & Tacoma Lumber Co. (Tacoma);

A returning lumber mill employee proudly wears his Union button on his hat after the settlement of a strike that lasted 13 weeks. The agreement called for a 50 cent minimum wage, a 40 hour work week, 8 hour day, time and 1/2 for overtime, reemployment of striking employees and recognition of the union. The vote on the agreement was 1391 to 97. (T. Times 8/5/1935, pg. 1)

Labor unions--Tacoma; Lumber & Sawmill Workers Local 2633 (Tacoma); Lumber industry--Tacoma--1930-1940; Strikes--Tacoma--1930-1940; St. Paul & Tacoma Lumber Co. (Tacoma);

Two lumber workers watching an overhead crane move timbers, as the St. Paul & Tacoma lumber yard roars back into life after the settlement of a 13 week strike. Twenty two area mill operators agreed to meet employee demands for a 50 cent minimum wage, a 40 hour week, an 8 hour day, time and one half for overtime, reemployment of striking workers and recognition of the union. (T. Times 8/5/1935, pg.1)

Labor unions--Tacoma; Lumber & Sawmill Workers Local 2633 (Tacoma); Lumber industry--Tacoma--1930-1940; Strikes--Tacoma--1930-1940; St. Paul & Tacoma Lumber Co. (Tacoma);

On Monday morning August 5, 1935 the Sawmill and Timber Workers' Union strike that had crippled Tacoma's mills for 13 weeks came to an end. Mill workers, like these at the St. Paul & Tacoma Lumber Company returned to work. By a vote of 1,391 to 97 the union's members accepted the offer of the mill owners including a 40 hour week, an 8 hour day, and time and one-half for overtime. (T.Times 8/5/1935, pg. 1)

Labor unions--Tacoma; Lumber & Sawmill Workers Local 2633 (Tacoma); Lumber industry--Tacoma--1930-1940; Strikes--Tacoma--1930-1940; St. Paul & Tacoma Lumber Co. (Tacoma);

Lumber mill employees entering the yards at St. Paul & Tacoma Lumber Co. are happy to return to work today after the end of the strike that paralyzed activity for the past 13 weeks. The workers just voted positively on an agreement submitted by 22 Tacoma mill owners. The agreement called for a 50 cent minimum wage, a 40 hour work week, 8 hour day, time and 1/2 for overtime, reemployment of striking employees and recognition of the union. The vote on the agreement was 1391 to 97. (T. Times 8/5/1935, pg. 1)

Labor unions--Tacoma; Lumber & Sawmill Workers Local 2633 (Tacoma); Lumber industry--Tacoma--1930-1940; Strikes--Tacoma--1930-1940; St. Paul & Tacoma Lumber Co. (Tacoma);