Workers are laying plywood in apparent preparation for testing by the Douglas Fir Plywood Association's laboratory in March, 1954. Nearly all sections of plywood have been fastened with only a few sheets left to attach. Plywood was constantly being tested to assure consumers and the industry that all standards were being met.

Plywood; Douglas Fir Plywood Association (Tacoma); Testing--Tacoma; Product inspection--Tacoma;

An employee of the Douglas Fir Plywood Association appears to be monitoring gauges while doing product testing at the association's laboratory in March, 1954. Douglas Fir plywood was undergoing constant testing for durability and to maintain quality control. Photograph ordered by Douglas Fir Plywood Association.

Douglas Fir Plywood Association (Tacoma); Plywood; Product inspection--Tacoma; Testing--Tacoma; Lumber industry--Tacoma--1950-1960;

New DFPA offices in the Fuller Building as pictured on September 18, 1953. This appears to be the mailroom. The Douglas Fir Plywood Association's headquarters in Tacoma was the center of the industry's national promotion of fir plywood. The cost of this promotion was over 2.5 million a year, much of it spent in postage. The DFPA was the highest volume customer of the Tacoma Post Office. TPL-8393

Plywood; Douglas Fir Plywood Association (Tacoma); Lumber industry--Tacoma--1950-1960; Offices--Tacoma--1950-1960; Office workers--Tacoma--1950-1960;

Interiors of new DFPA office in Fuller building. Originally the home of W.P. Fuller & Co., the building was leased by the Douglas Fir Plywood Association in 1953 and remodeled for their headquarters. Plywood, the building material made of sheets of veneer glued together in multi plys, was the favored building material of the construction industry. This was mostly due to the self promotion of the Association, which was supported by member mills. The Association also sponsored research at its lab at 1214 A St. and standardized plywood and graded it for quality. TPL-8397

Plywood; Douglas Fir Plywood Association (Tacoma); Lumber industry--Tacoma--1950-1960; Offices--Tacoma--1950-1960; Office workers--Tacoma--1950-1960;

Interiors of new DFPA office in Fuller building. Originally the home of W.P. Fuller & Co., the Douglas Fir Plywood Association leased and remodeled this office building in 1953. They remained here until the 80's. From this location, the DFPA directed their national program of promotion, research and quality control. Around 1983, the building was remodeled by Bantz Trace Associates and renamed the Commencement Bay building. It houses office space and the Cliff Street Lofts. TPL-8394

Plywood; Douglas Fir Plywood Association (Tacoma); Lumber industry--Tacoma--1950-1960; Offices--Tacoma--1950-1960;

Interiors of new DFPA office in Fuller building. Switchboard operator & a man waiting with a briefcase for an appointment. The Douglas Fir Plywood Association was originated and financially supported by member and subscriber mills. Its purpose was threefold; to aggressively promote plywood as a building material, to fund research on improving and diversifying the product and for quality control of the product. This self regulation sparked the biggest industry growth in the Northwest of all times. TPL-8395

Plywood; Douglas Fir Plywood Association (Tacoma); Lumber industry--Tacoma--1950-1960; Offices--Tacoma--1950-1960;

Interiors of new DFPA office in Fuller building. Office workers at desk and counter, "Mr. Ritchie's" office in the background. The Douglas Fir Plywood Association began in 1938 when the original member mills banded together to promote and standardize their product. Under the able guidance of W.E. ("Diff") Difford, the handful of mills became an industry. By the forties, plywood boomed in housing and became the handiest building material ever devised. The Association later changed its name to the American Plywood Association, as more types of wood came to be used in the production of plywood. TPL-8396

Plywood; Douglas Fir Plywood Association (Tacoma); Lumber industry--Tacoma--1950-1960; Offices--Tacoma--1950-1960; Office workers--Tacoma--1950-1960;

The Douglas Fir Plywood Association presented a display showing how plywood was used by several industries in the Northwest in the Washington Hall in Portland, Oregon. Washington Hall was part of an earlier exposition in Portland. The hall where the display was housed has been built with columns the look like the trunks of trees. Sky lights in the roof allow plenty of natural light into the interior of the large hall.

Douglas Fir Plywood Association (Portland); Exhibition buildings--Portland; Exhibitions--Portland;

The Douglas Fir Plywood Association presented a display showing how plywood was used by several industries in the Northwest including the boat and ship industry, heavy construction, home building and on farms.

Douglas Fir Plywood Association (Portland); Exhibition buildings--Portland; Exhibitions--Portland;

The Douglas Fir Plywood Association presented a display showing how plywood was made and some of its many uses in the Washington Hall in Portland, Oregon.

Douglas Fir Plywood Association (Portland); Exhibition buildings--Portland; Exhibitions--Portland;

One of the final stages in plywood manufacture is setting the glued and layered sheets of wood veneers in a hot press as shown at Anacortes Veneer, Inc., Anacortes, Washington. A sheet of plywood is placed on each layer of the press and the stacks are placed under pressure for differing lengths of time depending on the type of plywood being manufactured. This produces an irreversible bond between the plys stronger than the wood itself. The press is open in this view showing the sheets of plywood. Ordered by Douglas Fir Plywood Association. (The Plywood Age, Robert M. Cour)

Anacortes Veneer, Inc. (Anacortes); Plywood; Douglas Fir Plywood Association (Tacoma);

Workmen are moving a section of plywood form into position in preparation to pouring a reinforced cement wall. Carstens Packing Company can be seen over the forms in the distance. Ordered by Douglas Fir Plywood Association.

Douglas Fir Plywood Association (Tacoma); Construction--Tacoma--1940-1950; Reinforced concrete construction--Tacoma--1940-1950;

A hanging, mobile sign promoting Douglas Fir Plywood. Ordered by Douglas Fir Plywood Association.

Plywood; Douglas Fir Plywood Association (Tacoma);

Plywood was used for sheathing and concrete forms during construction at the new Custer School. The school was designed by Lea, Pearson & Richards. The building was dedicated September 30, 1953. Ordered by Douglas Fir Plywood Association.

Douglas Fir Plywood Association (Tacoma); Construction--Tacoma--1950-1960; Reinforced concrete construction--Tacoma--1950-1960; Custer School (Lakewood);

An operator for Douglas Fir Plywood stamps each sheet of plywood in a stack with "EXT-DFPA" denoting the grade and quality of plywood. The Douglas Fir Plywood Association stood behind the designations they developed to assure quality of the products distributed by their members.

Douglas Fir Plywood Association (Tacoma)--Products; Plywood;

Two workmen prepare a plywood wall for papering with a mural map at the Georgia Pacific Plywood Company in Olympia on December 24, 1951. Faint writing on the wall shows instructions for hanging the map. A wooden railing at the staircase on the right bends smoothly to a lower level in the building. Ordered by Douglas Fir Plywood Association.

Plywood; Douglas Fir Plywood Association (Tacoma); Georgia Pacific Plywood Co. (Olympia); Walls--Olympia; Maps;

A workman is papering a plywood wall at the Georgia Pacific Plywood Company in Olympia with a mural map of the State of Washington. Photograph was taken on Christmas Eve, 1951. Ordered by Douglas Fir Plywood Association.

Plywood; Douglas Fir Plywood Association (Tacoma); Georgia Pacific Plywood Co. (Olympia); Walls--Olympia; Maps;

A workman moves a stack of cartons of Wesco's sweet peas using a forklift in a large warehouse. The pallet supporting the cartons has been made using plywood. Cartons of StarKist tuna are stacked on the other side of the doorway. Ordered by Douglas Fir Plywood Association.

Plywood; Douglas Fir Plywood Association (Tacoma); Shipping--Tacoma--1950-1960;

Studio set-up of hand board chips and shreds. Ordered by Douglas Fir Plywood Association.

Douglas Fir Plywood Association (Tacoma); Lumber industry--Tacoma--1950-1960;

The exterior of the Georgia Pacific Plywood Company building in Olympia, Washington. The two-story building with a flat roof reflects 1950's styling and architecture. A smoke stack with the letters "GP" on it can be seen on the left.

Douglas Fir Plywood Association (Tacoma); Georgia Pacific Plywood Co. (Olympia);

A stark office in the Georgia Pacific Plywood Company building in Olympia provides desks and equipment for fourteen people. Each desk has been provided with a calculator in the middle of the desk with a waste can to catch the tape as it runs from the machine. Telephones are seen on a few of the desks and most of them also have a typewriter on a pull-out shelf on the left. Florescent lighting provides a bright overhead light. Companies were attempting to apply assembly-line techniques to office work.

Douglas Fir Plywood Association (Tacoma); Georgia Pacific Plywood Co. (Olympia); Offices--Olympia;

The main entrance to the Georgia Pacific Plywood Company building in Olympia is shown on a dark afternoon with the interior lit from several angles. The smooth lines of the exterior of the building are carried into the entry way with a flat covering over the exterior walkway and the interior plywood paneling. The square panes of glass in the door match the geometric shapes of the larger windows and create a rythym with the louvers over the door and the steps inside.

Douglas Fir Plywood Association (Tacoma); Georgia Pacific Plywood Co. (Olympia); Office buildings--Olympia;

One of the offices in the Georgia Pacific Plywood Company building in Olympia is shown with a desk with only an ash tray and an organizer on top, with a side-arm for the telephone and typewriter. A machine with a roll-type cover under the windows may be a dictaphone. Venetian blinds and patterned draperies have bee added at the windows.

Douglas Fir Plywood Association (Tacoma); Georgia Pacific Plywood Co. (Olympia); Offices--Olympia;

A workman is fitting doors into a large cabinet built using plywood. Ordered by Douglas Fir Plywood Association.

Plywood; Douglas Fir Plywood Association (Tacoma);

A man is adding another dial to a piece of plywood holding other measuring devices at a cold storage facility. He is drilling holes using an electric drill. Ordered by Douglas Fir Plywood Association, Tom Sias.

Plywood; Douglas Fir Plywood Association (Tacoma);

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;

The interior of one of the classrooms at Lowell School showing the visual aid furniture. Elementary school students sit on the floor to watch while a young teacher displays paintings from an easel made of plywood. Artwork is also displayed on the wall behind the easel. Ordered by Douglas Fir Plywood Association. TPL-8334

Douglas Fir Plywood Association (Tacoma); Lowell Elementary School (Tacoma); Classrooms--Tacoma; School children--Tacoma--1950-1960; Public schools--Tacoma--1950-1960; Teachers--Tacoma--1950-1960; Easels;