Architects in the firm of Jensen & Mills examine a small display of Douglas Fir Plywood Association promotional material in their Jones Building office on November 19, 1954. The plywood association always stressed the stringent quality controls utilized in approving plywood for numerous uses. The DFPA label on plywood meant that customers could count on the association standing behind its product. Photograph ordered by Douglas Fir Plywood Association.

Douglas Fir Plywood Association (Tacoma); Merchandise displays--Tacoma--1950-1960; Advertising--Tacoma--1950-1960; Jensen & Mills (Tacoma);

Two workmen monitor testing on a piece of plywood at the Douglas Fir Plywood Association's test lab at 1214 A St in Tacoma. The DFPA had two labs, one in Tacoma and one in Eugene, to test and improve the plywood product. The machinery doing the testing is 8 feet wide and 15 feet high and is being operated by two men. It appears to be measuring the pressure on the plywood.

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

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;

Plyron wardrobe door in Belfoy-Smith Homes. Plyron was a newly developed material that was found to have good strength for cabinet doors, with a smooth surface that accepted paint well. Ordered by Douglas Fir Plywood Association.

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

A view into the humidity chamber at the plywood lab shows the apparatus that provides the proper testing conditions. Ordered by Douglas Fir Plywood Association.

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

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;

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;

In February of 1947, the Tacoma Ice Palace at 3801 South Union Avenue was being prepared for a boxing bout. Plywood flooring was placed over the Ice Palace's skating rink. A boxing ring and a heating system with 12 large blowers was brought in. The main event, organized by Raleigh Sliger, was between the Canadian welterweight Hal Robbins and Chuck "Kid" Brown from Klamath Falls, Oregon. View of plywood floor being placed over Tacoma Ice Palace's skating rink, photo ordered by Douglas Fir Plywood Association. (T. Times, 2/10/47, p. 10).

Plywood; Douglas Fir Plywood Association (Tacoma); Floors--Tacoma; Ice skating rinks--Tacoma; Tacoma Ice Palace (Tacoma); Boxing--Tacoma;

Douglas Fir Plywood Association. Four men stand by one of the displays at the one-day convention of the Douglas Fir Plywood Association showing some of the post-war requirements of the plywood industry. Among the displays at the convention were samples made by the Plywood Research Foundation showing new uses and new products from plywood. (T.Times, 6/11/1947, p.1)

Douglas Fir Plywood Association (Tacoma); Lumber industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; Meetings--Tacoma--1940-1950;

Douglas Fir Plywood Association. Four men stand by one of the display boards at the DFPA conference referring to the advertising done by the association on behalf of the plywood industry. All 33 of the Douglas Fir plywood factories in the western parts of Oregon and Washington were then participants in the plywood industry's quality control program. (T.Times, 6/11/1947, p.1)

Douglas Fir Plywood Association (Tacoma); Lumber industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; Meetings--Tacoma--1940-1950;

Calf shelter made of plywood at Western Washington Experiment Station. The Station, created in 1893, was located approximately seven miles from the city of Tacoma, in the Puyallup Valley. The Station engaged in research on western Washington agricultural problems. Photograph ordered by Douglas Fir Plywood Association.

Plywood; Douglas Fir Plywood Association (Tacoma); Western Washington Experiment Station (Puyallup); Barns--Tacoma

Grosvenor House apartments, 500 No. Wall, Seattle, under construction. Photo for Douglas Fir Plywood Association. Photograph was taken on March 5, 1950.

Douglas Fir Plywood Association (Tacoma); Grosvenor House Apartments (Seattle); Construction--Seattle; Apartment houses--Seattle; Progress photographs--1950-1960;

Annual convention of Douglas Fir Plywood Association at the Winthrop Hotel. Four unidentified men stand in front of charts with production numbers. Ordered by Mr. McCallum.

Douglas Fir Plywood Association (Tacoma); Hotel Winthrop (Tacoma); Meetings--Tacoma--1950-1960;

Nelson S. Perkins, of the Douglas Fir Plywood Association. In the late forties, Perkins, then a young brilliant civil engineer, was hired to head up the DFPA'S technical and engineering department. This was a position that he would hold for many years. In 1959, he was promoted to a liason position between the member mills and the DFPA. (" The Plywood Age" by Robert M. Cour, TNT 3/18/1959, pg. A-14)

Douglas Fir Plywood Association (Tacoma); Plywood; Perkins, Nelson;

The Plywood Research Foundation was supported by all fir plywood manufacturers and devoted to the development of new products that could be manufactured from parts of the tree not already being utilized. View of plywood products being tested and tool being used for testing at the Plywood Research Foundation.

Plywood Research Foundation (Tacoma); Douglas Fir Plywood Association (Tacoma)--Products; Plywood; Lumber industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; Laboratories--Tacoma--1940-1950; Product inspection--Tacoma; Testing--Tacoma--1940-1950;

Cold room constuction, Douglas Fir Plywood Association laboratory, Dave Countryman. Worker installing plywood panels on walls of foil insulated room on Halloween, 1950.

Plywood; Douglas Fir Plywood Association (Tacoma);

A man examines a piece of plywood sheathing marked "Plyscord", as it is being removed from a pickup truck on October 5, 1954. Several sheets remain to be unloaded to join the those already stacked on the ground. Plywood was a versatile product with many uses; first and foremost may have been in construction. Photograph ordered by Douglas Fir Plywood Association.

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;

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;

Ordered by the Douglas Fir Plywood Association; plywood being used in the construction of a commercial "chicken house." Plywood is being attached to the exterior of the beams to form the curved roof of the chicken house. The laminated beam construction eliminated the need for posts for support. This is possibly the West Side Dairy Road poultry farm of the Guy Conine family in Fife. They operated one conventional chicken house and two of the quonset hut design. (TNT 10/28/1956, pg. B-6)

Plywood; Construction; Poultry houses; Poultry industry;

Retail lumber dealers meeting; photographs ordered by the Douglas Fir Plywood Association. The group of men, in coats and ties, are looking at a model of a new home. One man is removing the roof on the model. The men are surrounded by artists' renderings of new homes and press and customer information regarding "Signature Homes." The covering on the table and walls has the logo for the Fir Plywood Golden Jubilee 1905-1955.

Douglas Fir Plywood Association (Tacoma);

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;

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;

Construction process for a life size lawn Santa Claus Christmas decoration, ordered by the Douglas Fir Plywood Association. The Santa pattern has been glued to the plywood and the design cut out so that it has a plywood back. Now the craftsman is applying lacquer so that the image will stand up to all weather conditions. Santa's head and arm are still unattached and will be glued on where the dotted lines indicate. (see also image #6 & 9 and C101278-1 for the finished product)

Douglas Fir Plywood Association (Tacoma)--Products; Woodworking--Tacoma; Christmas decorations; Handicraft--Tacoma;

The fifties were the height of the "do it yourself" age. In this photograph ordered by the Douglas Fir Plywood Association, a man demonstrates how to construct your own life size lawn Christmas decorations. Here he glues the Santa Claus cut out to a sheet of plywood. The purpose of the DFPA was to introduce the public to new uses for their product. As such, patterns and demonstrations were always available at the hardware stores for the home handyman. (see also image #9 & 10 and C101278-1 for the finished product)

Douglas Fir Plywood Association (Tacoma)--Products; Woodworking--Tacoma; Christmas decorations; Handicraft--Tacoma;

Construction process for a life size lawn Santa Claus Christmas decoration, ordered by the Douglas Fir Plywood Association. After gluing the pattern to the plywood, the handyman cuts the Santa out with a hand held saw. The dotted lines on the pattern indicated where another piece will be glued on top. (see also image #6 & 10 and C101278-1 for the finished product)

Douglas Fir Plywood Association (Tacoma)--Products; Woodworking--Tacoma; Christmas decorations; Handicraft--Tacoma;

Only a craftman's hands can be seen carefully using a Skilsaw on plywood boards at Weber Lumber Co. Bits of wood shavings are scattered close by. The portable table saw cuts the plywood into the desired length. Photograph ordered by Douglas Fir Plywood Association.

Plywood; Saws; Douglas Fir Plywood Association (Tacoma);