Renton housing project showing use of "Cheney Studding". Ordered by Cheney Lumber Company. [Also dated 06-09-1942]

Cheney Lumber Co. (Tacoma); Lumber industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; Housing developments--Renton; Construction--Renton;

Henry Mill, construction of trusses. Henry Mill was located at 3001 No. Starr, the former site of the old Tacoma Mill Co. The mill was operated by John F. Buchanan, pres., and William F. Buchanan, VP. During the second World War, they became active in lumber prefabrication. Large buildings, such as hangars, were prebuilt in pieces and reassembled on arrival at their destination.

Lumber industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; Trusses--Tacoma; Structural frames--Tacoma; Building construction--Tacoma; Henry Mill & Timber Co. (Tacoma);

Ben Cheney and an unidentified woman sit at the back of a convertible on the dock next to the "Oregon." Richard Studio notes state that this picture was taken in Oregon. The cargo ship was built by Seattle-Tacoma Shipbuilding Corp. in Tacoma and was launched as the Cape Cleare.

Cheney Lumber Co. (Tacoma); Cheney, Ben B., 1905-1971; Cargo ships; Convertible automobiles--1940-1950;

On the evening of June 15, 1942, the sawmill at the Henry Mill & Timber Co. was fully engulfed in flames. The fire department managed to save the planer plant, warehouse and offices, but the sawmill was a complete loss. The owners swore to rebuild immediately. However, after the fire, the company's business began to consist mostly of prefabricated items for the military. (T. Times 6/16/1942, pg. 1)

Lumber industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; Henry Mill & Timber Co. (Tacoma); Fires--Tacoma--1940-1950;

On April 4, 1942, after several aborted attempts, the Northwest Hauling Company successfully raised a 150 foot smokestack at the new plant of Puget Sound Plywood located at 230 E. "F" Street. The huge steel stack weighed 13 tons and was constructed by Seattle Boiler Company. Once lifted into place on its 30 foot tall base, it jutted 180 feet into the air over the tideflats. The plant was expected to be fully operational in 30 days. The erection of the stack required several days of planning by the hauling company owned by Dan Cooney. Puget Sound Plywood, the first cooperative plywood plant in Tacoma, opened June 1, 1942. It had 298 members who each contributed $1,000 and received the same hourly pay and percentage of the company's profits. It was built on 3 1/2 acres at the mouth of the City Waterway. (T. Times 4/6/1942, pg. 2)

Puget Sound Plywood, Inc. (Tacoma); Plywood; Lumber industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; Northwest Hauling Co. (Tacoma); Smokestacks; Cooperatives--Tacoma;

The exterior of the St. Paul Restaurant was located in one corner of the St. Paul Lumber Company building. A public pay telephone stands at the corner under a sign for the restaurant that slants away from the building. This photograph was taken on a cold day when snow still lay on the ground and covered the limbs of the trees and the top of the telephone booth. The restaurant was owned by S.R. and Mrs. E.J. Hull.

Lumber industry--Tacoma--1950-1960; St. Paul & Tacoma Lumber Co. (Tacoma); St. Paul Restaurant (Tacoma); Restaurants--Tacoma; Telephone booths--Tacoma--1950-1960; Snow--Tacoma--1950-1960;

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;

Several Rucker Bros. trucks loaded with lumber at the St. Paul & Tacoma retail yard. The retail yard was the largest in the Northwest. Rucker Brothers Trucking was located at the retail yard, facilitating the delivery of the wood throughout the Northwest.

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

Frozen food lockers were manufactured by St. Paul and Tacoma Lumber Company at Coast Sash and Door Company using plaster-faced plywood. A workman inspects the fit of the door in its sash. Coast Sash and Door opened at this location on the Tacoma tideflats in 1924. Ordered by Douglas Fir Plywood Association, John Ritchie.

Plywood; Douglas Fir Plywood Association (Tacoma); Coast Sash & Door Co. (Tacoma); St. Paul & Tacoma Lumber Co. (Tacoma); Doors & doorways--Tacoma; Lumber industry--Tacoma--1950-1960;

Progress photograph at the Narrows Bridge construction site showing prefab of plywood forms. The Tacoma Narrows Bridge was the third longest suspension span in the world at the time it was built. Both towers of the bridge are seen in the background. Until the full weight of the deck was in place the tops of the two towers leaned about 3 feet toward the shore. Ordered by Douglas Fir Plywood Association. (TNT, 5/28/1950, p.1)

Plywood; Douglas Fir Plywood Association (Tacoma); Plywood; Bridges--Tacoma; Progress photographs; Tacoma Narrows Bridge (Tacoma);

Two men are constructing a silo by nailing sheets of plywood to an exterior form built with a circular shape cut from plywood and 2 x 4 lumber. Ordered by Douglas Fir Plywood Association.

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

Tacoma was the nation's leader in the plywood industry. Douglas Fir Plywood Association and the Plywood Research Foundation were working on developing new and additional products that could be manufactured from parts of the tree not already being utilized. View of two unidentified DFPA representatives at the annual DFPA conference, being held at the Winthrop Hotel; conference welcome sign in background.

Lumber industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; Business people--Tacoma--1940-1950; Meetings--Tacoma--1940-1950; Signs (Notices); Plywood; Hotel Winthrop (Tacoma); Douglas Fir Plywood Association (Tacoma);

DFPA. A workman is laying a plywood sub-floor at what is believed to be the Devlin home. The walls have been covered with plywood as well. An edge of a brick fireplace is seen on the right. Large floor-to-ceiling windows are seen on the left. The beams are left open on the ceiling. The home was being restored after purchase earlier in 1949.

Douglas Fir Plywood Association (Tacoma); Plywood; Devlin, Charles E.--Homes & haunts; Floors--Lakewood--1940-1950;

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 new Coe lathe was installed at the Puget Sound Plywood Company plant on Tacoma's tideflats in 1950. Four unidentified employees at the plant monitored the giant lathe which was used to peel a continuous sheet of thin veneer off a prepared log. The veneer sheets were then glued together to make plywood. When the Puget Sound Plywood plant at 230 East F Street was built in 1942, Tacoma was a major plywood manufacturing center with over half a dozen plywood factories. Puget Sound Plywood was the first cooperative plywood plant in Tacoma.

Puget Sound Plywood, Inc. (Tacoma); Lathes; Plywood; Lumber industry--Tacoma--1950-1960; Cooperatives--Tacoma;

Cold room constuction, Douglas Fir Plywood Association laboratory, Dave Countryman. Worker installing plywood panels on walls of foil insulated room on October 31, 1950.

Plywood; Douglas Fir Plywood Association (Tacoma);

Modular Structures, Incorporated was a structural engineering business firm, they worked on residential and commercial contracts. The company officers were: Win E. Wilson, President; James E. Dallas, Vice-President; and Mabel Wilson, Secretary-Treasurer. View of unidentified laborers working on prefabricated plywood panels that will be used for prefabricated grain bins; photo ordered by Douglas Fir Plywood Association.

Plywood; Laborers--Tacoma--1940-1950; Lumber industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; Industrial facilities--Tacoma; Construction industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; Douglas Fir Plywood Association (Tacoma)--Products; Modular Structures, Inc. (Tacoma);

St. Regis mills can be found in 23 locations across the United States, they have six plants in Canada, and one in Belgium, Brazil and Argentina. View of the St. Regis Paper Company's crew at Camp #2, located in Mineral, Washington; logs have been loaded onto trucks and will be transported to the Tacoma plant.

Loggers--1940-1950; Paper industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; Lumber industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; Logs; Firs; Forests--Mineral; Cutover lands--Mineral--1940-1950; Woodcutting--Mineral; Trucks--Mineral; St. Regis Paper Co. (Mineral);

Plywood veneer production for Bellingham Plywood Company. Exterior type fir plywood panels for boats and other outdoor uses are fed into a giant hot press. Heat and pressure "cure" the phenolic resin adhesive, producing an irreversible bond between the plys stronger than the wood itself. By 1950, there were 67 plywood mills in operation producing 2,553,652,000 feet of plywood. ("The Plywood Age" by Robert M. Cour)

Plywood; Lumber industry--Bellingham--1950-1960;

Several unidentified members of Tacoma's Chamber of Commerce paid a visit to the Danish motorship "Tacoma" when she docked at the Defiance Lumber Mill on her maiden voyage January 14, 1927. They posed with members of the crew for this portrait. The "Tacoma" was built in Copenhagen for the Orient Steamship Company of Copenhagen. She was loading Northwest lumber enroute to Japan. She was 400 feet in length with a beam of 55 feet. She ran under the power of two diesel engines with a crew of 15 officers and 34 crewmen. (TNT 1/14/1927, pg. 20) (WSHS)

Lumber industry--Tacoma--1920-1930; Cargo ships; Shipping--Tacoma--1920-1930; Orient Steamship Co. (Copenhagen); Commerce--Tacoma--1920-1930; Chamber of Commerce (Tacoma)--1920-1930;

Loading cut lumber from the docks onto the St. Paul and Tacoma Lumber Company's lumber ship "Lake Frances".

Lumber industry--Tacoma--1930-1940; St. Paul & Tacoma Lumber Co. (Tacoma); Cargo ships--Tacoma; Shipping--Tacoma--1930-1940;

One man sitting atop a large log with six men standing in front of the log, which is being transported on a rail car. In the 1930's, mammoth old growth trees were still being harvested to supply lumber and also to advertise the Northwest timber industry. This 700 year old giant was cut on the St. Paul & Tacoma Camp 5 holdings near the junction of the Puyallup & Mowitz Rivers. It was the largest seen at the mill in 15 years, 10 1/2 feet across and estimated at 45,790 board feet. If converted into lumber, this one tree could supply the wood for 4 good 5 room houses. However, due to advanced age and deterioration, 2/3 of the tree was unusable. The remainder was shipped to Olympia to peel for veneer. (T. Times 10/19/1935, pg. 1)

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

ca. 1936. West Coast Plywood Mill. Artistic view of buildings and structures at mill.

Lumber industry--Tacoma--1930-1940; West Coast Plywood Mill (Tacoma);

ca. 1937. Worker photographed applying adhesive and laying a plywood subfloor at an unidentified location, circa 1937. (filed with Argentum)

Plywood; Douglas Fir Plywood Association (Tacoma);

Members of the Western Retail Lumbermens' Association pose in February of 1927 in front of a little bungalow erected on the roof of the Winthrop Hotel in honor of the group's annual convention. The bungalow was made entirely of local wood and demonstrated its use in construction. When the 24th annual convention concluded February 26, 1927, new leaders had been elected for the coming year. Pictured leaders are, back row, left to right: George A. Heilman (Wyo.), H.J. Sawtelle (Mt.), W.B. Hussman (Idaho), I.G. Kjosness (Idaho), and R.O. Bushong (Ore.) Front row, left to right, F.C. Kendall (Spokane), J.W. Burt (Mt.), Robt M. Graham (Mt.), R.M. Cross (Utah) and E.J. Ostrander (Idaho.) (TDL 2/27/1927, pg. A-5; TNT 2/23/1927, pg. 7) (WSHS- negative A893-0)

Washington Lumber Dealers Association (Tacoma); Business people--Tacoma--1920-1930; Lumber industry--Tacoma--1920-1930; Hotel Winthrop (Tacoma);

Interior of Oregon Washington plywood plant at Garibaldi, Oregon. Stacks of odds and ends of wood dot the floor of this mostly empty warehouse. The warehouse seems to echo emptily with its exposed beams and hanging fluorescent lighting. Some strips of veneer are less than four feet wide. These are also dried and then edge-glued together into a continuous sheet and cut to panel size. ("The Challenge of Wood" BCFP's 1979 Annual Report)

Lumber industry--Oregon; Plywood; Oregon-Washington Plywood Co. (Garibaldi);

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, 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;

A man believed to be Arthur E. Gruhl, technician at the Fir Door Institute, tests a full sized door at the Plywood Research Foundation laboratory in September, 1951. Douglas Fir plywood was constantly being tested for durability and to maintain high standards of quality production. The Douglas Fir Plywood Association, based in Tacoma, set up the Plywood Research Foundation as an industry maintained quality control laboratory.

Plywood Research Foundation (Tacoma); Plywood; Doors & doorways--Tacoma; Lumber industry--Tacoma--1950-1960; Laboratories--Tacoma--1950-1960; Product inspection--Tacoma; Testing--Tacoma--1950-1960;