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;
A fire on the evening of June 15, 1942 completely destroyed the sawmill at the Henry Mill & Timber Co. Loss exceeded $200,000. The planer plant, warehouse and offices were saved. There were no injuries. (T.Times 6/16/1942, pg. 1)
Lumber industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; Henry Mill & Timber Co. (Tacoma); Fires--Tacoma--1940-1950;
On June 15, 1942, the sawmill at the Henry Mill and Timber Co. caught fire, the result of electrical problems. Quick action by the fire department managed to save the planer plant, warehouse and offices, but the sawmill was completely wiped out. Monetary loss was in excess of $200,000. No lives were lost; the sawmill was not operating due to a shortage of logs. (T.Times 6/16/1942, pg. 1)
Lumber industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; Henry Mill & Timber Co. (Tacoma); Fires--Tacoma--1940-1950;
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);
Henry Mill, construction of prefabricated trusses. Photograph shows piles of timber and a wood form that is being constructed at the Mill, located at the foot of Starr St., near the water. Sperry Mills, located on what is now Schuster Parkway, can be seen in the background. During the war, Henry Mill was active in lumber prefabrication.
Lumber industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; Trusses--Tacoma; Structural frames--Tacoma; Building construction--Tacoma; Henry Mill & Timber Co. (Tacoma);
Henry Mill, construction of trusses. Henry Mill & Timber Co. was located at the foot of Starr St., near the water. During World War II, they held a number of government contracts for prefabricated structures. This photo shows company officials standing in and around a wooden truss that is being built.
Lumber industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; Trusses--Tacoma; Structural frames--Tacoma; Building construction--Tacoma; Henry Mill & Timber Co. (Tacoma);
ca. 1942. The Henry Mill & Timber Co. plant was built at this location in 1924. They began operations in July of 1925 as a lumber mill. After a fire in 1942 and with the expanding fronts of World War II, the company began making a name for itself in the "prefabricated" market. They built buildings and hangars for the armed forces that only needed to be reassembled on arrival.
Lumber industry--Tacoma--1930-1940; Henry Mill & Timber Co. (Tacoma);
Henry Mill, construction of prefabricated trusses. Photograph shows piles of timber and a wood form that is being constructed at the Mill, located at the foot of Starr St., near the water. During the war, Henry Mill was active in lumber prefabrication.
Lumber industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; Trusses--Tacoma; Structural frames--Tacoma; Building construction--Tacoma; Henry Mill & Timber Co. (Tacoma);
Henry Mill was located at the foot of No. Starr St., right at the waterfront. It was on the 28 acre site of the old Tacoma MIll Co. During the war, Henry Mill specialized in prefabricated elements for the military. The company was taken over in 1945 by Tacoma Lumber Fabricating Co. The photograph shows lots of stored lumber as well as a couple of cranes.
Henry Mill and Timber Company. Burner and lumber storage dock along the Tacoma waterfront. Henry Mill began operations at this site in 1925. It was formerly the site of the Old Tacoma Mill Co. TPL-8381
Henry Mill and Timber Company along the Tacoma waterfront. Henry Mill began operations at this site in 1925. Prefabricated trusses can be seen in the foreground. During the World War II, the company specialized in prefabricated bridges and hangars for the military.
Henry Mill , box girder at end of new dock. Boards laid out in a diagonal pattern over straight boards, topped by boards going the opposite diagonal. Large nail-shaped spikes are shown near the edges. Large stacks of lumber on a pier, a shed, other buildings and a crane are seen in the background.
Henry Mill, box girder at end of new dock. Side-view detail of boards. Large nail-shaped spikes are shown near the edges may be spacers. Sign on one of the buildings in background says "Drifted Snow Flour".
Henry Mill Lumber, patterns and men. A group of men, some standing and and some sitting on a wooden workhorse, in a workroom. Large windows are behind them. TPL-6660
Group portraits--1940-1950; Henry Mill & Timber Co. (Tacoma); Lumber industry--Tacoma--1940-1950;
Mill workers and management at Henry Mill & Timber Company, prefabricators of heavy timber structures. The company began in 1925 as a sawmill and started fabricating structures with caisson panels for the first Narrows Bridge. At the beginning of World War II, Henry Mill was filling Army and Navy contracts for cantonments, shipyards and storehouses. They designed and built cargo barges and prefabricated massive navy blimp hangars. The large cranes behind the group are used to unload timber and load finished products onto railroad cars and ship. Each piece of lumber is processed In assembly line precision--the lumber is cut, trimmed, bored and groved, then each finished piece is stenciled (labeled) to fit precisely together on the building site. TPL-6399
Group portraits--1940-1950; Henry Mill & Timber Co. (Tacoma); Lumber industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; Prefabricated buildings; Hoisting machinery;
Mill workers and management at Henry Mill & Timber Company, prefabricators of heavy timber structures. The company began in 1925 as a sawmill, but grew during World War II when they specialized in prefabricated structures. They held Army and Navy contracts for cantonments, storehouses, cargo barges and blimp hangars. In October of 1943, workers were photographed preparing lumber for construction. In assembly line precision--the lumber was cut, trimmed, bored and groved, then each finished piece was stenciled (labeled) to fit precisely together on the building site. TPL-9386
Henry Mill & Timber Co. (Tacoma); Lumber industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; Prefabricated buildings;
ca. 1943. Built in 1924, the Henry Mill & Timber Company occupied the site on Ruston Way just south of North Starr St. for almost 20 years. Originally a sawmill, they started fabricating structures when they built the caisson panels for the first Narrows Bridge. Their expertise in designing and building prefabricated structures from heavy timber won them contracts during WWII for giant store houses and hangers that could be broken down into small sections, shipped, and re-assembled with a minimum of effort. After the war they were taken over by the Tacoma Lumber Fabricating Co. which closed in the early 1950s.
Henry Mill barge assembly. Henry Mill & Timber Co. products were used throughout Tacoma for many projects. The company was organized by W. Yale Henry, who also serves as president. View of Henry Mill & Timber Co. plant with lumber being used for a barge.
Lumber industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; Henry Mill & Timber Co. (Tacoma);
Henry Mill test assembly of J. O. 240. Henry Mill & Timber Co. is a leader in pre-fabricated lumber materials. They have several Army and Navy job contracts and through their well established assembly line they are able to speed up the needed materials for the war effort. View of assembly line for pre-fabricated lumber orders.
Assembly-line methods--Tacoma; Lumber industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; Henry Mill & Timber Co. (Tacoma);
Henry Mill test assembly of J. O. 240. Henry Mill & Timber Co. is a leader in pre-fabricated lumber materials. They have several Army and Navy job contracts and through their well established assembly line they are able to speed up the needed materials for the war effort. View of nine unidentified men inspecting assembled pre-fabricated lumber order.
Building materials industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; Lumber industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; Henry Mill & Timber Co. (Tacoma);
Henry Mill test assembly of J. O. 240. Henry Mill & Timber Co. is a leader in pre-fabricated lumber materials. They have several Army and Navy job contracts and through their well established assmbly line they are able to speed up the needed materials for the war effort. View of assembly line for pre-fabricated lumber orders.
Assembly-line methods--Tacoma; Lumber industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; Henry Mill & Timber Co. (Tacoma);
Henry Mill test assembly of J. O. 240. All lumber was cut, trimmed, bored and grooved if need be. The large open space allowed for job orders to be filled at a fast pace. View of laborer working on assembly line at Henry Mill Co. TPL-6515
Assembly-line methods--Tacoma; Lumber industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; Henry Mill & Timber Co. (Tacoma);
Henry Mill test assembly of J. O. 240. Henry Mill & Timber Co. was a leader in the pre-fabrication field. They had the capacity to fill large orders and fulfill government contracts in a timely manner. View of unidentified laborer working on the engineering details of this job order.
Assembly-line methods--Tacoma; Lumber industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; Henry Mill & Timber Co. (Tacoma);
Henry Mill shots of hardware and quantity. Henry Mill & Timber Co. was a leader in the pre-fabricated lumber field. Pre-fabricated lumber helped speed the war effort in filling their government orders. Henry Mill also had their products throughout Tacoma housing projects. Exterior view of Henry Mill & Timber Co. plant.
Henry Mill test assembly of truss. Henry Mill & Timber Co. specialized in pre-fabricated lumber products. They were a leader in the industry and received many government contracts. Exterior view of group examining assembly of truss. TPL-6661
Lumber industry--Tacoma--1940-1950;Trusses--Tacoma; Henry Mill & Timber Co. (Tacoma);
Henry Mill pictures for National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics. Henry Mill & Timber Co. is working on a frame, built out of pre-fabricated lumber products for the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics. The structure will be used for an airplane hangar and shop. Interior view of plant.
Henry Mill pictures for National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics. Henry Mill & Timber Co., a leader in the pre-fabricated lumber industry, is working on a contract to build an airplane hangar and shop. Interior view of plant with four unidentified men and one unidentified woman reviewing work plan.
Blueprints; Lumber industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; Henry Mill & Timber Co. (Tacoma);
