Side view of the Henry Mill & Timber Co. building with smoke pluming in the background. A more rustic wooden structure, crane and frame under construction are in the foreground.

Two men in suits and hats observe a laborer move lumber along a series of rollers outside.

ca. 1925. An elevated view of Defiance Lumber Company shows part of the facilities with a ship docked along Commencement Bay. The company was started in 1905 when L.L. Doud and others acquired a quarter of a mile of waterfront along the bay and installed the sawmill. In 1927 L.L. Doud was president of the company, Lee L. Doud served as secretary-treasurer and manager, and Donald H. Doud, sales manager. (TNT 8/10/1927) (filed with Argentum)

Defiance Lumber Co. (Tacoma); Lumber industry--Tacoma--1920-1930;

ca. 1927. Believed to be the Danish motorship "Tacoma." The motorship "Tacoma" arrived in Tacoma on January 14, 1927 on her maiden voyage and berthed at the Defiance Mill. The ship was built in Copenhagen for the Orient Steamship Co. 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; Defiance Lumber Co. (Tacoma); Cargo ships; Shipping--Tacoma--1920-1930; Orient Steamship Co. (Copenhagen); Commerce--Tacoma--1920-1930;

ca. 1927. Wheeler Osgood plant, circa 1927. A general elevated view of the door plant, with its various smokestacks, on the Tacoma tideflats with the bay in the background. The Wheeler-Osgood plant was opened in 1889 by George R. Osgood, W.C. Wheeler and D.D. Clark as a millworking plant. By 1927, the 37 year old company was the largest door factory in the world. The plant covered 14 acres, from St. Paul Ave. to the City Waterway, and employed 1500 people. It sawed all its own lumber and had an aerial line connecting the factory with the sawmill at the head of the City Waterway. The plant closed in 1952. It was demolished in the late 50's and caught fire in the process, burning to the ground. (filed with Argentum) (TNT 3/9/1927, pg. 13)

Wheeler, Osgood Co. (Tacoma); Lumber industry--Tacoma--1920-1930; Factories--Tacoma--1920-1930; Smokestacks--Tacoma--1920-1930;

The Mountain Lumber Company, February 1939. The Mountain Lumber Company, at 919 East F. Street, was built in 1924 and began cutting lumber in February of 1925. The main mill building was destroyed by fire in July of 1931. The company re-opened before the end of the year, and they were part of Tacoma's busy waterfront until the mid-1940s.

Mountain Lumber Co. (Tacoma); Lumber industry--Tacoma--1930-1940;

A workman at the Mountain Lumber Company stands on a stack of boards as a crane swings them through the air in this photograph from February 1939. The Mountain Lumber Company, at 919 East F. Street, was built in 1924 and began cutting lumber in February of 1925. The main mill building was destroyed by fire in July of 1931. The company re-opened before the end of the year, and they were part of Tacoma's busy waterfront until the mid-1940s.

Mountain Lumber Co. (Tacoma); Lumber industry--Tacoma--1930-1940;

Cyclone on new bunker at Ray Gamble's Pacific Wood Flour Company. Men on scaffolds constructing mental cyclone on an elevated frame building. A stylish automobile is parked in front of the factory.

Lumber industry--Tacoma--1930-1940; Pacific Wood Flour Co., Inc. (Tacoma); Automobiles--Tacoma--1930-1940;

Loading milled lumber from the dock 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;

St. Paul and Tacoma Lumber Company. Logs being dumped into log pond from railroad cars. (filed with Argentum)

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

St. Paul and Tacoma Lumber Company. Logs being dumped into log pond from railroad cars. (filed with Argentum)

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

St. Paul and Tacoma Lumber Company's lumber ship "Lake Francis" anchored off St. Paul [Lumber Co. ] dock; tall stacks of lumber await loading.

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

Log dump and stacks of lumber at St. Paul & Tacoma Lumber Company. Logs being hoisted by cable; waterway and warehouse buildings in background.

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

Log dump and stacks of lumber at St. Paul & Tacoma Lumber Company. Stacks of lumber products, warehouse buildings in background.

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

Assembly of St. Paul employees out on strike between 7 and 9:15 a.m. Automobile, several new, parked along street. Group of men milling around. Two-story, wood-frame building in background with large trees in median strip.

Lumber industry--Tacoma--1930-1940; St. Paul & Tacoma Lumber Co. (Tacoma); Strikes--Tacoma--1930-1940;

The Cheney Stud brand carries a stud horse imprinted on the ends and faces of Cheney Studs, it quickly became recognized throughout the industry as a sign of top quality. The demand for eight foot Cheney Studs dramatically increased while the availability of suitable tie lumber for the portable mills and the market for railroad ties decreased. Exterior view of Cheney plant, Cheney Studs are stacked up, hoisting machinery is in center.

Lumber industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; Lumberyards--Tacoma; Lumber--Tacoma; Building materials industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; Hoisting machinery; Industrial facilities--Tacoma; Cheney Lumber Co. (Tacoma);

Cheney Lumber Co. was a modern stud mill, providing Tacoma and national industries with the building material most needed. Cheney had been at their current site since 1942, they were located on the west side of Port of Tacoma Road, north of East 11th Street. Exterior view of pier with studs, laborers and hoisting pulleys and equipment.

Lumber industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; Lumberyards--Tacoma; Lumber--Tacoma; Building materials industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; Hoisting machinery; Industrial facilities--Tacoma; Cheney Lumber Co. (Tacoma);

Loading a shipment of lumber from Cheney Lumber Company was made easier by the Cheney's facilities and dock on Sitcum Waterway. Cranes could load directly from railroad cars with tracks on the dock. TPL-5677

Lumber industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; Lumberyards--Tacoma; Lumber--Tacoma; Building materials industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; Hoisting machinery; Industrial facilities--Tacoma; Cheney Lumber Co. (Tacoma);

Ben B. Cheney founded Cheney Lumber Co. in 1936. The Cheney Co. was originally established to manufacture railroad ties. Timber was purchased and resold to small portable tie mills manufacturing ties for both domestic and foreign markets. Cheney eventually set out to strategically redevelop the 12 foot stud, prices would drop and less lumber would be wasted, making the 8 foot stud quite popular. Exterior view of Cheney plant, lumberyard and docks.

Lumber industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; Lumberyards--Tacoma; Lumber--Tacoma; Building materials industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; Piers & wharves--Tacoma; Industrial facilities--Tacoma; Cheney Lumber Co. (Tacoma); Shipping--Tacoma--1940-1950;

Cheney Lumber Company. New construction of large residences on a cleared hillside.

Cheney Lumber Co. (Tacoma); Lumber industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; Dwellings--Tacoma--1940-1950; Construction--Tacoma--1940-1950;

Cheney Lumber Company. Three loggers in one of the Cheney Lumber camps prepare to bring down another large tree to be cut into lumber. Ben B. Cheney started the Cheney Lumber Company 1936. Prior to this time large amounts of wood were wasted in the production of railroad ties and studding used in construction. Mr. Cheney was troubled by this and had an idea that by making studding in a standard 8 foot length much of the waste could be saved. He went to the tie mills and bought their waste and cut it into studs, thereby making an industry. Cheney Lumber Company's 7 plants produced 1 million studs per day. Ben Cheney was credited with standardizing architecture in America with his methods for mass-producing studing. (TNT, 6/11/1960)

Cheney Lumber Co. (Tacoma); Lumber industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; Trees; Woodcutting;

Aerial view of Cheney Lumber Company, also the Port of Tacoma Dock with Cheney ties.

Cheney Lumber Co. (Tacoma); Port of Tacoma Dock (Tacoma); Aerial photographs; Ships--Tacoma--1940-1950; Piers & wharves--Tacoma--1940-1950; Marine terminals--Tacoma--1940-1950; Waterfronts; Industry--Tacoma--1940-1950;

Douglas Fir Plywood Association. Two men stand by a display for K-Veneer and its uses. Numerous new plywood products were exhibited such as surfacings for panels and combination products, some manufactured from sawdust and other substances previously considered waste. (T.Times, 6/11/1947, p.1)

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

Demonstration of farm machinery, Machinery Manufacturing and Sales Inc., Bob Airey. Logs are moved up to a portable sawmill along a chain conveyor belt. Men operate the machinery while others watch the machinery in operation. Harrison Brothers, building materials and excavating contractors, are seen on the adjacent property at 225 Wakefield Drive. Taller buildings are seen in the background. TPL-3826

Logs; Machinery; Machinery industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; Machinery Manufacturing & Sales, Inc. (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);

Douglas Fir Plywood Association, stages of plywood prefabricated panel manufacturing taken at Tacoma Lumber Fabricating Company. The panels were used to build prefabricated houses. Here workmen are placing one of the panels in a steel pressure press. This press is one of six the company owns. The company took over the location of the earlier Henry Mill in 1944. (T.Times, 11/6/1946, p.7)

Plywood; Building materials industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; Tacoma Lumber Fabricating Co. (Tacoma);

Douglas Fir Plywood Association, stages of plywood prefabricated panel manufacturing taken at Tacoma Lumber Fabricating Company. A framework for a one of the prefabricated panels is sent through a roller before being placed on a piece of plywood which will be the covering of one side of the panel. The prefabricated panels were manufactured in standard sized for floors, walls, ceilings, partitions, and roofs. They are freely adaptable to contractors' specification for all grades of houses. (T.Times, 11/6/1946, p.7)

Plywood; Building materials industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; Tacoma Lumber Fabricating Co. (Tacoma);

Douglas Fir Plywood Association, stages of plywood prefabricated panel manufacturing taken at Tacoma Lumber Fabricating Company. Men add another plywood cover to the side of the milled lumber frame interior of the prefabricated panel. The company's goal is to complete 1,000 panels per day, enough for 10 complete homes per day. (T.Times, 11/6/1946, p.7)

Plywood; Building materials industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; Tacoma Lumber Fabricating Co. (Tacoma);

Aerial view of Puget Sound Plywood, Inc., other plants, and the waterways on the Tacoma tideflats. Philadelphia Quartz has a new plant to make silicate of soda, a liquid mineral adhesive used extensively in manufacturing plywood and composition board. Puget Sound Plywood opened in March 1942. They were the first cooperative plywood plant in the city, organized by a group of Tacomans and others connected with and interested in the lumber industry. The plant occupied 3 1/2 acres at the head of East F Street and East E Street between the City and Middle waterways. With rail facilities direct to the plant, there were switching facilities to all railroads. (T.Times, 2/25/1942; Ledger, 1/25/1942)

Puget Sound Plywood, Inc. (Tacoma); Waterfronts--Tacoma--1940-1950; Plywood; Lumber industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; Cooperatives--Tacoma;

ca. 1946. The unveiling of the giant cross section of a tree trunk at the Northwest Door Company. In the summer of 1946, Northwest Door Co. cut down this tremendous old growth Douglas Fir tree southwest of Mt. Rainier. They shipped a cross section of the stump to their Tacoma plant. The tree was almost 14 feet in diameter. The small signs on either side of the section of tree show what years each ring represents and events that occurred that year. A crowd turned out in the rain to watch the unveiling of the log. The cross section of fir was moved in 1965 to the Lakewood branch of the Pierce County Library system.

Logs; Lumber industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; Northwest Door Co., Inc. (Tacoma); Tree stumps--Tacoma--1940-1950;