I worked for Pope & Talbot up in Portland for 7 years and I used to try to learn everything I could about lumber mills. I came across this mill in a video back in about 2006. I was mesmerized just watching it. Thank you.
Spent a many days running the edger, railing and running the bandsaw, stacking lumber, stacking squares and running the chipper. Back breaking work but taught me the value of hard work. My dad is still a Sawyer on a 60” circle saw at that same mill. God bless him.
If ever I need wood for a big project, I'll do what I can to support this mill. Old steam mills need our support and honestly it's just amazing how they do it. I can't recall how many time's I've marveled at the engineering prowess of our ancestors.
my dad worked for this outfit back in the late 70s, was a certified lumber grader. I worked at Ochoco in Prineville during the late 80s. Payed a lot better than what my peer group was making at the malls in bend and even working in those stove and spa stores that became so popular in the 90s. I worked most of the positions in an average sawmill/planer, and really, though it was boring most of the time, it was a pretty dang good occupation, as I needed lots of money to support my delights ... motocross ... water skiing... all that stuff we fellas spent our bucks on back before them stupid eye phones. sheesh .... the 'digital' age .... dont any of the guys buy 9mm handguns and sano hunting rifles and way, way too many tools anymore?? Great upload, brought back a lot great memories. Like when the KingPin fell out of the carriage on the 50thou lb forklift. I happened to see it when I set the two loads down on the planer chain. Good thing too, that might have made a mess, having the carriage fall off of that thing. nuff outta me. :-]
@@williscunningham3109 It's to soften the bark to make it easier for that older style debarker. Modern debarkers can do 11-18 logs per minute with dry logs.
I worked in this mill for 3 years and it was an experience. It reminded of the gyppo mills my Father worked at as a young man supporting a family. Yours truly pulled green-chain and did pull 4x12 to 4x16. It's good work, the people are good but doesn't pay much! I have worked in lumber mills for over 26 years and wouldn't change it for nothin'. I liked it !!
My father in law Donald worked for that mill on the green chain. Even after getting very sick they worked with him until shortly before he died. They treated him well and our family appreciates it. His grand son just watched this video with me a few minutes ago and was able to see the position Grandpa worked in action. I have some of the leathers he wore as he pulled chain. Thank you for posting the video for us all to see.
Credo che questa ditta sia un monumento da conservare e mostrare ai giovani che senza l'elettronica si era tecnologigici ugualmente. Documentario bellissimo.
I used to live in Monroe, and went to a private school that the owners of this mill helped keep running. We went to a field trip here. It was quite the experience. I don't live too far away, and do plan on visiting again.
I worked at the stud mill in Pondosa, Ca. near Mc Cloud at Mt Shasta. We still had a Tepe burner there and I loved the smell of the wood and the fire. The work was hard and fast and the whole crew lived in the mill town. This captures the feel of the place and I sure thank you for hanging in with those guys to shoot this. Thanks for the memories.
Back in 75 through 78 I worked in a saw mill just like that! Pulled green chain, tail sawed, ran the dry deck! You won't find these old saw mills around these days, but when you did, they separated the men from the boys when it came to who was not afraid of hard work and who was! This brought back some great memories.... Thank you for posting this as now I can show my son and a few others what it was like to work in a saw mill back in the day before automatic green chains where pulling 110k board feet of lumber with 6 guys in an 8 hour shift was something to be proud of! I can recall many the cold winter nights, working in 10 degree weather wearing nothing but a t-shirt and steaming like you were a smouldering human torch! Ah yes, the "good ol days"! Mills that stored their logs in the river or ponds (the one I worked at stored them in the river) those logs soak up a lot of water and out on the green chain, everything was heavy and the one by stuff was like pulling wet noodles! We pulled the dimensional stuff to, "cants" If I remember correctly, all the way up to 12x12 inch some at 18 to 20 feet long. A couple of weeks pulling those got you in shape! ;)
Reminds me of the mill town I grew up in.... Toledo Oregon... saw this type of activity all over Toledo, we had 3-5 mills in operation when I was growing up.. awesome thank you brought back some great memories
Toledo smells better since the pulp mill stopped operations, considered moving there in 1998 when I worked in Newport south of the bridge fixing vehicles. Lived in Florence and drove to Newport every day, made some money, and decided my employer was a complete jerk, so, I went to work for myself and been working that way ever since. Beware any employer that thinks farting in front of customers is funny, Lenard thought farting in front of customers was hilarious. His only talent was clogging the toilet, he thought that was funny as well. I might long for the old days, until I remember Lenard, than I come to my senses.
EXCELLENT VIDEO. I had the pleasure in 1996 to watch very large and LONG logs go through the mill to be used for some of the reconstruction of the USS Constitution. The logs were gathered by a local So.Or. logger from the forests of Jackson Co. Those timbers are now on the deck of that great old ship. Thanks Hull and Oakes for your help in this Great Project.
Great video. I used to see many huge trucks hauling timber while living in rural Washington state. Now I know where these timber went. Amazed to see such a large operation with so much automation. Hope this mill will stay forever!
My grandfather and grandmother grew up in the Monroe / Alpine area back in the 1880's and my grandmothers family, the Hortons who were loggers, used to bring logs out of the coast range with oxen ( I have pictures). I am a truck driver out of Coos Bay and back in the day when I was flat-bedding, I went into Hull-Oakes to pick up some loads. The guys that worked there were really great people. I think that the world needs places like Hull-Oakes to keep our sanity. May I be so honored to throw back a shot of whiskey and a beer chaser in memory of places like H-O's. Gerard Houck/Horton 😎👍
This has made my day best video of mill work ever ,I'm looking out at the snowy landscape outside my window and wish I was young again and could still do this work,Strange the things a man wishes for I once couldn't wait to retire ,now I wish I could still work ,this getting old ain't for sissies achecs pains and bullshit!!
It's comments like these that make a positive mindset for a 35 year old like me feeling bad sometimes working so god damn hard in the rain. But you also earn respect. Michael I hope you have a good day tomorrow and enjoy it.
I had the same thoughts my friend and I sure do agree with you about being retired along with the aches and pains.... God Bless my "brother of the mill"....
Myself included, I'm going back to remote Northern Ontario shortly to get back on the trains.. I started working young for the railroad up there in no man's land and yearn to be back up there whilst I still have a few more good years to pull it off! Cheers to you buddy, you've gave me inspiration...
Awesome. Very good video. Most of the Saw Mills are gone here in Southern Oregon. When I was much younger had the chance to work at Spalding & Son Lumber for several years. This brings back memories. Glad I found this video, made my day. Thanks
As a 18 year old, I worked for ITT Rayonier, in the pulp and paper mill in Hoquiam, Washington. My job that summer was working on the log rafts moving logs to the wood mill chipper crane with a bumper boat. We used 15 foot pike poles and the boat to sort out the logs and position them for the crane. Working the swing shift on the Chehalis River was the best job I had in the mill. We had a floating lunch shack out in the river that you couldn't get to unless the boat came to shore to pick you up. We wore caulk boots and ran on the logs just like my grandfather had done 60 years earlier.
I’ve worked in 2 sawmills. I know how to run 2 kinds of resaws and 2 kinds of edgers and many many other things. They are much harder than they seem and much more physical. Especially at 9,000 feet an hour cramped in a tiny mill
I was blessed to go thru the mill while they had a man riding the carriage, missed going throw it when they were still a steam mill Looks like a nice job on the new carriage for sure
My name is Rosie (Swanson) Kelley. My daddy Donald worked for y'all for a few years. Thank you so much for posting this. I really enjoyed watching it. I also thank all of y'all who came to daddy's funeral in 2009. He always talked about y'all as family. Again thank you for posting this. Brought back lots of wonderful memories
I lived about 2 miles from that mill for 12 yrs. BEAUTIFUL area and mill. There is a nearby park with a Table cut from a single piece of tree that is over 50' long
There was the wreck of one on the other side of the Trent River by the Howell tracks in New Bern... As kids we played in the sawdust silo... Looked like a giant rusty Tee Pee with a screen on top... Huge mountains of sawdust everywhere..... Awesome video!
Watched with ingress, pulled green chain 10 years . With a double cut head rig, &a single cut pony I'd would given my eye teeth for a day this slow. Was a great video .
Pulled green chain and was a boiler man in the summers at a mill in the PNW that had 2 steam shotgun head rigs. We averaged 80,000 board feet per day cutting 4 quarter pine 5 quarter shop. Milled closed 30 years ago. That pond is way too slow! Still is the smell of fresh cut.
Steam? Fascinating! I've worked in the sawmills and plywood plants and it's every bit as interesting, and dangerous, as it is portrayed in this well made video. Thank you!
I enjoyed every bit of that video I too worked in a saw mill for many years starting on the chain and eventually making it to the log yard and getting to run the boom boat and log stacker I sure miss those days. Great video
Great places, they don't get recognition , we all tend to take things for granted not realising how much hard work goes into mills and how much of a dangerous place it can be... Lovely to see work going on , may got bless you with more work for many more years to come ...
A great video. The hard work, and coordination of the workers is great. I would imagine the amount of maintenance needed to keep everything going is ever constant. With everyone working on computers all day long, it's rare to see physical work like this.
I always wanted to go back in time to when sawmills were steam powered. By the looks of the pick up trucks, my truck fits the bill. I've missed my calling. Thanks for the vid !!!!
thanks for the tour. I have driven by that mill many years ago when I lived close. I grew up in the lumber inustry and worked there myself in a couple of different mills in Albany. thanks again
I was an Apprentice millwright here when I was younger for 3 years. When I mixed to priest river idaho as a 4th year Apprentice they couldn't believe the skills I had acquired, I was instantly jumped up to journeyman millwright wages within 4 weeks.
Brings back memories. My first job out of high school was a logging/lumber mill operation. Hard to believe that was over 50 years ago and there are still mills in operation.
I love and have a huge interest / respect for the machines of the industrial revolution. Desire, will power, grit, determination, steel and steam. Awesome!
i worked in sawmill my favorite job i think ever.started stacking lumber jumped up to debarking in a cab with ac heat and stereo.was great ended up a sawyer running a big bandsaw cutting boards
Years ago I worked at Cascadian Crossarms and handled 4X10's that came from this mill, I've always been interested in what it looks like, so a big thanks!
Oregon boy I grew up in the whole area hunting stomping grounds for me. Hope you keep milling for ever more generations to go keep that mill running God bless USA
That's interesting to learn they operate a mill in addition to running a logging crew. A few years back Hull Oakes was logging an area I deer hunt. One morning I was getting ready to leave my pickup when a guy pulled up to the gate and offered me a ride to the top of the hill. I appreciated that because it's 2 miles uphill to where the hunting area starts. The guy was really nice, and the crew did a professional job. They added gravel and rolled the road when the job was done and made it perfect. Seems like a top notch outfit. Thanks for the video.
@@asymptoticsingularity9281 Ever walk in the wrong side of town after dark, in any city across the US? Yeah, I'd much rather be deep in Appalachia anyday.
I've been here, years ago. My father Dale Luke was an outside sales rep for Capital Industrial Supply in Salem, he used to call on these folks. Awesome.
The logs are stored in the pond until they are processed to keep the wood from cracking and reduce the bugs that will bore into wood. The quality is also much better. Our local saw mill uses a sprinkler system to keep the logs wet.
Thank you for answering my question, I know back in the day the companies would float them down stream but I didn't know they were stored in the water until use. Very interesting, thx
Tom Emard it might keep the bugs from boating into the logs but I bet the mosquitoes would eat u up.lol. I’d say that pond stinks bad with that old black water, whenever we get water standing around on our job or out the skid road with brush or chunks of wood laying in it when it gets black it smells like a pig pin.lol
Hello Peter. Thanks for taking the time out to make this short documentary. Very entertaining and educational. Always good to know where stuff comes from. Also the editing didn't`t go un-noticed. Respect from the ` UK `. John.
I found this guy through another video and ended up watching all 15 mins and I was like man I feel kinda lame and realized 5 million other people seen it too!
Chalupa batman definitely being seen by way more people than expected because TH-cam’s pushing it in the recommend videos after anything from Katy perry music videos or how to cook rice in five easy mins lol don’t feel bad
I saw that mill when I was a kid. Still remember the shaking wood floors, screaming saws and loved the sweet smell of fresh cut lumber. Had uncles and cousins who worked there and one of my cousins married one of the Hull boys. Check out the 1941 picture of the Hull and Oakes crew on their web site history. Four of my uncles are in that picture and another one of my cousins sawed the Doug Fir deck support beams for the restoration of the of the USS Constitution "Old Ironsides" in the 1990s. Have yet another cousin who still works there last I heard (saw him on another You Tube video). Thanks for the memories!
I am a Canadian. Many years ago I read a true story that was published in a well known magazine about a Father and Son family owned lumber mill such as this located in New England. The Owners, realizing that times were tough and work scarce, had taken out an important but low dollar contract that had a penalty clause that stated that the order had to be processed by no later than New Years Day. If the order wasn't complete there was a financial penalty that essentially removed all possible profit, maybe even causing a loss. Although the mill was going through some hardship, the mill Owners had promised their employees a full week of holidays from Christmas through New Years. There was lots of overtime worked but there had been some setbacks and when the workers went home on Christmas Eve the order was not yet complete. More than one worker offered to stay on and work a few hours more but the Owners said a promise was a promise and though their offer was appreciated, Christmas was for Family, and sent them home. The next morning, Christmas Day, the Son of the Owner Family received a phone call from the local Sheriff. It seems that to add insult to injury the mills gates had been broken open and he wanted the Owner to come down and see if anything was damaged or missing. When the Owner arrived, he was dumbfounded with what he saw and moved to tears. There was no damage nor was anything missing. Instead, what the owner saw was a mill in full operation. As it happens, every one of his Employees had shown up for work on Christmas Day to complete the order. You see, they knew how important that order was. They knew that the cost of not completing that order would be a great financial burden for their Employers. They knew that their Employers were honest and decent men who were not getting rich and that they looked on their workers as Family so out of respect and yes, love, they decided to move Christmas day to a day later. So now, in these troubled times, you, as an American, might want to think about this story. The people are what made America what it is, not some blowhard with a bad haircut making empty promises and making his rich friends richer. Maybe it's time for Americans to stop their petty bickering and work together as a team, as a Family, to take back their birthright from those who will take it all away if they can.............
Very moving story, definitely different time qith different caliber of people. You sacrifice yourself for a company now and they will just take advantage of you. There is no more teamwork. Only greedy hand wringing financiers looking for every last dollar and gdp percent. I hate sometimes i was born into these times with very few honest people left. Thanks for that story.
Scooter Tramp ok, right. Good luck with that. Just recently a few Democrat politicians, in reference to President Trump’s “Make America Great Again” slogan during his 2016 election, have come out and said America was never that great. I know in my 61 year life I have worked with a lot of great people, and there’s a lot more great ones I have never met. But when you have the politicians elected to represent our country, and putting it down wholeheartedly to the world, and the average person not being heard, there is not much that can be done. To hell with the politicians that don’t support our great country. They are only there to line their own pockets. And to hell with any other person on the planet that also thinks the USA is not great.🇺🇸
I live in Medford and we need these industries to come back. High skilled work and lower lumber prices! Either that or we can all sit and watch it burn. Right now we are surrounded by a dozen fires burning and can't really go outside. Bring back sensible logging to Oregon.
Trump is raising tarrifs to bring it back. During the last Bush term George did away with teriffs here at the ME Canada boarder, in exchange for millions in his personal bank account. Our country has been sold, and Trump is buying it back. The same goes with steel if we can not afford to buy it we will have to make it again, this makes us stronger in the long run.
Logging is coming back thanks to the bark beetles. I'm seeing logging trucks on the California roads for the first time in decades. Both the logging companies AND the environmentalists want the dead trees out of there.
@@bacilluscereus1299 The environmentalists don't make money from the catastrophe, they have only said that the dead trees should go. Otherwise you're going to have a whole forest of dead and dry Christmas trees waiting for an excuse to explode.
Considering its age, it is astounding how efficient it is. Those board cuts were lightning-fast. 3 guys just on that portion of the process. I'm impressed. Ive been to modern mills where they've eliminated many of those tasks and I'm not a fan of those. This place actually employs a few people. Huge Fan!
nice video! I worked in a saw mill in the Northeast in the late 70's early 80's as one of my first real jobs. started in the green shed and soon ran the resaw/edger , debarker, end trim saws then the head saw which was the best with all the hydraulics , air power and Electric power at your fingertips not to mention the foot pedals on the floor to operate. pretty much a lost art now with Big Corps. running everything by computer and little manpower.
Really enjoyed watching this video and some of the comments from people who worked there.Surprised that just about everything is automated but still need a lot of hands aboard to make this well run Mill produce what it does and keep things moving smoothly.
I thought that looked familiar. I worked there in the late 1970's as a diesel mechanic. Lots of simple ways to get killed in a mill. This place had them all.
The one I worked at back in the 70s was bigger, but just like this one and you are 100% correct about the number of ways a saw mill will kill you if you are not paying attention! I had a couple of close calls while tail sawing and there is no excitement like the kind generated when that big ban saw about 8 feet away doing 3500 rpm or so, hits a rock that the tree log being cut grew up around! The teeth flies off that saw blade like machinegun fire! ;)
I did too, I was chief engineer in a mill in New Zealand ,when I started there we were cutting purely native timber , with twin circular saws each 5 feet diameter. The mill was stripped and rebuilt with the same size carriage and a 9ft diameter head rig band saw . In the first few days of operation the new saw ran a bearing .Watching a 9ft diameter wheel wobbling is pretty exciting , then once we got her running again we had a large pine come through, half way through the log, the band hit a singer sewing machine that the tree had grown round! the band broke in half and shot out across the mill like a big steel snake!.
Delightful reminder of my days as a kid playing around the log ponds in Oregon (when no one was working). I knew it was dangerous and never walked on any except the biggest, most stable logs. I was afraid of stepping on a smaller log that would move with my weight and if I slipped and fell between the logs I wouldn't be here today. No, I would NOT do it again.
I WAS scared and I couldn't swim but you know how kids are; they just WANT to do what they think would be fun. That was around 1950 or 1951 and I haven't done it since then. The big logs barely moved when I stepped on them but the smaller logs bobbed around so I stayed off them. One this that was fun (years later) was watching (from a distance) the plywood mills spinning logs while veneer panels were cut. There are videos on youtube.
Loud and dangerous work. Good people all of them, too. I can almost smell the fresh cut wood. That's one of the best smells on earth. Thanks! Great video.
When I was 17 used to be the one pulling the trimmings off the line from the main saw and putting through the trimmer. There was a big belt behind me a twin blade trimmer to my left. The controller to the right and in front of him a big circular cutting blade.
Why do they put the logs in the water, float them a small ways and then take them back out again? Instead that tractor taking the logs off the truck and then tossing the load into the river should unload each log and place it right on the conveyor belt. What am I missing?
@@gregorys6838 Keeps the logs from drying out and splitting and washes dirt, rocks, and mud off the wood which plays havoc with the saw blades. The logs are easier to handle in the water than on land.
@@royreynolds108 Thank you. In that one image, it was like they put the logs in the water and then took them back out again like 100 yards down from the point of entry into the water. Seemed odd to me. Appreciate your response. Be safe.
Love that little log boat, I want one. I have been a great fan of steam since I don't know how long. Got a book I got in 1975, and was a fan long before that.
I worked for Pope & Talbot up in Portland for 7 years and I used to try to learn everything I could about lumber mills. I came across this mill in a video back in about 2006. I was mesmerized just watching it. Thank you.
Spent a many days running the edger, railing and running the bandsaw, stacking lumber, stacking squares and running the chipper. Back breaking work but taught me the value of hard work. My dad is still a Sawyer on a 60” circle saw at that same mill. God bless him.
I’ve hauled lumber out of this mill almost 20 years ago. Som of the best looking timbers I’ve ever seen come from there!
If ever I need wood for a big project, I'll do what I can to support this mill. Old steam mills need our support and honestly it's just amazing how they do it. I can't recall how many time's I've marveled at the engineering prowess of our ancestors.
my dad worked for this outfit back in the late 70s, was a certified lumber grader. I worked at Ochoco in Prineville during the late 80s. Payed a lot better than what my peer group was making at the malls in bend and even working in those stove and spa stores that became so popular in the 90s.
I worked most of the positions in an average sawmill/planer, and really, though it was boring most of the time, it was a pretty dang good occupation, as I needed lots of money to support my delights ... motocross ... water skiing... all that stuff we fellas spent our bucks on back before them stupid eye phones.
sheesh .... the 'digital' age .... dont any of the guys buy 9mm handguns and sano hunting rifles and way, way too many tools anymore??
Great upload, brought back a lot great memories.
Like when the KingPin fell out of the carriage on the 50thou lb forklift. I happened to see it when I set the two loads down on the planer chain. Good thing too, that might have made a mess, having the carriage fall off of that thing.
nuff outta me. :-]
Does this mill have steam engines or a steam turbine?
Question... I want to know why do they put the logs into the water? Is it because of logistics and storage or something else?
@@williscunningham3109 It's to soften the bark to make it easier for that older style debarker. Modern debarkers can do 11-18 logs per minute with dry logs.
I worked in this mill for 3 years and it was an experience. It reminded of the gyppo mills my Father worked at as a young man supporting a family. Yours truly pulled green-chain and did pull 4x12 to 4x16. It's good work, the people are good but doesn't pay much! I have worked in lumber mills for over 26 years and wouldn't change it for nothin'. I liked it !!
My father in law Donald worked for that mill on the green chain. Even after getting very sick they worked with him until shortly before he died. They treated him well and our family appreciates it. His grand son just watched this video with me a few minutes ago and was able to see the position Grandpa worked in action. I have some of the leathers he wore as he pulled chain. Thank you for posting the video for us all to see.
MAKAROVOWNER sorry for your loss. It's great that the little guy got to see what his Grandad did.
American people is truly hardworking people in Europ we are just love to think that about as but truth is my first conclusion. Sory for bad English.
O
9
Please will you tell me why they throw the trees in the water
MAKAROVOWNER iiiiiiii
Credo che questa ditta sia un monumento da conservare e mostrare ai giovani che senza l'elettronica si era tecnologigici ugualmente. Documentario bellissimo.
I used to live in Monroe, and went to a private school that the owners of this mill helped keep running. We went to a field trip here. It was quite the experience. I don't live too far away, and do plan on visiting again.
I worked at the stud mill in Pondosa, Ca. near Mc Cloud at Mt Shasta. We still had a Tepe burner there and I loved the smell of the wood and the fire. The work was hard and fast and the whole crew lived in the mill town. This captures the feel of the place and I sure thank you for hanging in with those guys to shoot this. Thanks for the memories.
I drove out to the mill on March 14, 2018... still cranking out big timbers. Way to go guys!
Bob Frazier I just have one question you say you you don't like an
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Back in 75 through 78 I worked in a saw mill just like that! Pulled green chain, tail sawed, ran the dry deck! You won't find these old saw mills around these days, but when you did, they separated the men from the boys when it came to who was not afraid of hard work and who was! This brought back some great memories.... Thank you for posting this as now I can show my son and a few others what it was like to work in a saw mill back in the day before automatic green chains where pulling 110k board feet of lumber with 6 guys in an 8 hour shift was something to be proud of! I can recall many the cold winter nights, working in 10 degree weather wearing nothing but a t-shirt and steaming like you were a smouldering human torch! Ah yes, the "good ol days"!
Mills that stored their logs in the river or ponds (the one I worked at stored them in the river) those logs soak up a lot of water and out on the green chain, everything was heavy and the one by stuff was like pulling wet noodles! We pulled the dimensional stuff to, "cants" If I remember correctly, all the way up to 12x12 inch some at 18 to 20 feet long. A couple of weeks pulling those got you in shape! ;)
Reminds me of the mill town I grew up in.... Toledo Oregon... saw this type of activity all over Toledo, we had 3-5 mills in operation when I was growing up.. awesome thank you brought back some great memories
Toledo smells better since the pulp mill stopped operations, considered moving there in 1998 when I worked in Newport south of the bridge fixing vehicles.
Lived in Florence and drove to Newport every day, made some money, and decided my employer was a complete jerk, so, I went to work for myself and been working that way ever since.
Beware any employer that thinks farting in front of customers is funny, Lenard thought farting in front of customers was hilarious. His only talent was clogging the toilet, he thought that was funny as well. I might long for the old days, until I remember Lenard, than I come to my senses.
EXCELLENT VIDEO. I had the pleasure in 1996 to watch very large and LONG logs go through the mill to be used for some of the reconstruction of the USS Constitution. The logs were gathered by a local So.Or. logger from the forests of Jackson Co. Those timbers are now on the deck of that great old ship. Thanks Hull and Oakes for your help in this Great Project.
That's awesome!
Great video. I used to see many huge trucks hauling timber while living in rural Washington state. Now I know where these timber went. Amazed to see such a large operation with so much automation. Hope this mill will stay forever!
My grandfather and grandmother grew up in the Monroe / Alpine area back in the 1880's and my grandmothers family, the Hortons who were loggers, used to bring logs out of the coast range with oxen ( I have pictures). I am a truck driver out of Coos Bay and back in the day when I was flat-bedding, I went into Hull-Oakes to pick up some loads. The guys that worked there were really great people. I think that the world needs places like Hull-Oakes to keep our sanity. May I be so honored to throw back a shot of whiskey and a beer chaser in memory of places like H-O's. Gerard Houck/Horton 😎👍
This has made my day best video of mill work ever ,I'm looking out at the snowy landscape outside my window and wish I was young again and could still do this work,Strange the things a man wishes for I once couldn't wait to retire ,now I wish I could still work ,this getting old ain't for sissies achecs pains and bullshit!!
It's comments like these that make a positive mindset for a 35 year old like me feeling bad sometimes working so god damn hard in the rain. But you also earn respect. Michael I hope you have a good day tomorrow and enjoy it.
I had the same thoughts my friend and I sure do agree with you about being retired along with the aches and pains.... God Bless my "brother of the mill"....
Myself included, I'm going back to remote Northern Ontario shortly to get back on the trains.. I started working young for the railroad up there in no man's land and yearn to be back up there whilst I still have a few more good years to pull it off! Cheers to you buddy, you've gave me inspiration...
Michael Richter z
Awesome. Very good video. Most of the Saw Mills are gone here in Southern Oregon. When I was much younger had the chance to work at Spalding & Son Lumber for several years. This brings back memories. Glad I found this video, made my day. Thanks
That's what I want to hear! Actual sounds of something being made.Finally! Thanks.
As a 18 year old, I worked for ITT Rayonier, in the pulp and paper mill in Hoquiam, Washington. My job that summer was working on the log rafts moving logs to the wood mill chipper crane with a bumper boat. We used 15 foot pike poles and the boat to sort out the logs and position them for the crane. Working the swing shift on the Chehalis River was the best job I had in the mill. We had a floating lunch shack out in the river that you couldn't get to unless the boat came to shore to pick you up. We wore caulk boots and ran on the logs just like my grandfather had done 60 years earlier.
Beautiful. Mill workers rarely get the respect they deserve.
As someone who works in a sawmill in northern CA, I thank you.
Really good ones don't need no stinkin' re-spect.
We got SELF Respect!!!
Bob Frazier ho
Highly skilled , highly dangerous work !
I’ve worked in 2 sawmills. I know how to run 2 kinds of resaws and 2 kinds of edgers and many many other things. They are much harder than they seem and much more physical. Especially at 9,000 feet an hour cramped in a tiny mill
I was blessed to go thru the mill while they had a man riding the carriage, missed going throw it when they were still a steam mill Looks like a nice job on the new carriage for sure
My name is Rosie (Swanson) Kelley. My daddy Donald worked for y'all for a few years. Thank you so much for posting this. I really enjoyed watching it. I also thank all of y'all who came to daddy's funeral in 2009. He always talked about y'all as family. Again thank you for posting this. Brought back lots of wonderful memories
MAKAROVOWNER ma'am, sorry for the loss of your pop. If he worked with guys he considered family, he was a lucky man. God Bless.
I lived about 2 miles from that mill for 12 yrs. BEAUTIFUL area and mill. There is a nearby park with a Table cut from a single piece of tree that is over 50' long
Wow what a great old sawmill glad to see it is still going.
My inner bear honks your nose!
There was the wreck of one on the other side of the Trent River by the Howell tracks in New Bern... As kids we played in the sawdust silo... Looked like a giant rusty Tee Pee with a screen on top... Huge mountains of sawdust everywhere..... Awesome video!
This is one of the coolest videos i have seen in a long time.
Badmlinton of hong kong
Badmlnton òf hong kong
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It is great to see a good old mill operate, It looks like they have great logs and a skilled work force thanks for showing us this video
Watched with ingress, pulled green chain 10 years . With a double cut head rig, &a single cut pony I'd would given my eye teeth for a day this slow. Was a great video .
Ugh, pulling green was everyone’s first job at the mills in Klamath Falls where I grew up, you get one hell of a workout yanking soggy scraps, lol.
Pulled green chain and was a boiler man in the summers at a mill in the PNW that had 2 steam shotgun head rigs. We averaged 80,000 board feet per day cutting 4 quarter pine 5 quarter shop. Milled closed 30 years ago. That pond is way too slow! Still is the smell of fresh cut.
Steam? Fascinating! I've worked in the sawmills and plywood plants and it's every bit as interesting, and dangerous, as it is portrayed in this well made video. Thank you!
Not only is this interesting and informative - your video production quality is excellent.
I enjoyed every bit of that video I too worked in a saw mill for many years starting on the chain and eventually making it to the log yard and getting to run the boom boat and log stacker I sure miss those days. Great video
The debarker looks absolutely medieval. I love it!
Yeah, it looks like an old Nicholson A3. They were beasts.
Very impressive, the public has no idea how much yall do, appreciate !
That is too cool! Amazing the amount of moving parts, chains, gears , bearings, motors etc. Awesome timbers there at the end!
Great places, they don't get recognition , we all tend to take things for granted not realising how much hard work goes into mills and how much of a dangerous place it can be...
Lovely to see work going on , may got bless you with more work for many more years to come ...
I only can imagine the wood smell.I love that smell.it's bin a long time since I've been in saw mill
I used to live just downwind of a small lumber mill. Smelled so good during the summer.
bicanroman The smell of wood is part of why I love working with it.
A great video. The hard work, and coordination of the workers is great. I would imagine the amount of maintenance needed to keep everything going is ever constant. With everyone working on computers all day long, it's rare to see physical work like this.
This guy is the master of all bumper boat competitions.
I always wanted to go back in time to when sawmills were steam powered.
By the looks of the pick up trucks, my truck fits the bill. I've missed my calling.
Thanks for the vid !!!!
That was impressive..just sitting thinking.THE LAST ONE in the USA thank you for keeping this alive and for sharing. Take care.
Not the last one. Check out Mr. Shoptaw here on TH-cam. He has videos of the Phillips Brothers sawmill in California. Good stuff.
thanks for the tour. I have driven by that mill many years ago when I lived close. I grew up in the lumber inustry and worked there myself in a couple of different mills in Albany. thanks again
I've thoroughly enjoyed watching this.
I was an Apprentice millwright here when I was younger for 3 years. When I mixed to priest river idaho as a 4th year Apprentice they couldn't believe the skills I had acquired, I was instantly jumped up to journeyman millwright wages within 4 weeks.
Brings back memories. My first job out of high school was a logging/lumber mill operation. Hard to believe that was over 50 years ago and there are still mills in operation.
Jim Dudder yup, I’m with yah. I was a logger and a lumber inspector back in the early 70s
I love and have a huge interest / respect for the machines of the industrial revolution. Desire, will power, grit, determination, steel and steam. Awesome!
i worked in sawmill my favorite job i think ever.started stacking lumber jumped up to debarking in a cab with ac heat and stereo.was great ended up a sawyer running a big bandsaw cutting boards
Years ago I worked at Cascadian Crossarms and handled 4X10's that came from this mill, I've always been interested in what it looks like, so a big thanks!
Fascinating. Never actually seen a sawmill in operation before. Good video.
Oregon boy I grew up in the whole area hunting stomping grounds for me. Hope you keep milling for ever more generations to go keep that mill running God bless USA
Awesome video! This is the best walk through of the lumber mill process I've seen.
loved the video i worked in a saw mill 40 years ago with a similar set up without the steam best hour spent in a few days
That's interesting to learn they operate a mill in addition to running a logging crew. A few years back Hull Oakes was logging an area I deer hunt. One morning I was getting ready to leave my pickup when a guy pulled up to the gate and offered me a ride to the top of the hill. I appreciated that because it's 2 miles uphill to where the hunting area starts. The guy was really nice, and the crew did a professional job. They added gravel and rolled the road when the job was done and made it perfect. Seems like a top notch outfit. Thanks for the video.
Whoever their feller is, his hinge wood kerf is perfect.
Be careful out there. Have you ever seen the movie Deliverance?
@@asymptoticsingularity9281
Ever walk in the wrong side of town after dark, in any city across the US?
Yeah, I'd much rather be deep in Appalachia anyday.
@@1neAdam12 Considering this is from Oregon, he might have a valid point. The weird shit just gets more weirder
@@asymptoticsingularity9281 well i left out the part about the bloodybuttstuff at sunrise, sorry to ruin your fantasy
I've been here, years ago. My father Dale Luke was an outside sales rep for Capital Industrial Supply in Salem, he used to call on these folks. Awesome.
Old school beehive sawdust burner. Got to love stumbling across these and knowing that there used to be a mill there.
Loved this video! Thank you for just having shop noises and not music overlay. Very interesting and pleasant to watch.
Great video. I worked in a mill in the mid 1970's. A lot like this one but it was all electric - we generated all our own power from wood waste...
Joe Burks
Having made my living since the late 60`s as a carpenter I very much enjoyed that, thank you.
Fascinating. Very glad I watched that. Keep it up y'all!
Hey Peter Thank's for taking us along!! great video
The logs are stored in the pond until they are processed to keep the wood from cracking and reduce the bugs that will bore into wood. The quality is also much better. Our local saw mill uses a sprinkler system to keep the logs wet.
Thank you for answering my question, I know back in the day the companies would float them down stream but I didn't know they were stored in the water until use. Very interesting, thx
But the logs would be wet and heavy to cut
Does it make the bark any easier to remove?
Tom Emard ù€ Pour
Tom Emard it might keep the bugs from boating into the logs but I bet the mosquitoes would eat u up.lol. I’d say that pond stinks bad with that old black water, whenever we get water standing around on our job or out the skid road with brush or chunks of wood laying in it when it gets black it smells like a pig pin.lol
Hello Peter.
Thanks for taking the time out to make this short documentary. Very entertaining and educational. Always good to know where stuff comes from.
Also the editing didn't`t go un-noticed.
Respect from the ` UK `.
John.
I found this guy through another video and ended up watching all 15 mins and I was like man I feel kinda lame and realized 5 million other people seen it too!
Chalupa batman definitely being seen by way more people than expected because TH-cam’s pushing it in the recommend videos after anything from Katy perry music videos or how to cook rice in five easy mins lol don’t feel bad
I hope this guys monetized haha
Watching from India, you are the best country. Interesting, you have everything out there, US is truly being blessed by God... 👍
That little boat looked like a blast!
I saw that mill when I was a kid. Still remember the shaking wood floors, screaming saws and loved the sweet smell of fresh cut lumber. Had uncles and cousins who worked there and one of my cousins married one of the Hull boys. Check out the 1941 picture of the Hull and Oakes crew on their web site history. Four of my uncles are in that picture and another one of my cousins sawed the Doug Fir deck support beams for the restoration of the of the USS Constitution "Old Ironsides" in the 1990s. Have yet another cousin who still works there last I heard (saw him on another You Tube video). Thanks for the memories!
The little tender boat is awesome.
thought it was a hovercraft at first lol
What a great video of a sawmill from being to end of how its made, thank you for making this.
How I ended up watching this will forever remain a mystery...but very interesting =)
Can you imagine listening to that for 8 - 10 hours a day?
I am a Canadian. Many years ago I read a true story that was published in a well known magazine about a Father and Son family owned lumber mill such as this located in New England. The Owners, realizing that times were tough and work scarce, had taken out an important but low dollar contract that had a penalty clause that stated that the order had to be processed by no later than New Years Day. If the order wasn't complete there was a financial penalty that essentially removed all possible profit, maybe even causing a loss. Although the mill was going through some hardship, the mill Owners had promised their employees a full week of holidays from Christmas through New Years. There was lots of overtime worked but there had been some setbacks and when the workers went home on Christmas Eve the order was not yet complete. More than one worker offered to stay on and work a few hours more but the Owners said a promise was a promise and though their offer was appreciated, Christmas was for Family, and sent them home.
The next morning, Christmas Day, the Son of the Owner Family received a phone call from the local Sheriff. It seems that to add insult to injury the mills gates had been broken open and he wanted the Owner to come down and see if anything was damaged or missing. When the Owner arrived, he was dumbfounded with what he saw and moved to tears. There was no damage nor was anything missing. Instead, what the owner saw was a mill in full operation. As it happens, every one of his Employees had shown up for work on Christmas Day to complete the order. You see, they knew how important that order was. They knew that the cost of not completing that order would be a great financial burden for their Employers. They knew that their Employers were honest and decent men who were not getting rich and that they looked on their workers as Family so out of respect and yes, love, they decided to move Christmas day to a day later.
So now, in these troubled times, you, as an American, might want to think about this story. The people are what made America what it is, not some blowhard with a bad haircut making empty promises and making his rich friends richer. Maybe it's time for Americans to stop their petty bickering and work together as a team, as a Family, to take back their birthright from those who will take it all away if they can.............
Very moving story, definitely different time qith different caliber of people. You sacrifice yourself for a company now and they will just take advantage of you. There is no more teamwork. Only greedy hand wringing financiers looking for every last dollar and gdp percent. I hate sometimes i was born into these times with very few honest people left. Thanks for that story.
Whole story very moving. Dedication & teamwork, family &respect.
Last paragraph is 100% spot on correct.
Scooter Tramp ok, right. Good luck with that. Just recently a few Democrat politicians, in reference to President Trump’s “Make America Great Again” slogan during his 2016 election, have come out and said America was never that great. I know in my 61 year life I have worked with a lot of great people, and there’s a lot more great ones I have never met. But when you have the politicians elected to represent our country, and putting it down wholeheartedly to the world, and the average person not being heard, there is not much that can be done. To hell with the politicians that don’t support our great country. They are only there to line their own pockets. And to hell with any other person on the planet that also thinks the USA is not great.🇺🇸
Take your anti-Trump comments and cram them.
I live the smell of fresh cut lunber. Thank you for the tour.
I loved watching that boatman. I would like to see more about it and how it worked.
Like watching a surgeon at work. Excellent stuff.
the little boat never gets abused
Pretty awesome there arent many mills take old growth. Whitman lumber company is another one. Great respect.
What about winter ❄️ time?
The show goes on.
I would say the maintenance and repairs on this operation is massive.
i could watch this all day.
A hive of activity what a great film, thank you you really got the ambiance of the place.🇬🇧🇺🇸
I live in Medford and we need these industries to come back. High skilled work and lower lumber prices! Either that or we can all sit and watch it burn. Right now we are surrounded by a dozen fires burning and can't really go outside. Bring back sensible logging to Oregon.
Amen. And in Kali, too.
Trump is raising tarrifs to bring it back. During the last Bush term George did away with teriffs here at the ME Canada boarder, in exchange for millions in his personal bank account. Our country has been sold, and Trump is buying it back. The same goes with steel if we can not afford to buy it we will have to make it again, this makes us stronger in the long run.
Chris Beard first you've gotta get rid of the nutcases in portland & seattle.
Logging is coming back thanks to the bark beetles. I'm seeing logging trucks on the California roads for the first time in decades. Both the logging companies AND the environmentalists want the dead trees out of there.
@@bacilluscereus1299 The environmentalists don't make money from the catastrophe, they have only said that the dead trees should go. Otherwise you're going to have a whole forest of dead and dry Christmas trees waiting for an excuse to explode.
I worked at a similar to this growing up as a young adult probably one of the best jobs I've ever had in my entire life
Pretty cool looking mill. That’s definitely a different way to send lots into a mill for sure.
I just binged watched all of your videos. Truly amazing!
Considering its age, it is astounding how efficient it is. Those board cuts were lightning-fast. 3 guys just on that portion of the process. I'm impressed. Ive been to modern mills where they've eliminated many of those tasks and I'm not a fan of those. This place actually employs a few people. Huge Fan!
nice video! I worked in a saw mill in the Northeast in the late 70's early 80's as one of my first real jobs. started in the green shed and soon ran the resaw/edger , debarker, end trim saws then the head saw which was the best with all the hydraulics , air power and Electric power at your fingertips not to mention the foot pedals on the floor to operate. pretty much a lost art now with Big Corps. running everything by computer and little manpower.
Fantastic video, great area too.
Really enjoyed watching this video and some of the comments from people who worked there.Surprised that just about everything is automated but still need a lot of hands aboard to make this well run Mill produce what it does and keep things moving smoothly.
I thought that looked familiar. I worked there in the late 1970's as a diesel mechanic. Lots of simple ways to get killed in a mill. This place had them all.
including workers wearing no hi-viz clothing at all. I didn't even see some of them in some of the shots until they started moving.
Decimus
LegendLength
The one I worked at back in the 70s was bigger, but just like this one and you are 100% correct about the number of ways a saw mill will kill you if you are not paying attention! I had a couple of close calls while tail sawing and there is no excitement like the kind generated when that big ban saw about 8 feet away doing 3500 rpm or so, hits a rock that the tree log being cut grew up around! The teeth flies off that saw blade like machinegun fire! ;)
I did too, I was chief engineer in a mill in New Zealand ,when I started there we were cutting purely native timber , with twin circular saws each 5 feet diameter. The mill was stripped and rebuilt with the same size carriage and a 9ft diameter head rig band saw . In the first few days of operation the new saw ran a bearing .Watching a 9ft diameter wheel wobbling is pretty exciting , then once we got her running again we had a large pine come through, half way through the log, the band hit a singer sewing machine that the tree had grown round! the band broke in half and shot out across the mill like a big steel snake!.
This work looks hard as hell, and dangerous. And I am sure it has gotten safer over the past few decades. Hat's off to y'all.
Lil tug boat is coolest of all. I bet the guy that runs it could dominate bumper cars at Six Flags.
if this place ever goes out of business, I hope it can be maintained as a museum.
WOW now that is a Sawmill!
Reel McCoy .
Delightful reminder of my days as a kid playing around the log ponds in Oregon (when no one was working). I knew it was dangerous and never walked on any except the biggest, most stable logs. I was afraid of stepping on a smaller log that would move with my weight and if I slipped and fell between the logs I wouldn't be here today. No, I would NOT do it again.
i would be scared of my head being popped between 2 logs
I WAS scared and I couldn't swim but you know how kids are; they just WANT to do what they think would be fun. That was around 1950 or 1951 and I haven't done it since then. The big logs barely moved when I stepped on them but the smaller logs bobbed around so I stayed off them. One this that was fun (years later) was watching (from a distance) the plywood mills spinning logs while veneer panels were cut. There are videos on youtube.
Its so cool how they unload a truck in one lift. thats insane
Loud and dangerous work. Good people all of them, too. I can almost smell the fresh cut wood. That's one of the best smells on earth. Thanks! Great video.
When I was 17 used to be the one pulling the trimmings off the line from the main saw and putting through the trimmer. There was a big belt behind me a twin blade trimmer to my left. The controller to the right and in front of him a big circular cutting blade.
Why do they put the logs in the water, float them a small ways and then take them back out again? Instead that tractor taking the logs off the truck and then tossing the load into the river should unload each log and place it right on the conveyor belt. What am I missing?
Say that again?
@@user-yw8sr3uj1w Why do they put the logs in the water when it appears it isn't necessary? Do the logs need to be wet before cutting?
@@gregorys6838 Keeps the logs from drying out and splitting and washes dirt, rocks, and mud off the wood which plays havoc with the saw blades. The logs are easier to handle in the water than on land.
@@royreynolds108 Thank you. In that one image, it was like they put the logs in the water and then took them back out again like 100 yards down from the point of entry into the water. Seemed odd to me. Appreciate your response. Be safe.
Love that little log boat, I want one. I have been a great fan of steam since I don't know how long. Got a book I got in 1975, and was a fan long before that.
WOW, that brings back memories, I worked in a mill very much like that one.
/+akak@lqjajska? Jsan?
Pretty awesome operation ! Amazing how that machinery tosses the big heavy logs like they are twigs