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.

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. :-]

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’ve hauled lumber out of this mill almost 20 years ago. Som of the best looking timbers I’ve ever seen come from there!

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

I've thoroughly enjoyed watching this.

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 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 😎👍

I drove out to the mill on March 14, 2018... still cranking out big timbers. Way to go guys!

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.

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.

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.

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! ;)

I only can imagine the wood smell.I love that smell.it's bin a long time since I've been in saw mill

Credo che questa ditta sia un monumento da conservare e mostrare ai giovani che senza l'elettronica si era tecnologigici ugualmente. Documentario bellissimo.

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.

Fascinating. Never actually seen a sawmill in operation before. Good video.

That is too cool! Amazing the amount of moving parts, chains, gears , bearings, motors etc. Awesome timbers there at the end!

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!!

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.

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

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.

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!

Awesome video! This is the best walk through of the lumber mill process I've seen.

That was impressive..just sitting thinking.THE LAST ONE in the USA thank you for keeping this alive and for sharing. Take care.

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.

Wow what a great old sawmill glad to see it is still going.

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

Pretty cool looking mill. That’s definitely a different way to send lots into a mill for sure.

That's what I want to hear! Actual sounds of something being made.Finally! Thanks.

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

That lil boat jocky looks like it would be fun to fun for a day.

Old school beehive sawdust burner. Got to love stumbling across these and knowing that there used to be a mill there.

Not only is this interesting and informative - your video production quality is excellent.

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

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

Fascinating. Very glad I watched that. Keep it up y'all!

This is one of the coolest videos i have seen in a long time.

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

There are Picnic Tables in Benton County parks made from single planks cut at Hull-Oakes. They're roughly four inches by four feet by about ninety-yes, ninety-feet.

The debarker looks absolutely medieval. I love it!

Beautiful. Mill workers rarely get the respect they deserve.

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 !!!!

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

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

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 .

Hey Peter Thank's for taking us along!! great video

This guy is the master of all bumper boat competitions.

How I ended up watching this will forever remain a mystery...but very interesting =)

That little boat looked like a blast!

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!

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

I loved watching that boatman. I would like to see more about it and how it worked.

Fantastic video, great area too.

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!

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 ...

WOW now that is a Sawmill!

Beautiful machinery !

I live the smell of fresh cut lunber. Thank you for the tour.

Really cool tour and overview, thanks for sharing!

WOW, that brings back memories, I worked in a mill very much like that one.

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.

What a great video of a sawmill from being to end of how its made, thank you for making this.

Very impressive, the public has no idea how much yall do, appreciate !

Peter Great work would love to watch more video's and longer, regards joe Uk.

awesome brings back good memories.bigger more modern and we had no pond love to work there

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.

I've sent logs to a lot of mills between the Cascades & the Appalachians, but never a steam driven one! Just fascinating!

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...

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.

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.

I just binged watched all of your videos. Truly amazing!

The little tender boat is awesome.

i could watch this all day.

I WAS THE LEAD AT DOUGLAS COUNTY LUMBER COMPANY PLANER DEPT. IN THE 70'S. WE PUT OUT AROUND 280,000 BOARD FEET OF DOUG FIR A SHIFT. ANYTHING FROM 2 X 4 X 6' TO 6 X 14 X 26'. IT WAS A JOB! I WAS IN GOOD SHAPE BACK THEN lol

Great video thanks for sharing this with us Peter, milling has always been an interest of mine

I wanna drive that little tugboat.

the little boat never gets abused

Nice place. I just love to see all those great lumber coming off the line!

Exceptional video Thanks for posting this remarkable operation

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!

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.

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!

Wow, Peter, your videos are impressive! You have so many talents..

That bark-ripper though. Ow. Ow. Ow. Ow. Ow.....

Amazing video.👍👍

I live just up the road! Cool to see this on KZfaq! Good work guys!

Loved this video! Thank you for just having shop noises and not music overlay. Very interesting and pleasant to watch.

excellent thanks..

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!

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 love and have a huge interest / respect for the machines of the industrial revolution. Desire, will power, grit, determination, steel and steam. Awesome!

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.

Similar set up like Rogers Lumber Company Inc. in Camden, Arkansas. Boiler room and all. Nice operation

A hive of activity what a great film, thank you you really got the ambiance of the place.🇬🇧🇺🇸

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

Its so cool how they unload a truck in one lift. thats insane

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.

I found this really interesting to watch. Thanks for sharing!

That was mesmerising, couldn't 't stop watching