Online Catalogue last updated 25th of June 2012
The redwood tree is durable, and the forest products are as remarkable as the trees that produce them. No other wood can take its place where lasting qualities are required, and its beauty lends itself to every use from rustic building to fine outdoor furniture.
The harvesting of the redwoods began some two hundred years ago, and has continued until the present time without seriously depleting the supply. With careful conservation they should continue to supply our needs indefinitely, supporting an industry of great importance to the state, and to the people of northwestern California.
This book takes a look at the trees, and at the great challenge they presented to the hardy pioneer who met that challenge.
One of the great hardships imposed on the early operators was the shipping of their product. The northern coast was rocky and inhospitable, with few harbours of any sort. Undaunted, these men loaded their lumber aboard ships virtually in the surf just off the beaches. The accomplishment would be hard to appreciate without the spectacular photographs that bring it to life.
Here is the story of the California redwood lumber industry, told in an excellent text, and copiously illustrated with a vast collection of old historical photographs. Lynwood Carranco's extensive knowledge of the redwood country is joined with John Labbe's (Railroads in the Woods) encyclopedic information about the men and machines that produced the logs and lumber and moved them to market. An outstanding feature of this fine book is the photographic collection used to illustrate it.
Black and white pictures, some 250 in all, supplement the text. Featured are many pictures from the collection of Augustus William Ericson, pioneer redwood country photographer. The development of the famous Dolbeer "donkey" engine by John Dolbeer, the man who brought steam power to the woods, is covered. So too are the stories of the many railroads and engines and the men who designed and built and ran them. This is a must book for the historian, the railroad buff and the timber enthusiast.
Code No. 004939, 145 pages, $60.00