John F. Ford

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  1. A Logging Foreman Admires his Crew's Output - Ford

    A Logging Foreman Admires his Crew's Output - c. 1898

    Almost lost in the center of this giant pile of toothpicks is the foreman of the logging operation, posing on top of one of many large logs awaiting transport to a mill. Learn More
  2. A Young Logger in a Log Chute - Ford

    A Young Logger in a Log Chute - c. 1905

    While not signed by Ford, the original for this photo was acquired with other similarly formatted photos that were signed by him. Learn More
  3. At Work in the Woods - Ford

    At Work in the Woods - c. 1898

    Four men - and a dog - pose near medium-sized trees in an unknown location, probably on one side or the other of the lower Columbia River, where John F. Ford took many of his photographs. Learn More
  4. Bringing the Logs Back to Camp - Ford

    Bringing the Logs Back to Camp - c. 1900

    Smaller logs are brought back to a logging camp by a team of six mules, pulling them along a skid-road of logs placed across the path. It appears that this logging camp also was home to a small sawmill, as stacked lumber can be seen behind the team. Learn More
  5. Choker Setters at Work, Deep in the Woods - Ford

    Choker Setters at Work, Deep in the Woods - c. 1898

    Chokers are lengths of cable with a sliding bell that are wrapped around logs in the woods, to allow them to be pulled out to the yard. In the era of this photo, power was provided by a steam donkey. Learn More
  6. Closeup of a Double-drum Steam Donkey - Ford

    Closeup of a Double-drum Steam Donkey - c. 1898

    Steam donkeys acquired their name from their origin on sailing ships, where the "donkey" engine was a secondary engine used to load and unload cargo, or raise the larger sails. Learn More
  7. Double-drum Steam Donkey Crew - Ford

    Double-drum Steam Donkey Crew - c. 1898

    Taken at a different location than most of our John Ford logging photographs, this view gives us a good look at the men and equipment involved in steam-powered logging over a century ago. Learn More
  8. Eight on a Log - Ford

    Eight on a Log - c. 1900

    How many ways can you pose a group of loggers? John F. Ford is known for his gift of creating poses that are artistically and visually interesting. Learn More
  9. Finishing a Log Raft on the Columbia River - Ford

    Finishing a Log Raft on the Columbia River - c. 1900

    This well-composed view of a cigar-shaped log raft was taken by John Ford on the lower Columbia, the area where he created most of his photos. Learn More
  10. Hauling Logs out with Mules - Ford

    Hauling Logs out with Mules - c. 1900

    Oxen and steam donkeys were the primary ways to bring logs out of the woods during this era, but mule teams and horses were sometimes used, especially for smaller logs. Learn More
  11. Jack Screw Men and Steam Donkey - Ford

    Jack Screw Men and Steam Donkey - c. 1898

    The crew that uses the screw jacks to maneuver logs poses here in the yard in front of a covered steam donkey. Learn More
  12. Jack Screw Men Yarding a Large Log - Ford

    Jack Screw Men Yarding a Large Log - c. 1898

    A very old logging tool, the jack screw was used to move heavy logs, either in the woods to position them for hauling by oxen (and later by steam donkeys), or in the yards to roll the logs into position. Learn More
  13. Logging "Roll Way", with Tracks, Yard & Steam Donkey - Ford

    Logging "Roll Way", with Tracks, Yard & Steam Donkey - c. 1898

    A good overview of many aspects of a turn-of-the-last-century logging operation, captured here by Portland photographer John F. Ford. Learn More
  14. Logging Crew with Their Steam Donkey - Ford

    Logging Crew with Their Steam Donkey - c. 1898

    Everyone gets into the picture in this John Ford photo of a double-drum steam donkey. It's likely summer, as the crew hasn't bothered with a roof for the operators. Learn More
  15. Pond Monkeys - Ford

    Pond Monkeys - c. 1898

    Pond Monkeys were men who hopped from log to log in a mill pond, guiding the floating logs into the intake for the sawmill. This Ford photos shows a large group - likely more than would normally work together. Learn More
  16. Pondering an Accident on the Benson Logging Train - Ford

    Pondering an Accident on the Benson Logging Train - c. 1900

    In this wonderfully detailed John F. Ford photo, a group of concerned workers discuss their next move after a large log has broken loose and severely damaged the firewood tender for the Benson Logging & Lumber Company train. Learn More
  17. Preparing to Saw Up a Newly Felled Tree - Ford

    Preparing to Saw Up a Newly Felled Tree - c. 1898

    While this is a staged photo, the logger in front is demonstrating the actual saw that he will use for "sawing up", the process of cutting the felled tree into lengths that can be transported to a mill. Learn More
  18. Saldern's Logging Road, 13 1/2 Percent Grade - Ford

    Saldern's Logging Road, 13 1/2 Percent Grade - c. 1898

    Climax Engine Number 2 works to push three large logs up a steep grade near Grays River in southwest Washington. Learn More
  19. Sawing Up - Ford

    Sawing Up - c. 1898

    Falling big trees was only the beginning. It took many more hours to saw up each tree - to cut it into sections that could be hauled back to the yard, using cables from a steam donkey. Learn More
  20. Skid Road Along the River - Ford

    Skid Road Along the River - c. 1898

    In this signed photo by John F. Ford we see yet another view of animals pulling logs along a skid road. In this case, it's oxen, and the location of the road along a river makes it especially scenic. Learn More
  21. Steam Donkey Under a Small Shed - Ford

    Steam Donkey Under a Small Shed - c. 1898

    Another in a series of detailed logging photos by John F. Ford, this view shows the type of small shed often constructed around steam donkeys to protect the operators (and the machinery) from the worst of the weather. Learn More
  22. The Soldrens Crew Pauses in a Cut on their Logging Road - Ford

    The Saldern Crew Pauses in a Cut on their Logging Road - c. 1898

    The logging crew poses in a substantial earth cut made for the logging railroad that supported their operation. It's not clear whether these men helped build the railroad grade as well as doing the logging. Learn More
  23. Two Timber Fallers Begin Their Saw Cut - Ford

    Two Timber Fallers Begin Their Saw Cut - c. 1898

    A classic scene - this photo shows two fallers standing on their springboards, starting their sawcut to fall a substantial Douglas Fir. Learn More
  24. Yarding the Big Logs - Ford

    Yarding the Big Logs - c. 1898

    This well organized yarding area run by Saldern Logging Company near Grays River, Washington, demonstrates how logging crews staged their large logs till they could be loaded on railroad cars for a trip to the mill. Learn More

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