View source for Sawmill

{{short description|Facility where logs are cut into lumber}}
{{Other uses}}
{{Redirect|Sawmills|the town|Sawmills, North Carolina}}
[[File:Cutting wood with a portable sawmill.jpg|thumb|257px|Sawing logs into finished lumber with a basic "portable" sawmill]]
[[File:American sawmill, circa 1920.jpg|thumb|right|An American sawmill, {{c.|1920}}]]
[[File:Traditional sawmill - Jerome, Arizona.jpg|thumb|Early 20th-century sawmill, maintained at [[Jerome, Arizona|Jerome]], Arizona]]

A '''sawmill''' ('''saw mill''', '''saw-mill''') or '''lumber mill''' is a facility where [[logging|logs]] are cut into [[lumber]]. Modern sawmills use a motorized saw to cut logs lengthwise to make long pieces, and crosswise to length depending on standard or custom sizes ([[dimensional lumber]]). The [[Portable sawmill|"portable" sawmill]] is simple to operate. The log lies flat on a steel bed, and the motorized saw cuts the log horizontally along the length of the bed, by the operator manually pushing the saw. The most basic kind of sawmill consists of a [[chainsaw]] and a customized jig ("Alaskan sawmill"), with similar horizontal operation.

Before the invention of the sawmill, boards were made in various [[manual labour|manual]] ways, either [[wood splitting|rived (split)]] and [[plane (tool)|planed]], [[hewing|hewn]], or more often [[hand saw]]n by two men with a [[whipsaw]], one above and another in a [[saw pit]] below. The earliest known mechanical mill is the [[Hierapolis sawmill]], a Roman water-powered stone mill at [[Hierapolis]], [[Asia Minor]] dating back to the 3rd century AD. Other water-powered mills followed and by the 11th century they were widespread in Spain and North Africa, the Middle East and Central Asia, and in the next few centuries, spread across Europe. The circular motion of the wheel was converted to a reciprocating motion at the saw blade. Generally, only the saw was powered, and the logs had to be loaded and moved by hand. An early improvement was the development of a movable carriage, also water powered, to move the log steadily through the saw blade.

By the time of the [[Industrial Revolution]] in the 18th century, the [[circular saw blade]] had been invented, and with the development of [[steam power]] in the 19th century, a much greater degree of mechanisation was possible. Scrap lumber from the mill provided a source of fuel for firing the boiler. The arrival of [[railroads]] meant that logs could be transported to mills rather than mills being built beside navigable waterways. By 1900, the largest sawmill in the world was operated by the [[Atlantic Coast Lumber Company]] in Georgetown, South Carolina, using logs floated down the [[Pee Dee River]] from the [[Appalachian Mountains]]. In the 20th century the introduction of electricity and high technology furthered this process, and now most sawmills are massive and [[capital intensity|expensive]] facilities in which most aspects of the work are computerized. Besides the sawn timber, use is made of all the by-products including [[sawdust]], [[Bark (botany)|bark]], [[woodchips]], and [[wood pellets]], creating a diverse offering of [[forest product]]s.

==Sawmill process==<!-- [[Cant]] links to this section -->
[[File:Combustion Engine Drives Sawmill (1988).mp3|thumb|A combustion engine drives a selfmade sawmill in north Florida. Stereo recording 1988]]
A sawmill's basic operation is much like those of hundreds of years ago: a log enters on one end and [[Lumber#Dimensional lumber|dimensional lumber]] exits on the other end.
* After trees are selected for harvest, the next step in [[logging]] is [[felling]] the trees, and [[log bucking|bucking]] them to length.
* Branches are cut off the trunk. This is known as ''limbing''.
* Logs are taken by [[logging truck]], rail or a [[log driving|log drive]] to the sawmill.
* Logs are [[Log scaler|scaled]] either on the way to the mill or upon arrival at the mill.
* Debarking removes bark from the logs.
* ''Decking'' is the process for sorting the logs by species, size and end use (lumber, [[plywood]], chips).
* A [[Sawyer (occupation)|sawyer]] uses a [[head saw]] (also called head rig or primary saw) to break the log into cants (unfinished logs to be further processed) and flitches (unfinished planks).
* Depending upon the species and quality of the log, the cants will either be further broken down by a [[resaw]] or a [[gang edger]] into multiple flitches and/or boards.
* [[Lumber edger|''Edging'']] will take the flitch and trim off all irregular edges leaving four-sided [[lumber]].
* ''Trimming'' squares the ends at typical lumber lengths.
* [[Wood drying|''Drying'']] removes naturally occurring moisture from the lumber. This can be done with [[Kiln#Wood-drying kiln|kilns]] or air-dried.
* ''Planing'' smooths the surface of the lumber leaving a uniform width and thickness.
* ''Shipping'' transports the finished lumber to market.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.lumberbasics.org/02lbrman/01.htm |title=Lumber Manufacturing |publisher=Western Wood Products Association |work=Lumber Basics |year=2002 |access-date=2008-02-12}}</ref>

==History==
===Pre–Industrial Revolution===
[[File:Römische Sägemühle.svg|thumb|Scheme of the [[List of Roman watermills|water-driven sawmill]] at [[Hierapolis]], [[Asia Minor]]. The 3rd-century mill incorporated a [[Crank (mechanism)|crank]] and [[connecting rod]] mechanism.<ref name="Ritti, Grewe, Kessener 2000, 161"/>]]
[[File:Fotothek df tg 0003845 Mechanik ^ Säge ^ Holz.jpg|thumb|left|Illustration of a human-powered sawmill with a gang-saw, published in 1582]]
[[File:Sawmill 'Salamander' in Leidschendam, Netherlands.jpg|thumb|right|"''De Salamander''" a wind driven sawmill in [[Leidschendam]], Netherlands. Built in 1792, it was used until 1953, when it fell into disrepair. It was fully restored in 1989.]]
[[File:A sawmill in the interior from The Powerhouse Museum Collection.jpg|thumb|A sawmill in the interior of [[Australia]], {{c.|1900}}]]
[[Image:Sutters_mill.JPG|thumb|Modern reconstruction [[Sutter's mill]] in California, where gold was first found in 1848]]
The [[Hierapolis sawmill]], a [[List of Roman watermills|water-powered stone sawmill]] at [[Hierapolis]], [[Asia Minor]] (modern-day [[Turkey]], then part of the [[Roman Empire]]), dating to the second half of the 3rd century, is the earliest known sawmill. It also incorporates a [[Crank (mechanism)|crank]] and [[connecting rod]] mechanism.<ref name="Ritti, Grewe, Kessener 2000, 161">{{harvnb|Ritti|Grewe|Kessener|2007|p=161}}</ref>

Water-powered stone sawmills working with cranks and connecting rods, but without [[gear train]], are archaeologically attested for the 6th century at the [[Byzantine Empire|Byzantine]] cities [[Gerasa]] (in Asia Minor) and [[Ephesus]] (in [[Syria]]).<ref>{{harvnb|Ritti|Grewe|Kessener|2007|pp=149–153}}</ref>

The earliest literary reference to a working sawmill comes from a [[Roman Empire|Roman]] poet, [[Ausonius]], who wrote a [[Topographical poetry|topographical poem]] about the river [[Moselle]] in [[Germany]] in the late 4th century AD. At one point in the poem, he describes the shrieking sound of a watermill cutting [[marble]].<ref name="Wilson 2002, 16">{{harvnb|Wilson|2002|p=16}}</ref> Marble sawmills also seem to be indicated by the [[Christian saint]] [[Gregory of Nyssa]] from [[Anatolia]] around 370–390&nbsp;AD, demonstrating a diversified use of water-power in many parts of the [[Roman Empire]].<ref name="Wilson 2002, 16"/>

Sawmills later became widespread in [[Middle Ages|medieval Europe]], as one was sketched by [[Villard de Honnecourt]] in c. 1225–1235.<ref>C. Singer ''et at.'', ''History of Technology'' II (Oxford 1956), 643-4.</ref> They are claimed to have been introduced to [[Madeira]] following its discovery in c. 1420 and spread widely in Europe in the 16th century.<ref name="Peterson">{{Cite journal |last=Peterson |first=Charles E. |author-link=Charles E. Peterson |title=Sawdust Trail: Annals of Sawmilling and the Lumber Trade from Virginia to Hawaii via Maine, Barbados, Sault Ste. Marie, Manchac and Seattle to the Year 1860 |journal=[[Bulletin of the Association for Preservation Technology]] |volume=5 |issue=2 |date=1973 |pages=84–153 |doi=10.2307/1493399 |jstor=1493399}}</ref>{{rp|84–85}}

Prior to the invention of the sawmill, boards were [[Wood splitting|rived (split)]] and planed, or more often sawn by two men with a [[whipsaw]], using saddleblocks to hold the log, and a [[saw pit]] for the pitman who worked below. Sawing was slow, and required strong and hearty men. The topsawer had to be the stronger of the two because the saw was pulled in turn by each man, and the lower had the advantage of gravity. The topsawyer also had to guide the saw so that the board was of even thickness. This was often done by following a chalkline.

Early sawmills simply adapted the [[whipsaw]] to mechanical power, generally driven by a [[water wheel]] to speed up the process. The circular motion of the wheel was changed to back-and-forth motion of the saw blade by a [[connecting rod]] known as a ''[[pitman arm]]'' (thus introducing a term used in many mechanical applications).

Generally, only the saw was powered, and the logs had to be loaded and moved by hand. An early improvement was the development of a movable carriage, also water powered, to move the log steadily through the saw blade.

A type of sawmill without a crank is known from Germany called "knock and drop" or simply "drop" -mills. In these drop sawmills, the frame carrying the saw blade is knocked upwards by cams as the shaft turns. These cams are let into the shaft on which the waterwheel sits. When the frame carrying the saw blade is in the topmost position it drops by its own weight, making a loud knocking noise, and in so doing it cuts the trunk.<ref name="Die Sägemühle">{{cite web|title=Die Sägemühle|url=http://www.familienverband-tritschler.de/index.php?id=81&L=1|website=www.familienverband-tritschler.de|access-date=May 8, 2017|language=de}}</ref>

A small mill such as this would be the center of many rural communities in wood-exporting regions such as the [[Baltic countries]] and [[Canada]]. The output of such mills would be quite low, perhaps only 500 boards per day. They would also generally only operate during the winter, the peak logging season.

In the [[United States]], the sawmill was introduced soon after the colonisation of [[Virginia]] by recruiting skilled men from [[Hamburg]].
Later the metal parts were obtained from the Netherlands,<ref name="Peterson" />{{rp|94–95}} where the technology was far ahead of that in [[England]], where the sawmill remained largely unknown until the late 18th century. The arrival of a sawmill was a large and stimulative step in the growth of a frontier community.

[[File:Cornelis van Uitgeest - Het Juffertje zaagmolen.jpg|thumb|18th-century allegorical print commemorating C.C. van Uitgeest's invention of the saw mill]]
The [[Netherlands|Dutch]] [[windmill]] owner [[Cornelis Corneliszoon van Uitgeest]] invented in 1594 the wind-powered sawmill, which made the conversion of log timber into planks 30 times faster than before.<ref name="Dehoop">[http://www.dehoopuitgeest.nl/engels/corneliszoonuk.html "Cornelis Corneliszoon van Uitgeest (1550–1607), inventor of the wind powered saw mill", Industrial Heritage Park ''De Hoop''] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061006214829/http://www.dehoopuitgeest.nl/engels/corneliszoonuk.html |date=2006-10-06 }}</ref> His wind-powered sawmill used a [[crankshaft]] to convert a [[windmill]]'s circular motion into a back-and-forward motion powering the saw, and was granted a patent for the technique.<ref name="NatArch">[http://uitvindingen.nationaalarchief.nl/uitvinding/houtzaagmolen Dutch inventions] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110704055714/http://uitvindingen.nationaalarchief.nl/uitvinding/houtzaagmolen |date=2011-07-04 }} by Cornelisz van Uitgeest in the National Archives (Dutch)</ref>

===Industrial Revolution===
Early mills had been taken to the forest, where a temporary shelter was built, and the logs were skidded to the nearby mill by horse or ox teams, often when there was some snow to provide lubrication. As mills grew larger, they were usually established in more permanent facilities on a river, and the logs were floated down to them by [[log driver]]s. Sawmills built on navigable rivers, lakes, or estuaries were called cargo mills because of the availability of ships transporting cargoes of logs to the sawmill and cargoes of lumber from the sawmill.<ref name="oak">Oakleaf p.8</ref>

The next improvement was the use of circular saw blades, perhaps invented in England in the late 18th century, but perhaps in 17th-century Netherlands. Soon thereafter, millers used gangsaws, which added additional blades so that a log would be reduced to boards in one quick step. Circular saw blades were extremely expensive and highly subject to damage by overheating or dirty logs. A new kind of technician arose, the [[sawfiler]]. Sawfilers were highly skilled in metalworking. Their main job was to ''set'' and sharpen teeth. The craft also involved learning how to ''hammer'' a saw, whereby a saw is deformed with a hammer and anvil to counteract the forces of heat and cutting. Modern [[circular saw]] blades have replaceable teeth, but still need to be hammered.<ref>Norman Ball, 'Circular Saws and the History of Technology' ''Bulletin of the Association for Preservation Technology'' 7(3) (1975), pp. 79-89.</ref>

[[File:Naistenlahden saha.jpg|thumb|A sawmill of [[Naistenlahti]] in [[Tampere]], Finland, 1890s]]
The introduction of [[steam power]] in the 19th century created many new possibilities for mills. Availability of railroad transportation for logs and lumber encouraged building of rail mills away from navigable water. Steam powered sawmills could be far more mechanized. Scrap lumber from the mill provided a ready fuel source for firing the boiler. Efficiency was increased, but the capital cost of a new mill increased dramatically as well.<ref name="oak"/>

In addition, the use of steam or gasoline-powered [[traction engine]]s also allowed the entire sawmill to be mobile.<ref>Edwardian Farm: Roy Hebdige's mobile sawmill</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.ritchiespecs.com/|title=RitchieSpecs Equipment Specs & Dimensions|website=www.ritchiespecs.com}}</ref>

By 1900, the largest sawmill in the world was operated by the Atlantic Lumber Company in [[Georgetown, South Carolina|Georgetown]], South Carolina, using logs floated down the [[Pee Dee River]] from as far as the edge of the [[Appalachian Mountains]] in [[North Carolina]].

A restoration project for Sturgeon's Mill in Northern California is underway, restoring one of the last steam-powered lumber mills still using its original equipment.

==Current trends==
[[File:Sawmill1.jpg|thumb|Oregon Mill using energy efficient ponding to move logs]]
In the twentieth century the introduction of electricity and high technology furthered this process, and now most sawmills are massive and expensive facilities in which most aspects of the work is [[computer]]ized. The cost of a new facility with {{convert|2|e6board feet/day|m3/day|lk=out|order=flip|abbr=off|adj=on}} capacity is up to [[Canadian dollar|CAN$]]120,000,000. A modern operation will produce between {{convert|100|to|700|e6board feet|m3|order=flip|abbr=off}} annually.

Small gasoline-powered sawmills run by local entrepreneurs served many communities in the early twentieth century, and specialty markets still today.

A trend is the small [[portable sawmill]] for personal or even professional use. Many different models have emerged with different designs and functions. They are especially suitable for producing limited volumes of boards, or specialty milling such as oversized timber. Portable sawmills have gained popularity for the convenience of bringing the sawmill to the logs and milling lumber in remote locations.<ref>{{Cite web|author1=t2m |url=http://www.trees2money.com/mobile-milling/|title=Reap the Profits of Mobile Milling|website=Trees 2 Money|date=21 January 2016|language=en-US|access-date=2016-03-10}}</ref> Some remote communities that have experienced natural disasters have used portable sawmills to rebuild their communities out of the fallen trees, such as when [[Hurricane Helene]] devastated south-east United States in 2024, and communities of volunteers used their portable sawmills to aid reconstruction.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Hurricane Helene Help |url=https://woodlandmills.ca/hurricane-helene-help |access-date=2025-07-28 |website=Woodland Mills Canada |language=en}}</ref> 

Technology has changed sawmill operations significantly in recent years, emphasizing increasing profits through waste minimization and increased energy efficiency as well as improving operator safety. The once-ubiquitous rusty, steel [[Cone (geometry)|conical]] [[sawdust burner]]s have for the most part vanished, as the sawdust and other mill waste is now processed into [[particleboard]] and related products, or used to heat [[Kiln#Wood-drying kiln|wood-drying kilns]]. Co-generation facilities will produce power for the operation and may also feed superfluous energy onto the grid. While the bark may be ground for landscaping [[barkdust]], it may also be burned for heat. Sawdust may make particle board or be pressed into [[wood pellet]]s for pellet stoves. The larger pieces of wood that will not make lumber are chipped into wood chips and provide a source of supply for paper mills. Wood by-products of the mills will also make [[oriented strand board]] (OSB) paneling for building construction, a cheaper and in some use cases more robust alternative to plywood for paneling. Some automatic mills can process 800 small logs into bark chips, wood chips, sawdust and sorted, stacked, and bound planks, in an hour.
{{Clear left}}

==Gallery==
<gallery>
File:Laser guided cutting of wood inside modern woodmill.jpg|Inside a modern sawmill equipped with laser-guided technology
File:Laser guided cutting of wood in woodmill.jpg|Wood traveling on sawmill machinery
File:Sawdust waste from mill.jpg|Sawdust waste from the mill
File:D70-0745-armata-waterzaagmolen.jpg|A sawmill in Armata, on mount [[Smolikas]], Epirus, Greece
File:Gunton Saw Mill - geograph.org.uk - 1936852.jpg|A preserved water powered sawmill, [[Norfolk]], England
File:Sandakan Sabah Sawmill-20.jpg|Making planks from logs
File:Moulin à Scie (Luchon) - Fonds Ancely - B315556101 A MALBOS 1 011.jpg|Sawmill in [[Luchon]], France, near 1840 by [[Eugène de Malbos]]
File:Workers with the blades of a saw, at a sawmill (I0002371).tif|Sawmill workers posing with saw blades, [[Rainy River District]], 1900–1909
File:L' usine de transformation de bois Kotkamills Oy à Kotka.jpg|Sawmill with the [[Log driving|floating logs]] in [[Kotka]], Finland
File:Logs at sawmill at Manitoulin Island (I0014072).jpg|Logs at sawmill at Manitoulin Island [190-?]
File:White Pine flitch on portable sawmill.jpg|A white pine flitch dogged onto a portable sawmill, ready to be cut into a finished board.
File:White Pine cant on portable sawmill.jpg|A white pine cant resting on a portable sawmill, ready to be cut down into finished boards.
File:JD Irving Sawmill in St-Léonard, NB, Canada.jpg|Railcars of [[lumber]] arriving at a sawmill in [[New Brunswick, Canada|New Brunswick]]
</gallery>

==See also==
{{Div col|colwidth=}}
* [[Band saw]]
* [[Circular saw]]
* [[Hewing]]
* [[Log bucking]]
* [[Logging]]
* [[Lumber yard]]
* [[Portable sawmill]]
* [[Saw pit]]
* [[Sawfiler]]
* [[Wood drying]]
{{Div col end}}

==References==
{{reflist|33em}}

==Sources==
* {{Citation
 |last         = Grewe
 |first        = Klaus
 |editor-last  = Bachmann
 |editor-first = Martin
 |contribution = Die Reliefdarstellung einer antiken Steinsägemaschine aus Hierapolis in Phrygien und ihre Bedeutung für die Technikgeschichte. Internationale Konferenz 13.−16. Juni 2007 in Istanbul
 |title        = Bautechnik im antiken und vorantiken Kleinasien
 |url          = http://www.freundeskreis-roemerkanal.de/Text/BAUTECHNIK%20IM%20ANTIKEN%20UND.pdf
 |series       = Byzas
 |volume       = 9
 |publisher    = Ege Yayınları/Zero Prod. Ltd.
 |location     = Istanbul
 |year         = 2009
 |isbn         = 978-975-8072-23-1
 |pages        = 429–454
 |url-status      = dead
 |archive-url   = https://web.archive.org/web/20110511200049/http://www.freundeskreis-roemerkanal.de/Text/BAUTECHNIK%20IM%20ANTIKEN%20UND.pdf
 |archive-date  = 2011-05-11
}}
* {{Citation
 | last1 = Ritti
 | first1 = Tullia
 | last2 = Grewe
 | first2 = Klaus
 | last3 = Kessener
 | first3 = Paul
 | year = 2007
 | title = A Relief of a Water-powered Stone Saw Mill on a Sarcophagus at Hierapolis and its Implications
 | periodical = Journal of Roman Archaeology
 | volume = 20
 | pages = 138–163
 |doi=10.1017/S1047759400005341
}}
* {{Citation
 | last = Oakleaf
 | first = H.B.
 | year = 1920
 | title = Lumber Manufacture in the Douglas Fir Region
 | publisher = Commercial Journal Company
 | location = Chicago
}}
* {{Citation
 | last = Wilson
 | first = Andrew
 | author-link = Andrew Wilson (classical archaeologist)
 | year = 2002
 | title = Machines, Power and the Ancient Economy
 | periodical = [[The Journal of Roman Studies]]
 | volume = 92
 | pages = 1–32
 |doi=10.2307/3184857
 |jstor=3184857
}}

==External links==
{{Commons category|Sawmills}}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20050415051739/http://www.steamengine.com.au/steam/sawmill/ Steam powered saw mills]
* [http://www.holzwurm-page.de/fertigung/einschnitt/saegewerk.htm The basics of sawmill (German)] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120509024115/http://www.holzwurm-page.de/fertigung/einschnitt/saegewerk.htm |date=2012-05-09 }}
* [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fkfax98tSUA Nineteenth-century sawmill demonstration]
* [http://www.sawmilldatabase.com Database of worldwide sawmills] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170820214326/http://www.sawmilldatabase.com/ |date=2017-08-20 }}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20110715180534/http://reynoldstonnewyork.com/ReynoldsBrosMillandLogging.aspx Reynolds Bros Mill], northern foothills of Adirondack Mountains, New York State
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20110715180224/http://reynoldstonnewyork.com/WebsterBowenMills.aspx L. Cass Bowen Mill], Skerry, New York

{{Woodworking}}
{{Forestry}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Ancient Roman technology]]
[[Category:Sawmills| ]]
[[Category:Saws]]
[[Category:Timber preparation]]
[[Category:Wood-related terminology]]