Guide to the Eatonville, Washington, Photograph Collection
ca. 1942-1943

Eatonville State Bank, ca. 1942-1943. Special Collections, UW Libraries, UW22175z

Historical Background

The northwest lumber industry had a direct economic impact on the development and decline of the "company town." In order to entice employees to move to the remote areas where the mills were located, homes, stores, and other community services were built to accommodate workers. To varying degrees, these lumber companies owned and controlled the businesses, buildings, and services in these communities. Eventually, a combination of factors contributed to the demise or transformation of many of these company towns. These factors included the depletion of raw materials and the lumber industry's consequent shift from logging to "farming" trees, as well as the advent of modern freeways and automobiles, making these once remote areas more accessible. The Washington towns of Eatonville, Onalaska, Bordeaux, and Malone all experienced dramatic and increased population growth with the establishment of lumber mills and were, at least for a time, company towns.

Eatonville is in southern Pierce County west of Mt. Rainier. The Eatonville Lumber Company has been closed for decades but the community has transformed into a residential community for south Puget Sound and as an entryway to major outdoor recreational areas. The Carlisle Lumber Company owned the town of Onalaska and the mill closed in 1942. Bordeaux, in western Thurston County, was named for Thomas and Joseph Bordeaux, who arrived in 1887. They founded a sawmill, the Mumby Lumber and Shingle Company, which brought workers to the area, and the community of Bordeaux sprouted. The town was abandoned by 1941 when the timber ran out. The Malone lumber mill was established in the early 1900's by the Joe Vance Lumber Company. It was later sold to the Bordeaux Lumber Company. The mill was eventually closed during the depression years and the company owned houses were sold.

Scope and Content

The collection, originally an album, includes pictures of Eatonville, Onalaska, Bordeaux, and Malone, Washington. It appears to have been made for legal or other reasons as the index is marked "Exhibit B." The Eatonville images include town scenes and privately owned residences, as well as Eatonville Lumber Company buildings and homes. Also depicted are the remains of the Carlisle Lumber Co. at Onalaska and the remains of the Mumby Lumber and Shingle Company at Malone and Bordeaux. Information from the index to the album indicates that the buildings in Onalaska were converted for use as a prison camp during the war years. An Onalaska citizen remembered that the prisoners, from the state penitentiary in Walla, Walla, Washington, were housed in Onalaska to cut wood for the prison in Walla Walla. All photographs are attributed to Associated Photographic Service, Commercial Photography, 714 Market Street, Tacoma, Washington

Alternate Forms Available

View selections from the collection in digital format.

Restrictions on Access

Collection is open to the public.

Processing Info

Processed by A. Chris Bee and Jocelyn Spicer, 2002.

The album pages have been removed from the cover and the cover discarded because of possible mold contamination. The orginial order has been retained. "Eatonville, Washington" was printed on the cover.

Inventory

Folder	Item
			Eatonville, Washington
1	1			Eatonville High School
	2-3			Eatonville Grade School
	4			Eatonville High School athletic field and play field
	5			Eatonville Methodist Community Church
2	6			Private house
	7			Apartment house
	8-9			Private houses
	10			Parsonage
3	11			Private house
	11a-12			Mill official's house
	13			Company owned house
4	14-20			Private houses
5	21-23			Company owned houses
	24			Row of company owned houses
6	25			Main Street
	26			[Roxy Theater] and Main Street
	27			City hall and fire department
	28			Eatonville State Bank
	29			Christensen Motors
7	30			Post office and Roxy Theater
	31			Christensen's Texaco
	32			Train depot and sawmill
	33			Bird's-eye view from county road
	34			Sawmill from log pond
8	35-36			Sawmill
	37			Sawmill crane
	38-39			Company owned store
Folder	Item
			Onalaska, Washington
9	40			"Onalaska as it looks today [ca. 1942-1943] after the dismantling of the Carlisle Lumber Company"
	41			Remains of Onalaska
						"These buildings, we are told, are now [ca. 1943] used as a prison camp" (caption).
	42-43			Remains of Carlisle Lumber Company
Folder	Item
			Malone and Bordeaux, Washington
10	44-45			Remains of Mumby Lumber and Shingle Company at Malone, Washington
	46			Remains of the town of Bordeaux, Washington, as it looks today [ca. 1942-1943] after the dismantling of the Mumby Lumber and Shingle Company
	47			Remains of the Mumby Lumber and Shingle Company plant at Bordeaux, Washington
	48			Remains of the hotel at Bordeaux, Washington
	49			Remains of the Mumby Lumber and Shingle Company plant at Bordeaux, Washington
Subject Terms
	Organizations:
		Associated Photographic Service, photographer.
		Carlisle Lumber Company.
		Eatonville Lumber Company.
		Mumby Lumber and Shingle Company.
	Subjects:
		Company town architecture--Washington (State)--History--20th century.
		Company towns--Washington (State)--Photographs.
		Industrial buildings--Washington (State)--Photographs.
		Lumber industry--Washington (State)--Bordeaux--Photographs.
		Lumber industry--Washington (State)--Onalaska--Photographs.
		Sawmills--Washington (State)--Photographs.
	Geographic Names:
		Bordeaux (Wash.)--Photographs.
		Eatonville (Wash.)--Photographs.
		Malone (Wash.)--Photographs.
		Onalaska (Wash.)--Photographs.