The Brix Logging Story
by P.J. Brix and B. Penttila
12-3/8” x 9-3/4”, 150 pages, hardcover, ISBN No. 13:978-0-9890443-0-1,$39.00 plus postage and handling.
Appelo Archives Center
1056 State Route 4
Naselle, WA 98638
Phone (360) 484-7103
The Brix Maritime Story
by Peter J. Brix
12-3/8” X 9-3/4”, 209 pages, hardcover, ISBN No. 13:978-0-9840443-1-8, $39.00 plus postage and handling.
Columba River Maritime Museum
1792 Marine Drive
Astoria, OR 97103
Phone (503) 325-2323
Oh my, I do love books. Since the time I learned how to read, I haven’t put a book down. Just kidding – I will put one down to start another one! Having a strong timber heritage in my family, and a deep, personal love for logging and timber history, I have put together a library of about 1,800 logging books. From my experience, a set of books like Peter J. Brix’s does not come along very often.
The Brix family came to the Pacific Northwest in the early 1880s, and like many others, they turned to the “green gold” standing all around them. Working hard, going broke, and finally with more luck than setbacks, the family made it. Naturally, their logging got them into the tow boat business too. Their logging years ran from the early 1880s to the mid- 1950s. Their tow boat business started in 1909, and they are still involved in pulling, pushing, and shoving whatever needs to be moved around in the water today.
The Brix Logging Story, written by Peter J. Brix and Bryan Penttila, is one of the finest books on logging in my collection. I’d say it’s in the top 10%, and I have some pretty fine books. This family’s history book is very well written, and the one thing I really appreciate about it is its correct use of wording and terminology. These writers know their stuff. For those of you who really know logging history, this is a book to treasure.
The Brix Maritime Story, written by Peter J. Brix and two assistants (Beverly Leigh and Aura Loveland) is an ideal companion to the logging book. The maritime years cover moving a lot of wood and wood products. The tow boats have just as rich of a history as the railroads, although a lot of so-called logging historians haven’t caught on to that. Tow boats moved rafts of logs, barges of chips and lumber, and they got the ships in, docked and back out to sea to ship our lumber all over the world. A large part of the maritime book is focused on wood-related history.
These books belong side-by-side on your shelf, after reading them, of course. Most of the pictures included in the books, and there are lots of them, have not been seen before as they are a family’s history. The printing is absolutely top quality, and as a bonus they are U.S.A. produced. Both books are in very limited supply, and I truly believe “The Brix Logging Story” will be a timber history classic in a very short time. Quinn Murk