The Lumbermen’s Museum showcases the history of timber harvesting in the Moosehead region from tools – axes, crosscut saws, pike poles, and Peaveys – to life in camp, to the highly dangerous river drives. With hundreds of artifacts, many of which have been generously donated by local residents who were part of the logging operations and river drives of yesteryears, our collection continues to grow and enhance our displays.

The centerpiece of our museum is an original 30-foot Maynard bateau. This vessel, last used by the Scott Paper Company on Roach River log drives in the early 1960s, was donated to the museum in 1993. Despite being phased out and eventually eliminated when river drives ended in the mid-1970s, these vessels have a long and colorful history in the region.

The bateau, though its original paint is now faded, was brightly colored to aid in recovery should it overturn while moving downriver. Notice the pitch and tar along the sides that served to caulk the wooden hull to prevent leaks. In 1999, a local resident restored the caulking in several places along the hull after painstakingly researching the original ingredients and developing an identical compound. The holes along the planking at the bottom of the hull are a testament to the “corked” boots worn by the river drivers, which enabled them to maintain their balance while racing across wet, often rapidly moving logs.

In addition to the Maynard bateau, our museum showcases a variety of objects related to the lumbering industry. A tour of the room will take you through the evolution of lumbering hand tools, from single-bladed broad axes to double-bitted axes, crosscut saws, and eventually chainsaws.

On display, you’ll also find a collection of boom pins, the precursor of the ubiquitous boom chain, pick poles, screw augers, brush cutters, and cant dogs, or Peaveys as they are more commonly known. Many of these items, encrusted with a heavy coating of freshwater barnacles, were recovered from the waters of local lakes and waterways. Our display also includes hundreds of small hand tools from the Johnny Richards collection, donated in the early 1990s by Mrs. Frances Richards. Many of these tools are unique, having been individually created by a local blacksmith for a specific job.

We invite you to visit the Moosehead Historical Society’s Lumbermen’s Museum and immerse yourself in the rich history of the Moosehead region. We look forward to welcoming you.