The large warehouse had been significantly changed since its construction.
The lumber yard had several buildings to protect and store lumber. Piles of lumber also covered the open areas between buildings.
Lumber moved in and out of the yard by train, so the large warehouse had a loading dock alongside the tracks.
The inside of the warehouse had an impressive wood structure.
Machinery mounted on these beams could roll the length of the warehouse. An operator sat in the cab in the right.

Weyerhaeuser Lumber Yard

The Weyerhaeuser Timber Company—one of the most successful logging companies in the country—built a lumberyard in the Midway to take advantage of the nearby network of railroads. The yard served as their base of distribution in the Twin Cities starting in 1919. We assessed the property, as well as surrounding historic resources, and documented the lumberyard’s large warehouse for the Minnesota Historic Property Record before it was demolished.

The Weyerhaeuser Timber Company bought their Midway site in 1919, hoping that it might improve their fir sales in the area. In the 1920s and 1930s, the lumberyard covered four city blocks and had several warehouses, a millworking building, offices, and lumber sheds. A railroad spur line through the yard allowed Weyerhaeuser to ship lumber throughout the Midwest.

In the 1950s, as the lumber industry in Minnesota declined, Weyerhaeuser’s Twin Cities lumberyard gradually dwindled to occupy one block south of Franklin Avenue. During the 1980s, the company made significant changes to its existing buildings and constructed new offices and storage sheds on the site. The yard closed in 2016 and plans for redeveloping the site began.

We assessed the property to determine if it was eligible for the National Register as part of the Section 106 process. We also assessed the effect of the proposed redevelopment on other nearby historic properties. Before redevelopment began, we documented the lumberyard’s large warehouse for the Minnesota Historic Property Record.