History Corner: The Old Tie Mill on Squak Mountain

In the club's early years, hikes on Squak Mountain would sometimes pause at the site of an old sawmill for lunch. This unique spot offered an open slope covered with a soft cushion of sawdust, a rare amenity. Today, the site has returned to its natural state (mostly), but its history remains a fascinating part of the mountain's past. 

The mill was not just any sawmill – it was a highly specialized operation that produced railroad ties for the Milwaukee Railroad. The image below captures the mill in its prime, with stacks of square-cut ties in the foreground and on the truck to the right.  Also, note the plank road to facilitate truck transport of the goods.

The Milwaukee Railroad Tie Mill on Squak Mountain, circa 1941. Photo Courtesy Eric Erickson.

The mill was short-lived, operating from 1936 to 1947 (according to Eric Erickson’s “Index of Lumber Businesses and Mills, King County, Washington,” published by the Issaquah Historical Society).  The mill was located at the northern end of Phil’s Creek Trail, about 100 yards past the intersection with the Old Griz Trail, elevation 1650 feet.  The map illustrates:

Club stalwart Bill Longwell related the story of how he and fellow teacher Phil Hall would reward their students with a hike at the end of the year, and sometimes it would be on Squak Mountain with a lunch stop at the old Tie Mill sawdust pile.  The students, looking for an outlet for their youthful energy, decided it would be fun to jump from stumps at the top of the slope and land in the forgiving sawdust down the slope.  They would achieve impressive “air” and long distances, so much so that Longwell entitled the article about this escapade “World Record” (see The Alpiner, 1999, April-June issue), claiming they set a new world record for the long jump.  Those of you lucky enough to have a copy of the book “Squak Mountain – An Island in the Sky – A History and Trails Guide” can see photos of this adventure on page 17.  There they are rendered rather small and in black-and-white, so here are a couple of photos taken on that day, larger and in living color:

Students of Bill Longwell taking flight at the sawdust pile of the old Tie Mill, circa 1975. Photo courtesy Bill Longwell.

Student making a soft landing in the sawdust. Photo courtesy of Bill Longwell.

Longwell described the sawdust jumping as “the highlight of the hike.”

Those photos were taken circa 1975, about 30 years after the mill ceased operation.  The sawdust was still recognizable as sawdust.  With the passage of another 50 years, careful observation is required to distinguish it from the typical forest floor.  It is noticeably different though, with a more homogeneous texture, devoid of rocks and mineral earth, and is well on its way toward decomposition.

A handful of soil from what was once sawdust. Photo by Tom Anderson.

As you explore the area, steel cable used by the logging operation can be found here and there – one of the most visible artifacts of the bygone mill.  There is even a length of it embedded in the trail toward the north end of the site. And if you look just beneath the surface, you'll discover other remnants, such as wooden beams with spikes still driven into them:

Spikes driven into a wooden beam, perhaps a remnant of the plank road serving the mill. Photo by Tom Anderson.

Steel cable embedded in the trail, probably a remnant from the logging operation that brought logs to the mill. Photo by Tom Anderson.

The site is seldom visited these days, but occasionally, a crazy person tries to reenact the long jump from an old stump.  (Watch out for those trees!)

Photo by Paul Winterstein.