Among The Hardwoods

In continuation of the FAC 100 year celebrations we present this early film from the Cinema and Photographic Branch filmed by the intrepid cinematographer Bert Ive on yet another location where he had to haul over 200 lbs of camera equipment. Ive and freelance cameraman Lacey Percival had filmed an earlier and silent film of the same name in 1927 as part of the Know Your Own Country series. But in mid-1936 Ive and a sound recordist revisited the Pemberton region of south-west Western Australia to make a film that focussed more on the atmosphere of the forest as it was irrevocably changed by the axe and saw of the loggers. While this new film was half the length of the silent, Ive's director Lyn Maplestone drew added impact by lingering on the sights and sounds of fewer phases of logging trees in the Jarrah and Karri forest in the Pemberton, transporting them to the nearby Pemberton sawmill, and milling the logs. In place of the original's many intertitles, the sound version makes sparing but more effective use of intertitles supered over images. Scenes shot for the silent version (but not always used) can be seen being processed and screened in Telling the World (1929), published recently on KZbin.

[@IndianaDundee]

This is why our Father and our Fathers Fathers were truly tough as nails. I am thankful my father brought me along to work with him. It would have been easier on him to leave me at home with my mom, but no, my Father was a good dad and was determined to bring me up to be strong!

[@zarb88]

thanks to all the loggers old and new for all the hard dangerous work you do.

[@tracymesser296]

I TRULY can not imagine how hard of work this must have been!! For man and beast!!

[@ianmoone2359]

Magnificent preservation of our local southwest timber harvesting history.

[@TurkeyJoe]

Sure, massive shame they didn't preserve much of the forest though. 😢

[@bungarraoz254]

In 1966 I was a paperboy in Perth, they dug up all of Hay Street, .Under the tar surface was those "Paving Blocks" There must have been hundreds of thousands of them, and they were all in perfect condition.They were probably sold for firewood.

[@allainsmithee7867]

Those guys really knew hard work.

[@thejerseyj9422]

I enjoyed this look at Australian logging industry history. I especially liked the way men and animals worked as one. All of Gods creatures have usefulness.

[@jorjaygonzalez]

It's just incomprehensible how skilled, and strong those men were. It makes me feel bad that I'll never do something that takes skill like that.

[@AlanBondFilms]

Fabulous record of those who worked to help build Australia.

[@slimjim9084]

Those who helped to destroy Australia’s untouched beauty

[@pioneerman8467]

Dudes were fit as nails look at their arms from back in the day swinging none stop all day dropping trees

[@aussiedrifter]

Great to see the old machinery they worked with in action, it's a far cry from what is used today. More of a sad aspect is the loss of these majestic hardwoods from our forests, but back then they knew no better & concrete sleepers were not even heard of. One thing other interesting thing was the language used by the bullock drivers that only he & the huge animals understood, which for the most part has been lost to time just like the huge hardwoods.

[@NFSAFilms]

Thanks for your comment. You may enjoy this film featuring one of Australia's last Bullockies. kzbin.info/www/bejne/e4CTdmV6ntxnptU

[@stewnico]

Aussie Drifter, no need to be sad; if you travel to the SW of WA and see the forests where this was filmed, you'll find some magnificent sights. In their era, they practiced sustainable logging and only took the trees that were of value - all the rest around remained standing tall (unlike the way logging is practiced today). Thus, today we have some magnificent forests with lots of these majestic hardwoods standing tall and creating a wonder for all to see and enjoy.

[@stewnico]

@Michael Fuquay Ahh, yeah, WA = Western Australia

[@maxl3189]

@@stewnico lolololol

[@alisterfabian9991]

These men are the backbone of Australia

[@hopebear06]

Were the backbone. Australia has lost its. Hypnotized by the B.S. Sad.

[@NFSAFilms]

Thanks Sarah. In preparing this for publication we have learnt a bit more about it ourselves. Graham Shirley delved into some obscure documentation and did some visual comparisons to discover that the 1936 version was a complete reedit not just adding audio. It's interesting that from the very beginning the film units were re-working their existing films. Something they continued to do throughout the entire history of the various agencies. Another treasure from early days.

[@johnchambers427]

Logging is in my blood too. I've traced it back to my fourth great-grandfather's. Some of them on sawmills and some of them on grist mills. In the Appalachian mountains of Carter county Tennessee. Dennis cove Mountain and roan Mountain. A lot of my grandfather's had contracts to cut the Cherokee national Forest old Grove timber. And when the American chestnut tree was dying out in the early 1900s they cut a lot of that also. A disease from the Bronx zoo in New York help kill out the American chestnut trees. When the American chestnut trees died out it really hurt the economy in the Appalachian. A lot of people relied on the chestnuts.

[@number9011]

Very hard work and great video ✌

[@SarahBarns]

Thanks for sharing - incredible footage and great to learn the background to the making of this doco.

[@mrben9364]

Thank you for uploading this great piece of history

[@NFSAFilms]

You're welcome. Glad you enjoyed it and thanks for the feedback.

[@mbb6740]

LOVING these videos! I think I was a wood getter in a past life.

[@80ZX]

Another magnificent video.

[@NFSAFilms]

Glad you enjoyed it, thanks for letting us know.

[@mendonesiac]

Living in the Redwoods of Northern California, this just makes me think of how little we know about what our ancestors went through to log this country.

[@AryDontSurf]

I'm mildly aware of it as a southern Californian. One of my favorite memories was seeing the giant logs wash ashore, driving to Oregon. Which led me to read a little.

[@ishure8849]

They couldn't raft these logs they don't float .

[@SecurityHere]

Cool I visited Manjimup WA. My brother moved there. Saw some Remnants of old, hard dangerous live for all. Great information and not too long ago. thank you for uploading I will to Manjimup WA McC

[@melissabennett1168]

The Pemberton Mill is still in operation. Those areas being logged in this film were regenerated and are still being cut today. Trees of similar size to that depicted here occur in the areas logged in the 1920's. A testament to the ability to be able to sustainably manage our forests.

[@bogusfiasco3789]

Remarkable how you timber industry people can just keep on with the bare-faced lies. The industry is not sustainable, which is why it's diminishing. You idiots took all the big ones and left next to nothing for the future. Same in Tasmania.

[@oldbloke100]

I hope you live in a tent, if not you are a hypocritical fool.

[@oldbloke100]

Hahaha, I drive a COAL truck, haha I say more COAL FIRED POWER STATIONS you fool. big deal you are an educated fuck wit

[@oldbloke100]

this space left intentionally blank, is that the space between your ears

[@oldbloke100]

no prize for second, go back to school.

[@jacobjaram5755]

That was interesting. 👍

[@evermore8888]

This is in 1927 - just amazing……so how the hell did they do it in 1827 without steam engines, electricity and rail roads and maybe a 1000 head of cattle at across all of Australia?

[@MrThenry1988]

Some of that wood could have been used to build part of my home and furniture

[@PeterWalkerHP16c]

My joint's a hundred years old. You might have driven a nail into the timbers then but you have no chance now.

[@MrCites1]

Such a shame that so many magnificent, large old growth forests are now gone.

[@slimjim9084]

One of the worst things for this country, we would have made more money off tourism now with those beautiful trees than turning them to railway sleepers

[@StanKopij]

They had BALLS of STEEL back then 👍👍

[@Rocketboy1950]

OH & what ..... amazing.

[@thomasbroking7943]

Yeeeeeehaaaaa and once the job is finished, big BBQ. ..👍👍👍

[@bigears4426]

I would of thought to big , a enormous task felling these giants

[@marcusporciuscato6404]

Those were some TOUGH dudes.

[@Goalsplus]

That's a log!

[@Sundog0811]

I'm calling the FRA. No EOT on that train.

[@TomislavKoren]

2:34 that "piece" who fell last...probably sized bigger as regular backyard tree.

[@island66]

Pemberton is amazing

[@AryDontSurf]

8:10 the guy driving the wedge doesn't look like he takes any sh**. 8:21 as well.

[@traktorworks3200]

good comment.. i knew a couple of blokes who were quarry men. their job was splitting the large stone slabs that could not be blasted. they were the same physique as thos men driving the wedges and yes they were absolutely no bullshxx types. it was a rough harsh life for them, sadly

[@tutekohe1361]

“Paving blocks”? What a waste of magnificent timber. Furniture and joinery I can understand. Karri is worth it’s weight in gold now. There is so very little of it left now compared to it’s original range. A great video of some hard work being done.

[@keithpilkington907]

Them men must have even had muscles in there spit hard dangerous job

[@maxbify]

cuting down huge trees and turning them into tiny blocks. gees

[@mikearmstrong7830]

OSHA wasn't in Australia was it?

[@NFSAFilms]

Not so much....

[@Crawlerjamie]

These dudes are swinging axes all day. They would be so incredibly strong. And tired.

[@elizabethblackwell6242]

...especially into something so tough as jarrah.

[@wilhelmushoffmann8054]

Did they leave any of those trees?

[@pinkhead6857890]

Meanwhile in North America the Southern Yellow Pines were being single handedly cut down by 10 year olds before being made into still perfectly usable lumber. Must have sucked being Australian back then.

[@spudking6617]

Pine is a soft wood? Karri is hard as nails no comparison! 👍🥔🇦🇺

[@benthebonza5947]

i live around there and about 95% of those trees are gone

[@Crawlerjamie]

Ben Piercy so you still have 5%

[@mattmcguire1577]

Most Australian forests were cleared for farmland or cities. I assume you eat and live in a town.

[@user-xm2qh3wg2u]

จะทำอาชีพอะไรอยู่ในป่า

[@HarryHov]

Why....

[@user-xm2qh3wg2u]

มาสมัยนี้ทำไม่ได้

[@user-xm2qh3wg2u]

ยุคบุกเบิก​

[@user-xm2qh3wg2u]

ไม้ยุคแรก

[@itchyvet]

Those days are long gone. If the industry had replaced every tree cut down with FIVE seedlings, the industry would still be going strong. Instead they simply clear felled and now there's nothing worth of value left.

[@elizabethblackwell6242]

Can't watch this without my brain screaming, "Stop. Don't destroy such a beautiful thing".

[@oldbloke100]

so you don't live in a house, don't have any furniture.

[@MrThenry1988]

They all die. More grow.

[@foxfixa]

@@MrThenry1988 any karri over 300 years is dying anyway

[@dennisthemenace57]

I love dropping big timber, the bang they make when they hit the dirt is like music

[@paulp1a]

Nowadays you ask your kids to paint the fence and they cry abuse! They dont know the meaning of a hard days work!

[@thestruggleisreal581]

Now that would be animal abuse

[@carl1964carl]

No wonder there isn't any more giants left in the forest!

[@foxfixa]

plenty big trees in the south west still go have a look !!

[@carl1964carl]

foxfixa not as big as that, I’m sure WA forest allegiance would disagree

[@foxfixa]

@@carl1964carl well !! a friend of mine he works for fpc its his job to go out to measure it every year

[@spudking6617]

Still big Karri trees out there working next to them today! In quinninup, 👍🥔🇦🇺

[@mauricevandraanen4286]

The fastest way to create a dessert

[@naughtyplanet]

Not exactly.

[@HubertofLiege]

There’s always room for pie

[@Greentrianglegallery]

We will never get those forests back…and what for …to export majority…pulp and offshore…it’s horror

[@senjourixixavega6131]

# _

[@stephenwilliams4801]

Pity these fine tree's aren't here now, greedy man destroying our beautiful planet

[@68Tboy]

You mean trees are extinct now? Shameful! But I bet you enjoy your wood house and many other products made from these trees!

[@neil2385]

so very sad