Our story

In 1896 Oluf Lund’s great grandfather Hans Hansen bought a property near a little creek. Hans then dammed up the creek and built a waterwheel to generate power to run his grain mill. Discovering that he had excess power, Hans chose to purchase a log saw and establish a sawmill. This turned out to be very successful and his sawmill business thrived.

In 1907 Oluf Hansen took over the sawmill business from his father. Oluf Hansen had gained considerable experience having worked in Russia in the sawmill business. He chose to supplement the power from the water wheel with a steam engine and the sawmill developed into a big and important business in the community.

In 1937, Hans and Jens Hansen (Oluf Lund’s uncles) took over the successful lumberyard, complete with 12 employed men. Increasing demand for lumber called for more power so they installed a large diesel engine which is still viewable today. As technology evolved the power source was changed over to electricity. Hans and Jens Hansen operated the sawmill (on a slower scale over the latter years) until Hans Hansen died in 1997.

The log saw is still in working condition today and visitors can see the beautiful planks it produces in front of the Old Sawmill.