The First Sawmills 



A WHIPSAW 



The first sawmill in our country was prob- 

 ably built at Jamestown, Virginia, soon after 

 1607. In 1623 the Dutch West India Company 

 built three sawmills at New Amsterdam, now 

 the city of New York. There a large wooden 

 beam was used in place of the two hand-sawyers. 

 It was really only another way of pitsawing. 

 The wooden beam was fastened to a crank on the 

 mill wheel, and the mill was run by wind or water- 

 power. 



Until after 1800, most sawmills were small 

 and rudely built, with a single "up-and-down" 



