Timber Beams Hewn Square from the Log

Before sawmills, beams for frames and machines were hewn square from the log with axes. Snap a chalk line, score notches down to it, knock out the wood between them (juggling), then hew the face smooth to the line with a broadaxe. Turn the log and do each side. The picture: shipwrights with broadaxes hewing timbers for a ship, about 1915–1920 (Bain News Service, Library of Congress).