In 1938, Stewart Holbrook released his debut book, Holy Old Mackinaw: A Natural History of the American Lumberjack, an energetic exploration of the lives of loggers in the United States. A writer known for his unorthodox, “lowbrow” approach to history, Holbrook offered readers a vivid narrative filled with colorful characters, dramatic events, and a distinctly unacademic style. The book went on to become a bestseller and solidified Holbrook’s place as one of the most influential storytellers in the Pacific Northwest.
Holbrook, born in Newport, Vermont in 1893, relocated to Portland, Oregon, in 1923 at the age of 30. With little more than a strong work ethic and a passion for writing, he found employment as a log scaler and river logger while contributing to local newspapers and logging journals. This combination of firsthand experience and writing talent soon led to a prolific career, with Holbrook publishing more than 30 books and hundreds of essays on topics ranging from Wild West figures to American forestry.
Holy Old Mackinaw, however, marked the beginning of Holbrook’s literary success. The book follows the life of the American lumberjack, beginning in Bangor, Maine, and traveling westward across the Great Lakes to the Pacific Northwest. Along the way, Holbrook paints a vivid portrait of the rugged men who inhabited these regions, with particular attention paid to their boisterous, often rowdy lifestyles.
For Holbrook, the allure of loggers lay in their larger-than-life personalities. He depicted them as hard-drinking, foul-mouthed individuals whose days were marked by “booze, bawds, battle, and plenty of timber.” Despite the grittiness of his portrayal, Holbrook’s storytelling shines with a sense of admiration for the men of the forests. His account emphasizes both the brutal work and camaraderie of the logging life, making it clear that these men were not just workers but also colorful, unforgettable characters in the history of the American West.
Holbrook’s work stands apart from the scholarly histories written by his contemporaries, such as Joseph Schafer and Earl Pomeroy, in part due to its conversational tone and its focus on the lived experience of loggers. Unlike academic historians, who favored detailed analyses and formal structures, Holbrook embraced a narrative style designed to entertain as much as inform. His writing is filled with catchy phrases—“fallers and buckers,” “steam donkey wizards,” and “gyppo loggers”—that breathe life into his subjects.
Though his style was unconventional, Holbrook was a meticulous researcher. His research methods included poring over newspapers, studying books and essays, and interviewing the very loggers whose lives he chronicled. He explored the history of the lumber industry, from its earliest days in New England to its expansion across the Pacific Northwest, where new technologies transformed logging practices. Along the way, he introduces the influential figures who shaped the timber industry, including the Weyerhausers and Pope and Talbot, as well as the lumber towns that sprung up along the way.
The second half of Holy Old Mackinaw focuses heavily on Oregon and Washington, two regions that Holbrook knew well. He describes Portland’s North End, home to saloons like the Paris House and Erickson’s Saloon, which attracted loggers from all over. He also examines the rise of industrial unions, notably the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW), whose members often clashed with timber owners and workers in violent confrontations such as the Everett Massacre of 1916 and the Centralia shootout of 1919.
Despite his unorthodox approach, Holbrook’s work has had a lasting impact on Oregon’s literary heritage. His ability to blend research with storytelling helped to elevate the history of logging beyond dry academic treatments and made it accessible to a wider audience. Holy Old Mackinaw remains a key text in the understanding of Oregon’s past, offering a window into the world of early loggers and the broader history of the American lumber industry.
Stewart Holbrook, who passed away in 1964, was much more than an historian—he was a storyteller whose books resonated with readers across the country. Holy Old Mackinaw continues to captivate audiences today, its lively, unvarnished account of logger life serving as a testament to Holbrook’s talent as both a writer and a researcher. His work, which is as entertaining as it is informative, remains a significant contribution to the literary and cultural history of the Pacific Northwest.
