On January 12, 1895, The Hartford Pioneer reported that two lumber firms planned to open up for business in Hartford. According to The Pioneer, these firms recognized “the fact that Hartford is destined to be the metropolis and business center of the greatest silver producing district in the west.”
That didn’t happen: Hartford’s silver mines failed to produce and its original lumber firms no longer operate. But the area is now home to two successful, modern day lumber-based businesses: Marks Lumber and Marks-Miller Post and Pole.
Marks Lumber
Marks Lumber is the older of the two lumber companies operating in the historic Hartford area. The business found its start in 1938, when Merle Marks, one of the county’s first homesteaders, installed a mill to produce products for the family’s and neighbors’ ranches.
Since its establishment, Marks Lumber has undergone a series of expansion projects, with the most recent beginning mid-April 2022 under the supervision of current owner Steve Marks, the grandson of Merle Marks. The expansion project was intended to increase efficiency, output and safety.
The mill’s updates included the addition of an edger, a machine that trims the rough edges off of wooden slabs, which required workers to cut a portion of the mill’s roof off. While workers have fitted the edger in the mill, the part which creates laser guidelines allowing for speed and preciseness is back ordered until January 2023. Until this system arrives, the machine’s operator will “eyeball” the cuts, Marks explained.
Another machine installed in the mill was a trimmer, which trims boards to the operator’s desired length. Marks purchased both used machines and hired a team of engineers to refurbish them to meet Marks Lumber’s needs.
Marks said using the automated technology has created a steep learning curve for the mill’s employees; however, he predicts that the staff will have mastered the equipment by the end of July.
During the mill expansion, Marks Lumber reduced its product selection and increased the minimum expected wait time to fill orders.
Although Mark Lumber expected the mill upgrades to complete by July 1, the machines weren’t up and running until July 18. Since then, the mill has had to close for three hours due to technical problems. It was also discovered that the feed rollers on the edger leave pockmarks on the boards, preventing the mill from producing lumber designed for looks, known as “appearance grade” lumber.
Steve Marks said the mill is currently “crawling along.” As work to finish the mill’s upgrades continues, Marks Lumber now faces a diminished inventory and staffing shortages.
Usually the mill employs 25 workers — mostly residents of Jefferson County, according to Marks. However, the mill currently has four open positions: a customer service representative, a sawmill laborer, a lumber yard worker and a heavy equipment mechanic. Each position, Marks said, is critical to the mill’s success.
According to Julia Clary, the Marks Lumber marketing director, the majority of the company’s lumber sales take place locally in Helena and Bozeman; however, Marks Lumber does have customers throughout the U.S. “The past two years we really started focusing on our local customers and keeping the contractors here supplied,” Clary said.
Starting Aug. 1, Marks Lumber will put in place a $500 minimum order for all appearance-grade lumber and timbers. Additionally, the mill will only sell all low-grade 1-inch and 2-inch boards in full units – a bundle of lumber two feet tall and four feet wide. “We don’t have enough help in the yard to pull small orders when our big customers take the same amount of time and move four time the volume,” Marks told The Monitor. “We built this business on helping anybody, and for myself and the sales staff, it’s emotionally difficult to say we’re not going to take an order less than $500.”
With the mill closed for several months, Marks Lumber sold the majority of its pre-made inventory. Marks said he expects at least six months of full operation before the inventory is replenished.
Marks said the mill will be up and running at full capacity within a month, leaving enough time to prepare for Marks Lumbers’ annual forest days open house in October.
Once the mill’s upgrades finish, Marks said the business’s model will change since production capacity should double. “We’re gearing up for the future,” he said. “There’s a lot of moving parts, and we’ve got to get them right.”
Marks-Miller Post and Pole
In 1974, Clancy area native Gary Marks, the brother of Steve Marks, founded Marks Post and Pole. The operation stemmed from the need to provide posts for the family ranch and to supplement his income. With this in mind he took the opportunity to purchase a homemade post peeler to smooth the surfaces of poles by removing bark and knots and got to work.
In 1975, Gary Marks received a contract from the Montana Department of Highways for producing posts. Filling this large of an order required more hands on deck, so he hired Darrell Miller. A year later, Miller became a partner in the business, and Marks-Miller was formed.
Although the company started with only Gary Marks and Miller completing all the necessary tasks–from the fabrication to the maintenance–business continued to grow. Eventually, the company had not only grown enough to merit borrowing operating funds, but they had also gained enough assets to secure the funds, and began adding more employees and equipment. Today the company employs approximately 25 workers.
Debbie Marks and Karen Miller, the men’s wives, assisted with the growth of the company by handling the business’s administrative and safety culture tasks. At the inception of the operation, the two women also took on the task of supporting their families, allowing their husbands to focus on their work.
Today, Gary Marks is the sole proprietor of Marks-Miller Post and Pole. He said the company is doing well and continues to operate with a concern for the environment’s and locals’ needs.
