150-YEAR-OLD WHITE BROTHERS LIQUIDATES

White Brothers Mill, Oakland, CA., has auctioned off its equipment and remaining inventory, closing the book on the 150-year-old hardwood pioneer

Last month, White Brothers, Oakland, Ca., auctioned off its equipment and remaining inventory, bringing to an end to the hardwoods giant after more than 150 years.

The White Brothers’ mill boasted the “largest supply of mouldings in the San Francisco Bay Area,” specializing in fine hardwood lumber and millwork.

It originally began in 1868 as the Straut-White Co. in San Francisco. Four years later, co-owner Peter White and his brother, Asa, bought out Straut and renamed the firm White Brothers. They were soon joined by a third brother, Jacob White.

During the 1906 earthquake and fires that decimated San Francisco, White Brothers was the city’s only lumberyard spared. The business was most recently overseen by fourth-generation owner Don F. White, Jr.

After decades of rejecting offers for its valuable Oakland property, White Brothers finally closed. Its property on Tidewater Avenue in Oakland is now available to lease. During the first two weeks of August, the company auctioned off rip saws, moulders, planers, dust collectors, tooling, forklifts, vehicles, lumber and more.

Its entire catalog of millwork products will also continue. Revival Millworks, Livermore, Ca., acquired all of their moulding profile knives and is offering the full line of the White Brothers Moulding Collection.