09/18/2026
I thought this was some interesting history that the Springerville-Eagar Regional Chamber of Commerce shared about this family owned company located here in Springerville and wanted to share.
Reidhead Brothers Lumber
A White Mountains Legacy
Reidhead Brothers remanufacturing plant in Springerville is part of a multigenerational Arizona lumber business whose roots stretch back more than a century. The Reidhead family has been involved in sawmilling in the White Mountains since the early 1900s. According to an oral history recorded by the Arizona Memory Project, Edwin “E.D.” Reidhead established a sawmill in 1913, and the family later operated mills in places including Nutrioso and Show Low.
The family's lumber operations traditionally supplied products such as railroad ties and mining timbers. By the middle of the 20th century, Reidhead lumber was being hauled to markets throughout Arizona and New Mexico, while the family employed loggers, sawyers and freighters. The family's Show Low operation eventually closed in May 1991 after three generations in the business.
The Reidhead name returned to prominence in the region as the family adapted to changing forest conditions. Terry and Darrel Reidhead operated Reidhead Brothers Lumber Mills, Inc., which included a large-diameter sawmill in Nutrioso and a remanufacturing plant in Springerville. A USDA Forest Service publication described the company as a third-generation, family-owned operation.
The Springerville facility became particularly important as the regional timber industry shifted toward utilizing smaller-diameter trees. During the 2000s, the Reidhead operation produced lumber and other wood products from material associated with the White Mountain Stewardship Project. The company installed equipment to process small logs and looked for ways to use virtually every part of the tree, including chipping slabs and other residual material for use in wood-energy production.
That transition was part of a much larger effort to reduce forest fuels in the White Mountains. In a 2008 Los Angeles Times report, Terry Reidhead explained how the business had shifted toward small-diameter logs, producing products such as paneling, flooring and siding at its Springerville-area operation. The change allowed the mill to participate in forest-thinning projects while creating usable lumber from trees that previously had limited commercial value.
State forestry records later listed Reidhead Brothers Lumber Mill as a sawmill producing approximately six million board feet of lumber annually, with equipment including a six-foot bandsaw and 48-inch chipper.
Today, the Reidhead name remains associated with locally produced lumber in the White Mountains. The Springerville facility is a reminder of an industry that has evolved alongside the forests themselves—from the large ponderosa pine and Douglas fir harvested for railroad and mining needs in the early decades of the 20th century to today's emphasis on smaller trees, forest restoration and value-added wood products.
Reidhead Brothers Remfg Plant is located at 804 W Airport Rd, Springerville, AZ 85938. Their phone number is 928-333-5347. They are open Monday through Saturday 8 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.
Reidhead Brothers Remfg Plant specializes in lumber manufacturing and remanufacturing, including:
Sawing and planing mill operations
Wholesale and retail of rough, dressed, and finished lumber
Planing mill products
Woodworking machinery and equipment such as chip breakers, coping machines, grinding machines, molding machines, cutting machines, sanding machines, polishing machines, and turning machines
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