FIG. 019Specimen · Rare
1911 Union Station Fir
$6per board foot
Rare
Browse online · buy in person · cash, card or Bitcoin · we load with forklift ·720-236-0454 · Plan your visit
Last verified August 13, 2026 · inventory turns weekly, so call 720·236·0454 before you drive over
- Species
- Pseudotsuga menziesii (Douglas Fir)
- Dimensions
- 9–14in sq · up to 20ft
- Age
- 280+ yrs of wood
- Reclaimed
- Ice house beside Union Station, Denver — built 1911
- Note
- Not structurally rated · charred faces
| Dimensions | Price |
|---|---|
| 14in × 12in × 179in | $1,253 |
| 12in × 13in × 179in | $1,164 |
| 10.5in × 9.5in × 240in | $997 — damaged ends |
| 9.75in × 11.75in × 179in | $854 |
| 11.5in × 9.75in × 156in | $728 |
| 12in × 10in × 126in | $630 |
| 11.25in × 9.25in × 120in | $520 |
| 9in × 9in × 147in | $496 |
| 9.5in × 11in × 59in | $256 |
Prices verified August 13, 2026 · call 720·236·0454 to confirm stock
In 2015 a crew remodelling the old ice house next to Denver Union Station pulled up the floorboards and found these underneath — Douglas fir beams, holding the floor up since 1911, that nobody on the job knew were there.
$6 per board foot. $40 per cut.
Read the fire damage
The building burned. More than once, by the look of it, because the beams do not all match. Some are lightly scorched on one face. Some are black across two. The colour tells you roughly where a beam sat and which fire reached it.
Then you cut one open and the inside is clean. Old-growth fir this dense does not let heat travel — the char stopped at the surface and the wood underneath came through it without internal damage. That is worth understanding if you are nervous about buying charred timber: the blackening is a finish, not a defect.
Several people have bought these specifically for the char.
Two hundred and eighty years of wood
Count the rings on an end and you are looking at a tree that stood a long time before anyone cut it. Add the century it spent under that floor, plus drying on either side, and the total age of the wood is past 280 years.
That number is why the material behaves the way it does. Twenty-plus rings per inch means dense, stable, and slow to move — the opposite of plantation fir cut at forty years.
Not structurally rated
Say it plainly: these beams are no longer rated for structural use, and we do not sell them as structural material. They came out of a building that is gone, they have been through fire, and nobody has certified them since.
What they are for is mantels, exposed decorative timber, cladding, furniture, bar tops and stair treads. If you need something to carry load, buy new rated stock and use these where they are seen.
The provenance is the product
We can tell you the building, the year and how they came out. If you are specifying this for a client, that is part of what you are handing over — a beam with an address and a date behind it is a different object than reclaimed lumber of unknown origin.
Call 720-236-0454 to check what is still on the rack. There is no second batch of these.
FIG. 019.QQuestions
1911 Union Station Fir — common questions
Where does the 1911 Union Station fir come from?
The ice house that stood beside Denver Union Station, built in 1911. During a 2015 remodel the contractors pulled up the floorboards and found these Douglas fir beams underneath, carrying the floor. Nobody working the job knew they were there.
Can I use these beams structurally?
No. They are no longer structurally rated and we do not sell them as structural material. Buy them for mantels, cladding, exposed decorative timber and furniture. If you want anything load-bearing, talk to an engineer about new rated stock.
Why are some of the beams charred?
The building burned more than once. Several beams carry blackening on one or more faces, and the depth of colour differs from beam to beam depending on which fire reached them and how close they sat to it. Cut into them and the wood inside is clean — the char never got past the surface.
How can the wood be 280 years old if the building went up in 1911?
Count the growth rings and add the service life. The tree stood for well over a century before it was felled, the beam then held a floor up for another hundred-odd years, plus the drying time either side. Total age of the wood in your hands is north of 280 years.
How much does 1911 Union Station fir cost?
It is $6 per board foot, plus $40 per cut. Individual beams currently in stock run from $256 for a 9.5x11x59in piece to $1,253 for a 14x12x179in beam.
Is old-growth Douglas fir different from new fir?
Substantially. These came from slow-grown old-growth trees with tight rings, often twenty or more per inch. Modern plantation fir is grown fast and cut young and the ring spacing shows it. The old material is denser, more stable, and has an amber depth you cannot get out of a can.
When it's gone, it's gone.
Inventory turns over weekly. Call ahead, then pull your truck up — we load with the forklift.