Early settlers used hand-powered whip saws and water-powered sawmills for lumber. By the early 1800s, steam-powered circular sawmills were developed. These mills grew in number, reaching over 400 by 1880, but had little effect on the large forests. The real change came with the band sawmill, introduced in 1875, which cut lumber faster and wasted less wood. Railroads brought logs to mills where they were processed and dried. By 1909, West Virginia produced nearly 1.5 billion board feet of lumber. However, over-harvesting led to a decline in the industry by 1920, with smaller mills replacing the large ones.

Today, West Virginia has more than 12 million acres of forest and is the third most forested state in the U.S. In 2024, the state had 55 mills producing about one billion board feet of lumber, making it the eighth-largest hardwood producer.