Steam “donkey” power was introduced in 1900. It replaced oxen teams and horses. Steam Donkey engines created the steam that powered winches and were used in the early 1900's to yard and load large logs from the woods to the railway landing, as well as to build bridges.

Some were very big, with several steam engines and large single boilers on one set of timber skids. Steam Donkeys were replaced in the 1930's by machines that were gas-powered. By the 1950's, steam had disappeared from the forests.