History & Experience

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ABOUT THE OWNER

I am Dwight Foreman, owner of Authentic Heartpine, lifelong carpenter and woodworker. I grew up in Southwest Louisiana and now reside in Isabel, LA, a community north of Lake Pontchartrain. My passion and specialty are crafting heartpine hardwood flooring, building stairways, and refinishing historic floors. My goal is to transform your floor into fine furniture. I welcome homeowners, and contractors, designers and architects. My standards are high. My work, methodical and exact. Call or email me today!

Short video Description

HEARTPINE HISTORY

Heartpine or Longleaf pine refers to the tree species Pinus Palustris. It once dominated the gulf coastal plain from east Texas to Florida and north to Virginia. Roughly, one hundred million acres of this fire-prone ecosystem spanned centuries until the 1940’s when the forest was exhausted of its tall pines.

Today this heartpine lumber is found in old buildings and houses set for demolition. The lumber that is salvaged is centuries old. The trees, when cut, were two hundred and fifty to five hundred years old, so if the structure was built in the 1800’s, the wood could easily be five to seven hundred years old. This old age provides a beautiful and durable wood product of artistic quality for which there is no substitute.

SINKER LOGS

Please click on the pictures for a larger view and descriptions.
Heartpine sinker longs, Pearl River Basin
Heartpine sinker longs, Pearl River Basin
Freshly cut, originally 50 feet long
Freshly cut, originally 50 feet long
V cut, axe was used not saw. Circa 1890
V cut, axe was used not saw. Circa 1890
Watermarks tell of underwater history
Watermarks tell of underwater history
Logs on waters edge
Logs on waters edge
V shaped notch, extracted turpentine from a live standing tree 100 years ago
V shaped notch, extracted turpentine from a live standing tree 100 years ago
Logs on bank
Logs on bank
Turpentine notch
Turpentine notch
Sinker cypress logs originally 80 feet long
Sinker cypress logs originally 80 feet long
Sinker cypress logs originally 80 feet long
Sinker cypress logs originally 80 feet long

Contact Information

Owner - Dwight Foreman
11598 Choctaw Road
Bogalusa, LA 70427

985-516-9264

dwight@authenticheartpine.com

Monday-Friday 8am-5pm

What Our Clients Are Saying

Dwight has both replaced pine floors and refinished others in our house. We have a very old house and some times he has had to match to existing pine floors which he has done beautifully. Every time he has done an exceptional job!
Susan Laborde
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