Coffs Harbour Hardwoods

Coffs Harbour Hardwoods is a family owned and operated company. The McCarthy family have been supplying timber products nationally and internationally since it was established by timber merchant and world champion axemen Ray McCarthy since 1961. Ray McCarthy was part of a long line of the McCarthy’s that were heavily involved in timber as far back as the 1850’s when pioneering and cedar getting was a mainstay of many north coast families. Ray was a timber agent who was mainly shipping timber across the Tasman for the New Zealand timber trade, when things started slowing down it was evident that he needed to find new markets and in 1961 Coffs Harbour Hardwoods was formed to concentrate more on the domestic market. The company was able to find contracts from the RTA for bridges, Port Authorities for piling and girders and also sleepers and poles for State Rail. He formed the company at a time when the timber industry was still an integral part of the port at Coffs Harbour and had been since the beginning of the 20th century, the port was finally closed in the 1970’s. Up until that time Coffs Harbour Hardwoods was a major presence in the jetty area, exporting poles to New Zealand on coastal trader ships such as the Abel Tasman, which was a regular visitor to the then busy port. The final shipment to leave the port was a consignment of piles from Coffs Harbour Hardwoods bound for Indonesia. Port redevelopments at Coffs Harbour in the 1980’s saw the company relocate to the village of Glenreagh. Ray had acquired land and this made the task of moving much simpler with a larger site necessary to the future growth and expansion of the business.