Wood ID?

[Patrick Varley]

Hey everyone,
Just moved into a new house, and planning some projects but needed some help. House was built in the '50s (in Wisconsin), midcentury modern, and essentially all of the original wood trim/details have been left intact. However, I'm trying to build a piece for the living room, and trying to match some of the original cabinetry. From some research and based on location, my guess is that it's something like beech, birch or maple. All would have been readily available here at the time, and it seems that birch was a common choice for interior mouldings/cabinetry. Doesn't quite look like maple to me...but who knows. I have included some pictures, and any guesses would be welcomed.

Thanks!
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[Jamie Buxton]

The plywood pics seem like birch to me. Perhaps maple, but certainly not beech.

The louvered door is likely softwood.

[Patrick Varley]

The plywood pics seem like birch to me. Perhaps maple, but certainly not beech.

The louvered door is likely softwood.

Thanks. I had considered whether the trim/door was something like Southern yellow pine, but the ply definitely didn't seem like that. Makes sense that they might be different. In the end, doing something in maple and trying to stain match is probably good enough.

[Lee Schierer]

Birch plywood was commonly used for cabinets in the 50's. The louvers were probably pine. Shellac was a common finish for both items.

[Andrew Seemann]

Rotary cut birch plywood for the main pieces of the second through fourth picture. The first one is likely a pine, although I doubt Southern Yellow. That isn't a lumber commonly found in the upper midwest, even today. My guess is it is a local pine, probably Red, possibly White. It could maybe be Ponderosa or Sugar though.

Birch should match quite well, although getting the patina to match 60 year old waxy blonde shellac might be a challenge. Assuming you are in Wisconsin, you likely can still get local Red/White pine from somewhere, otherwise #2 or #3 pine from your local Wisconsin Menards will probably work. Not the #1 clear pine though, that tends to be tropical plantation wood.