Maltby Siding - 1995

Dear Home Work:
We've recently purchased a home in Big Bear and want to make it look like a log cabin. We understand there is a popular siding called "Maltby" -- is "Maltby" siding still available?

We spoke with Tom Core, Big Bear's foremost authority on valley history, who was very familiar with Guy Maltby. (Tom Core passed away in 2006). He told us Mr. Maltby came to Big Bear in the 1920's, and simply fell in love with our valley. After a few different ventures, Maltby opened our first lumber yard, in the vicinity of the current Liquor Junction.

As the Valley grew, and the need for homes became apparent, Maltby got involved in the busilding business, and went on to build more than 500 homes and cabins. Most of these homes are covered in his trademark siding, and many of his originals still stand throughout the Valley.

Since no actual milling takes place in Big Bear, Maltby siding was specially milled, but imported from down the hill. Today, our local lumberyards are able to duplicate the original siding for repairs and replacement purposes, with custom milling, but it is cost prohibitive to custom mill siding for an entire home.

Today, most local builders and remodelers trying to reproduce the "look" of a rustic-type cabin or log cabin, lean towards the use of regular half-round logs, (mostly fir), which come to Big Bear from the Pacific Northwest areas. This siding is specially ordered on a per-job basis. Due to the cost again, the siding is often limited to key visual areas of the home, rather than complete covering of the home, as in the days of Maltby.