Potlatch Forests Inc. grew its footprint nationally following World War II and expanded into manufacturing of pulp and paperboard with the startup of a mill at Lewiston in 1950.

Potlatch started up a tissue plant in North Las Vegas, Nevada in 1993 and expanded to the Midwest in 2000 with a converting line in Benton Harbor, Michigan.

[8] The spin-off from Potlatch Corporation was announced by its board of directors July 17, 2008, with the official date for the creation of Clearwater Paper being December 9, 2008.

Solid bleached sulfate board is a type of paperboard that is used in the production of folding cartons, liquid packaging, plates, cups and in some commercial printing applications.

In 2008, Clearwater Paper had three manufacturing and converting facilities in Lewiston, Idaho, North Las Vegas, Nevada, and Elwood, Illinois.

[13] With the acquisition of Cellu Tissue Holdings, Inc., Clearwater Paper added consumer products facilities at: East Hartford, Connecticut; Ladysmith, Wisconsin; Neenah, Wisconsin; Menominee, Michigan; Central Islip, New York; Natural Dam, New York; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma; Thomaston, Georgia; Wiggins, Mississippi; and St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada.

[22] In 2024, Clearwater Paper acquired the Augusta, Georgia solid bleached sulfate paperboard mill from Graphic Packaging.

Clearwater Paper was the first North American solid bleached sulfate manufacturer to offer FSC certification across its product lines.