Friedrich (Frederick) Weyerhäuser (November 21, 1834 – April 4, 1914[1]), also spelled Weyerhaeuser, was a German-American timber mogul and founder of the Weyerhaeuser Company, which owns sawmills, paper factories, and other business enterprises as well as large areas of forested land in the northern United States.

Friedrich started attending the Lutheran school at Nieder-Saulheim when he was 6, and at age 8 began helping on the farm.

The Revolutions of 1848 in Germany prompted several members of his family to emigrate to western Pennsylvania in the United States.

After a short time, he entered the sawmill of Mead, Smith and Marsh as a night fireman, quickly moving up to tallyman and then yard manager and salesman.

Though his yard prospered, the firm got into financial difficulties, and with savings from his salary Frederick bought the business.

[7] He became the central point in what was later called the "Weyerhauser Syndicate," a network of lumber interests, "reputed to have almost a hundred partners, none of whom knew the business of the others," with Weyerhaeuser as the common link.

In 1906, Weyerhäuser's business concerns entered the public eye when the Interstate Commerce Commission recommended to Congress that the lumber industry be investigated for possible anti-trust violations.