[2] Cox watched the destructive larvae of the timber beetle (Ergates spiculatus) for many hours.
Cox adapted this concept to a new chain saw of his own design put into production during the late 1940s.
In time, Oregon Saw Chain became a subsidiary of Omark Industries which was in turn acquired in 1985 by Blount, Inc., of Montgomery, Alabama.
Most chainsaws, with the exception of some Stihl saws, use an Oregon chain based on the invention of Joseph Buford Cox.
Alice Erikson Cox left her fortune to be used by the Willmar Community Area Foundation on behalf of the people of Kandyohi County and Lake Lillian in central Minnesota.