I learned how to do this from Jim Kingshott's video "Bench Planes"

1. Plane the face side flat, checking with straightedge and winding
sticks.
2. Plane the face edge perpendicular to the face side, checking with a
square.
3. Use a marking gage to layout the thickness using the face side as
reference.
4. Plane the second face to the marking gage line. It is now parallel
to the face side.
5. Use a panel gage (a marking gage with a long fence) to mark the
width.
6. Plane the second edge to the marks. It is now parallel to the face
edge.
7. Plane one end to just cleanup in a shooting board using the face
edge as reference.
8. Measure the length and mark across the face using a square against
the face edge.
9. Plane the other end to length in the shooting board. All six
surfaces of the board are now prepped.

Other woodworkers change the order around, but note the similarities
to power woodworking: The jointer makes a flat face then the planer
makes the other face parallel to the first. The jointer makes a
square edge, then the tablesaw makes the other edge parallel to the
first. The chopsaw makes the ends square by referencing off the
jointed edge.

"Dennis M. O'Connor" wrote in message ...
I'm curious:
Before the wonder of powered rotating blades,
how did woodworkers do the equivalent of
milling the face of a board with a jointer and
planing to a uniform thickness with a thickness planer ?

I've thunk and thunk till my thunker was sore,
and I just can't figure how you could do it.
But there must be a way, right ?

'Course, I'd just use the big power tools,
because I love using big power tools. :-)