Abstract: An automated apparatus for tagging individual boards in a pack of lumber. The apparatus includes a support frame with a jump chain conveyer, a lift, a back stop or bump plate, a labeling assembly including a printer and a stapler, an optical, ultrasonic, or RF detector for determining the position of a leading board within the pack, a positioning assembly for moving the labeling assembly in three dimensions via stepper motors, servo motors, or hydraulic cylinders, a computer, and a bidirectional communications link connecting the detector, the labeling assembly, and the positioning assembly to the computer. In operation, a pack of lumber is placed onto the conveyer, lifted, and conveyed by the moving chains to abut the back stop where it is lowered onto the support frame. The operator inputs the number of courses in the pack, the dimensions of the boards, the size of the pack, and other selected identifying indicia into the computer.