In 1927, Cheatham founded the Georgia Hardwood Company becoming an early pioneer in the Southern timber industry. Over the next 40 years, he significantly expanded the business, as he created a cross-continental lumber empire by acquiring several companies in the Pacific Northwest. Through his efforts, he built Georgia-Pacific into a $750 million enterprise with a $1 billion+ asset base. His company was one of the nation’s fastest growing businesses in the 1950s.