Cement is a building material worked by people who went forth where there was “but little timber upon the face of the land.” They became “exceedingly expert in the working of cement” and built houses of cement in which they dwelt (Helaman 3:7).
People in the land northward dwelt in tents and “in houses of cement,” while allowing trees to grow for future building (Helaman 3:9). As timber remained scarce, shipping supplied the land northward so that its people could build many cities “both of wood and of cement” (Helaman 3:10-11).