The Hood River glacier. (Hood River, Or.) 1889-1933, 1922-08-10
COOPERATIVE
CRADLE RAZED
HOME OF FIRST FRUIT AGENCY GOES
Crews Wreck Warehouse Of Old Fruit
growers Union to Make Ready for
New S25, 900 Structure

The home of Oregon's first coopera =
tive organization of fruit grower =
pioneer strawberry ranchers here
years ago, is being razed TO make ~
for a new three-story concrete stovf
plant Of the Apple Growers Asso =
tion. The old structure, built Of W
en- frame work with corrugated
siding, has been referred to as Grse
cradle of the cooperative activity of
Northwestern apple growers. The fret
manager of the original organization.
known as the Hood River Fruitgrow-
ers' Union, was the late Z. III. Shep-
ard, formerly owner of an orchard
place on Brookside drive. who while
engaged in selling the berries OF him
gself and neighbord conceived the idea
of promoting the fruit industry by a
monthly publication, which he launched
as Better Fruit. - The magazine,
known internationally in fruit circles.
was published here for many years. 1t
is now issued from a Portland Office.
The old warehouse, hut story in
height, eventually, as the apple ORCH
ards of the district reached maturity
and their tonnage crowded strawberries
off the boards as the community's most
important product, became the head
quarters of the office of the Hood River
Apple Growers Union, this districts
cooperative medium until 1914, when
the Apple Growers Association resulted
| in the amalgamation of the Union and
several other interests. For the past
| five years it has been used for the re-
ceipt of supplies of growers affiliated
with the Association.
The cost of the old structure was ap-
proximateIy $1,000.
The new storage house, which will be
an annex of existing plants of the
Association extending for 800 feet
along the O.W-. K. & N. line, will be
supplied with cold storage from large
central refrigeration plant. 1t will be
three stories high and will cost about
$25, 600. Completion of the new struc-
ture will bring the Associations total
investment in cold storage and ware
house properties to sum in excess OF
$500, 900.
But few of the pioneer fruit men of
the valley who participated in the early
day activities Of the old berry union
remain. III. +. Davidson and r. G.
Sherrieb were members of it. The
late j. HI. Shoemaker was one If its
staunch adherents. G. r. Bone says
that the valleys first cooperative move
occurred over 30 years ago when a pool
of several of the valleys berry grow
ers and he and his brother, Noah w.
Bone, one night discovered that each of
the interests had less than cariot OF
lberFies. They threw their shipments
together and made up one of the first
cooperative shipments from the valley.
The old Apple Growers Union was .
we'll organized agency. One OK the
chief workers in this movement was G.
Dethman. 1t was he who provided
himself with a note book and pencil
and visited all of the growers back In
pioneer times. signing them up for the
first apple cooperative venture. Mr..
Dethman served without pay on the old
Union board for nine consecutive years.
lC. H. Sproat was for many years man
aper of the old Union, having left the
organization in 1912 to form the Ma
tionaI Apple CO.
II ia interesting to note that in the
early days Of the districts apple activ-
ity. the fruit each fall was sold to the
highest bidder. The Union rendered
its tonnage by inviting prominent east
ern buyers to submit sealed bids. Those
were the good old days. when Hood
River apples brought phenomenal
prices.
The contract for the new building
has been let to Baldwin & Swope.
The building, of reinforced concrete,
of the mushroom type, will be the
heaviest ever undertaken here, 1t Il
said.