Odd, Old News: Fruit Raising in Southern Humboldt

Two Women and Deer in Orchard [Crop of photo provided courtesy of HSU Library-Special Collections-Humboldt Room Collection, Swanlund/Baker Collection]

Although stock-raising, logging, and the fishing industry has dominated much of the Euro-American history of the North Coast, there was also a time period when fruit orchards thrived and farmers earned praise for their produce. As we have reported, the fertile soils of the river bottoms of Humboldt County produced large vegetables, and similarly, excellent quality fruit. The editors of the Humboldt Times were often brought outstanding samples of local orchards. Early planting of fruit trees was a necessary part of successful ‘living on the land’ for Euro-American ‘settlers’ who knew that they would have to wait some years for their orchard trees to mature.

The 1870’s “decade of wool” saw many horse and cattle stockmen switch to raising sheep, the “bald hills” of the interior once held hundreds of thousands of grazing sheep. Over time, prices for wool and beef plummeted creating many bankruptcies and necessitating diversification. The potential of river bottom land for orchards got greater scrutiny. Prior to local commercial fruit-raising, much produce was shipped in from San Francisco, but would arrive in a less than fresh condition accentuating the call for local fruit and vegetables. Farmers came to use wagons, rafts, river-plying boats, and later, the new railroad, to transport and deliver their produce to the Humboldt Bay region and beyond.

Amos Hansell, the earliest of the Southern Humboldt commercial fruit growers, worked hard to be a success on his Camp Grant ranch. In the middle and later 1880’s other large orchards went into production. Every opening in the forest along the South Fork of the Eel River became a likely candidate for fruit growing enterprises. The First Netherland Fruit and Land Culture Association at Elk Prairie(Fruitland Ridge), and the Southern Humboldt Orchard and Vineyard Association near Blocksburg were larger enterprises worthy of their own future posts. This week, Odd, Old News will scan through newspaper descriptions some early orchards in towns along the South Fork of the Eel River.

View of Barns, Farmlands and Orchard. [Crop of photo provided courtesy of HSU Library-Special Collections- Humboldt Room Collection, HCC Photos, location unknown.]

The Humboldt Times
March 27, 1885
An old friend in the person of Andrew J. Myers, of the South Fork of Eel River, called on the Times-Telephone yesterday. He reports delightful weather in that section, but that a little rain would be welcome. The prospects for a fine crop of fruit were never better than now, and as late frosts do not usually trouble that section fruit growers are jubilant. ….The valley railroad is going to prove a great benefit to fruit-growers in that section, as it will enable them to put their products into market in better condition than heretofore. If the farmers and gardeners of upper Eel River and the South Fork so will it, they have a harvest in prospective. The climate of the sections in question is mild throughout the year and the season much earlier than in this portion of the county. It is about time that Eureka was disenthralled from the necessity of importing vegetables from San Francisco. All along Eel River and the South Fork are small farms and garden spots which aggregated, could supply the demands of this city in the vegetable line. The Painter farm at Eagle Prairie it being laid out in five-acre lots and blocks, and the finest vegetables are grown there. All along the river on both sides, as far as Camp Grant, are opportunities to do market gardening with profit. Will these opportunities be improved, with a certainty that money-making will result?

If no harm comes to the fruit crops of upper Eel River and the South Fork this year the growers will be enabled to put their products into the Eureka market in better shape and at less expense than heretofore, and thereby reap a better reward for the patient waiting which they have done in hope of better transportation facilities. The finest cherries, peaches, nectarines, pears, plums and apples grown in the county come from the orchards along the main river from Eagle Prairie to Camp Grant, and along the South Fork. Growers will ship their fruit on the Pacific Lumber Co.’s road at Robinson’s ferry, and it will be transferred to the valley railroad at the junction and laid down in the Eureka market, in much better condition than heretofore.

Jacobson Valley, now the site of the town of Miranda, was owned by Myer Jacobson, “the well know dealer in shoes in the Vance block, Eureka”. He had 4-500 choice acres of land fronting over a half a mile along the South Fork and up into the surrounding hills, with old growth redwoods and orchards. He planted some 500 fruit trees and was known for his fine quality apples:

M. Jacobson has placed upon our table some specimens of apples from his place on South Fork of Eel river, that in all the better qualities of that fruit would be hard to beat. Among them are Rhode Island greenings, Spitzenbergs, fall pippins and golden russets, that, for size, regular form and color would receive high commendation from competent judges anywhere. (Humboldt Times Standard, 10/20/1887)

Humboldt County’s fruit-growing reputation grew:

Fine Fruit.
Daily Alta
September 16, 1888
In speaking of the fruits offered in the Eureka market this season, the Rohnerville Herald says: “It is a fact that the finest fruits which have been offered in the Eureka market came from upper Eel river and the South Fork. Nothing which San Francisco has sent can compare with it. Such apples, peaches, apricots, nectarines, prunes and plums as are marketed from the sections referred to do not grow outside of the mountain regions of the State or the foot-hills of the Sierras. El Dorado. Nevada and Placer cannot produce peaches, nectarines or figs which vie in size and flavor with Shasta, Trinity or southern Humboldt. Santa Clara cannot make a better showing of apricots than have been displayed in Humboldt markets and sent to the Mechanics Institute Fair. Year by year, the fact is becoming known that a vast portion of our territory is the finest fruit land in this or any other State on the continent. From a knowledge gamed by reading the peculiarities of that fruit, and the character of soil required we are well satisfied that, the high land on the Myers farm and a dozen others along the upper South Fork are peculiarly adapted to the growth of the olive, when the land shall have been cleared of its luxuriant growth of underbrush and water for necessary irrigation of new orchards has been provided”.

The potential for vineyards was also under consideration:

Mr. Joe Monroe brought to this office last evening a bunch of sweet grapes grown on the farm of Mr. A J Myers on the south fork of Eel river, which weighed 4¾ pounds when it reached this city. These grapes were grown on the side hill and were very sweet and pleasant. The climate of Humboldt is suited to the grape as well as other fruits. Let us have some vineyards. (Humboldt Times Standard, 9/19/1889)

In the later 1880’s, fruit companies were formed at Elk Prairie(Fruitland Ridge), Blocksburg, and Phillipsville:

A company has been organized known as the Humboldt Orchard and Vineyard company, and has purchased 80 acres of fruit lands on the south fork of Eel river, near Phillipsville, which will be planted to fruit and vines.—Eel River Advance. (Daily Times, 7/25/1891)

Losses incurred during transportation were not uncommon, Hansell at Camp Grant was not alone in losing boatloads of fruit to treacherous river conditions:

Joseph Stockel while boating a load of apples from near Phillipsvllle down the south fork of Eel river, met with a misfortune yesterday. The scow capsized and Stockel, the crew and 200 boxes of apples were thrown into the river. The men managed to reach the shore, and immediately left for Scotia. The apples are now scattered between the South Fork and the mouth of the river. Mr. Stockel is willing to pay a reasonable reward for the return of the boat or the fruit. (Humboldt Times Standard, 12/20/1900)

Some may be aware that one of Garberville’s earliest commercial enterprises was started when much of the east side of Garberville was planted in plum trees by John McMillin to make prunes. Disease wiped out the orchards and the trees were removed. Below Garberville, on the old Wood Ranch/Tooby flat, Peter John Wood, brother of early ‘settler’ James Wood, also developed fruit orchards, before a string of financial disasters in the 1890’s forced them to lose their large land holdings. The demise of the sheep industry is noted, and the sunny prospects for the future of fruit-raising were touted. Today, the Southern Humboldt Community Park continues the tradition of growing produce and fruit at the same location.

Fruit-Raising in Southern Humboldt
Humboldt Times Standard
March 22, 1893
The following interesting letter is clipped from the Pacific Rural Press. It is evident from this and other reports from southern Humboldt that the fruit raising boom in that motion is just commencing: To the Editor:—Much has been said in favor of devoting more attention to fruit-raising in various parts of this county, and as the actual figures are more worthy of consideration than any estimates or calculations, the following figures were obtained from Mr. P. J. Woods, senior member of the well-known Woods Bros, of Garberville. This orchard is situated on the left bank of the south fork of Eel river, one mile distant from the above village, in a level valley extending along the bank of the river for a mile or more, and one-fourth to three-fourths of a mile in width.

As this ranch is right in the heart of the fruit belt, with all the advantages of sun —it is also well sheltered from the wind, as was shown by the way it stood the late storm — and the choicest of fruit soils, it will not suffer by comparison with any of the other locations selected by the numerous fruit colonies throughout the county. There is quite an orchard of old trees, planted here in the ’60’s, which are all doing well, and several acres of young trees that have not arrived at a bearing age; but I will confine my remarks to the trees that bore their first crop last season.

Last season there was the greater part of three acres that came in bearing for the first time—two and one-half acres of peaches and one-half acre of French prunes. The peaches were packed in 20-pound boxes and hauled to the neighboring logging camp, and sold very readily at 75 cents and $1 per box. The French prunes were sold in the orchard to parties who dried them, and they disposed of the entire lot at prices ranging from 10 to 15 cents per pound; and one would think they had a fair margin, as they paid $25 per ton for the green fruit. Over and above what fruit was canned and used on the ranch, Mr. Woods cleared $750 on the three acres, or $250 per acre for the first year’s crop.

They intend to erect a fruit-drier this coming season, so as to be prepared to take care of the extra amount of fruit that will come into bearing next season. They also intend to keep adding to their orchard from year to year. The amount of land on their large stock ranch of 10,000 acres deeded land that is adapted to fruit —prunes, pears and apples—is almost unlimited, or it appears so when you think that the fruit industry in this county is but in its infancy. One who has seen sheep roam over these hills for many years has to draw on his imagination to see the fruit farms take the place of those woolly creatures, who have nigh outlived their usefulness and must give way to the steady march of cultivation and the horticulturist. Garberville, Feb. 19, 1893. Ed Robertson.

(At this time, Ed Robertson managed the Robertson Ranch located to the north of Garberville, some 6,000 acres that ran from South Fork river frontage to the top of the ridgeline along the Mail Ridge road. Their original large white ranch-house is seen when climbing the Alderpoint Road a short distance out of Garberville)

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