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One of the early plantings in the Rogue River valley was Eden Valley orchard, known as Burrell orchard when this photograph was taken. It has been home for many years for member of the late Colonel Gordon Voorhies' family. The third generation is now enjoying It.
Men With Ideas Captivated by Blossom Time in Rogue Valley
By EVA HAMILTON
Mai Tribune Staff Writer
"The Pasadena of Oregon."
That's what realtora called Mcdford in 1910. An ad
In a telephone book of that date, which lists 1,310 tele
phones for Mcdford, Central Point, Cold Hill and Jack
sonville, registers this caption as the highest compliment
John D. Olwcll, orchardist and promoter, thought he
could pay the booming city.
The telephone directory, to be added to the his
torical exhibit of the Fruit Growers League In the Jack
sonville Museum, is a little book but It reveals a lot of
big ideas shared by big men, who were captivated by
blossom time in the Rogue River valley.
They didn't hold a Pear Blossom festival then. But
April wove a spell that made many want to substitute
"Medford" for "England" In Browning's famous poem,
"Oh to be in England now that April's there."
Drugged By Blooms
Many were drugged by the blooms and verdure
while passing through on the "Friendly Southern Pa
cific." They returned and concocted the lures which
persuaded others to come and buy orchard acreages.
The Olwcll advertisement continued In this vein:
"Every advantage connected with living in a city may
be had with an Eden Valley tract. An Eden Valley
orchard will pay an income the first year. Buy now.
People of refinement, people with means, retired busi
nessmen, professional men, college and university grad
uates, are corning to the Rogue River Valley by the
score. Within the past two years almost a hundred Chi
cago and Evanston, 111., people have purchased homes
near Mcdford. New York, Philadelphia, Boston are well
represented. St. Paul and Minneapolis have more repre
sentatives here than in any oilier cities, combined. The
most fascinating investments are in bearing orchards
near Mcdford."
One from Minneapolis, who came and stayed, was
Delroy Getchcll. The lead advertisement in the telephone
book Is by the Farmers and Fruitgrowers bank, which
was operated for many years at the corner of West Main
and Grape sis. In Medford. Those banking interests were
purchased by Getchcll In 1009. The officers were G. L.
Davis, president; L. Nledormcycr, vice president; L. E.
Wakeman, cashier, and L. L. Jacobs, assistant cashier.
Oustandlng Slock Promotion
Another souvenir for the museum received by C. B.
Cordy, county agent, recalls what was probably the out
standing stock promotion deal in the orchard develop
ment. It is a certificate showing that Axel Nordlow was the
owner of two shares of preferred capital stock In the
Monitor Orchard company (belter known here as the
Westeiiund orchards). The certificate carries the names
of the late Carl Y. Tcngwald, as secretary, and J. A.
Wostcrluud, president. The certificate was sent here by
Davidson and Seaton of British C-Uimbia wlio wrote to
Inquire it tha stock was still of value.
The capital stock tor the Westeiiund venture was
$900,000, The orchard project was started in l10 but
the trees were planted on soil which was not suited to
pears. Also, the urchard lands were for the most pari
on high ground which was impossible to Irrigate. Some
of the trees flourished in spite of the adverse conditions.
During the depression years, however, competition was
too keen. The orchard! were neglected and insects and
diseases took over.
Removes Considerable Acraaga
The county removed a considerable acreage of the
diseased trees for the protection of neighboring orchard'
lals, who were trying to keep down the blight In their
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plantings. After (he depression, tiie orchards were taken
off the lax rolls, Cordy said.
There is still a small block of Irees being cared for.
The rest stand abandoned on the lower slopes of Roxy
Ann, gnarled reminders that a tree cannot grow above
the ground if it is not nurtured below the earth's surface.
On the other side of the ledger are the reports of
fruit sales, showing that In 1909 Cornice pears from the
Rogue River valley brought $10.08 per box In London.
(Local orchardisls, the lucky ones, arc getting half that
price In l!)(i;j).
The first car of fruit was shipped out of the valley
In 1890. By 1803, lOO acres had been planted to apples
and pears. In 1897 the Weeks and Orr fruit ranch, two
miles south of Medford, had 15,000 trees in bearing, On
150 acres.
Credited With First Tree
it is J. H, Stewart, however, who is credited with
planting the first pear orchard In I he Rogue River val
ley. Ili.s plantings arc now a part of the Eden Valley
orchard and Hear Creek orchards. Stewart, a nurseryman
from Missouri, bought the old Justice place In 1884 and
planted the first pear orchard in 1885. The Stewart
family is still represented here. Ted Hill of Central
Point and Gilbert Hill of Talent are grandsons, both sons
of Dillon Hill. Another grandson is J. S Weeks of Trail.
Many firsts in the story of the fruit industry have
been uncovered in the assembling of the museum exhibit.
A picture shows the first walnut trees planted in the
valley In 1854. They were planted by B. F. Myer, uncle
of the late Ralph Billings' mother. Apple and pear
seedlings were planted about the same time by Billings'
grandmother.
The first commercial packing plant was established
in the Rogue River valley by J. A. Whitman in 1890.
Reuben F. Maury was the first grower in the valley
to spray for scale, according to the records of the late
Mrs. Victor Burscll. whose husband was Jackson county
commissioner for many years. J. W. Corum, Mrs. Bur
sell's father, brought the first yellow transparent apples
to the Rogue River valley.
First Valley Irrigation
The first irrigation was developed in 1852 on the
Fred Rapt) place. Water was taken from Wagner Creek
for this project.
The first fruit sold by the box was sold by Governor
Brigga in 1859-60 for $1 per box.
John Norton set out the first D'Anjous in the valley
three rows in 1865. The first Barllett trees were set
out by Henry Barneburg In 1854 and are still in the
Crystal Springs orchard.
The first row of Cornice, aristocrats of the pear fam
ily, was planted the full length of Stewart ave. from
the highway to Oakdale on the north side. A splice of
the root stock is now in the Jacksonville museum. When
Copco bought the land for the construction of plant
buildings in that area the pear trees were bulldozed out.
There are still a few, however, in the yards of the
neighborhood, preserved as shade trees by homeowners.
Comic Pear Obtained
The Cornice were obtained, according to Ted Hill,
from seeds of winter nellis pears, which were stomped
out of the fruit and planted. The shoots, which devel
oped, were grafted to Cornice in 1897.
The problems which confronted the young orchard
Ists of the early 1900s were many. Some knew more
about show girls, opera and Greek history, than they
knew about the composition of the soil. They had studied
neither horticulture nor agriculture. Some of them de
parted with the first frost, so to speak.
The opinions of the experts also went through many
changes. The department of agriculture, which now tells
growers not to cultivate were then advising them to
stir the ground up every week. In late summer, some
recall, you could see a cloud of dust rising from every
orchard in the valley, where now abundant cover
crops grow.
Apples Being Pulled Out
Apples, which had been planted heavily up to ap
proximately 1909 and 1910, were being pulled out a few
years later before many local bards had started to sing
the popular melody of the times, "When It's Apple
Blossom Time in Normandy."
The unhealthy phase of the apple deal, according to
exhibit records, resulted from the fact that many
planters were not intending to raise fruit but to sell out
to remittance men from the cast and Europe. Good
nursery grown trees were trimmed off at the roots to
make it easier to push them down into the soil. Legend
claims 1,800 acres were planted in this manner.
At the turn of the century there were two nurseries
In, the valley furnishing trees, Beesom at Talent and
Norcross at Central Point. The Barnum family, which
still operates Carlton Nursery south of Medford, came
to Phoenix in 1900. The Col B. C. Washburn orchard
in the Table Rock district (all apples) was "booming."
The Modoc and Redskin pear blocks in that same com
munity were planted in 1908 and 1909. The Potter
Palmers of Chicago had purchased the lands which be
came Modoc orchards.
Fabulous Mansion Stories
Stories of a fabulous mansion to be built on the
slopes of Upper Table Rock were being told in livery
stables and at tea tables. The foundation was constructed
but the mansion never rose to compete with the moun
tain's grandeur. E. W. Carlton, brother of Newcomb
Carlton, president of the Western Union, developed the
Redskin orchard.
In 1913, Carlton was instrumental in the organiza
tion of the Fruit Growers League, which is now sponsor
ing the museum display. The year was one of severe
blight infestation. To promote a clean-up, a committee
of orchardisls and other citizens was formed. The Jack
son county court appointed a dozen or more Inspectora
to assist growers in their eradication work.
Carlton was secretary of the committee. From this
effort the permanent organization grew. It was first
known as the Farmers and Fruit Growers League. The
farming interests ceased to participate and the organiza
tion became the Fruit Growers League.
Today, this organization spearheads the protection
of the $15 million fruit industry. It also directs cooper
ation between the fruitmen and southern Oregon society,
of which those who came and stayed and put down
their roots as the trees deepened their's have become
an integral part.
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The first commercial packing house in Mcdford stood on South Fir nd belonged to .! A Whitman. This
photo taken in the 18!Kls Is preserved in the Jacksonville Museum Particularly Interesting lode) are the clothes worn
by men and women for work during that period.
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"Like father, like son" residents should comment as they view this photo It is one of L. E. Hoover, father of
Charley Hoover. Jackson county's "tree man." And he is accepting delivery of 100.000 fruit trees at the Mcdford
station The photo was taken In 1905 The trees were shipped by Woodburn Nurseries