We got to Fruita on Wednesday afternoon, and that night we looked up things to do or see in Grand Junction. Near the top of the list was the Cross Orchards Farm, established in the late 1880's by Isabelle Cross. She came from a wealthy family in Boston who owned Red Cross and Walk Over Shoe companies.
For those of you in the younger generation (for us that is anyone under 50), Don is standing next to an old gasoline pump. Quite a change from what they look like now!
By 1909, the Red Cross Land and Fruit Company had over 22,000 apple trees planted on 243 acres of land. There was a huge Maltese Cross painted on the barn, which could be seen for miles back then.
This is one of the semi-dwarf apple trees planted about 50 years ago. In the early 1900's, there were Black Twig, Gano, Jonathan, Winesap, Rome Beauty and Ben Davis apple trees being harvested. However, a devastating Codling Moth infestation hit in the teens, and led to the failure of the farm by 1923. The Codling Moth burrows into the apple, creating worm holes. It was, and still is, the worst pest for apple crops. To combat the pests back then, the trees were sprayed with a lead arsenate insecticide every 2-3 days and "bug boys" were hired to crush the larvae by hand.
This was an interesting antique. Don and I figured out that it must have held either water or insecticide spray after seeing the tank with the old hose attached.
This is the original kitchen part of the bunkhouse, which was built in 1897. Notice the unique "wallpaper" applied to the ceiling and top part of the walls.
This is still being run as a living history farm, with people in period dress and animals in the barnyard. One of the workers told us that Midnight, the calf, loved eating the apples from the orchard. She goes through 2 or 3 barrels of apples each day. As I came near, she trotted right over to me.
And got up nice and close! She was looking for her treat.
The original structures of the barn and packing shed are still standing. In the height of the season, there were 50 or more pickers. They were paid 1 cent per box and could earn between $2.50-$3.00 during a 14 hour day of back breaking work. Boxes were assembled by young boys in the loft and sent through a chute into the packing floor. Most of the packing was done by women. Below you can see the entrance to the storage cellar, which could hold up to 3 train car loads of apples. Apples were stored there until winter when they could be sold at a higher price.
The packing shed
This was one of the pictures on the wall in the packing shed. Most of the workers used 3 legged ladders, but this group of men opted for stilts. It would take a lot of practice and coordination to be able to walk on those things and pick apples at the same time.
Against the side of the barn were 3 legged ladders of all sizes.
Don was quite interested in all the old antique tractors since he grew up on a farm. The ones he is standing by were started by cranks in the front. He did find an old John Deere that used a wheel on the side of the tractor to start the engine.
Our tour was over and we headed out for a bite to eat. I had to take a picture of the street we were on. Not only do they have 28 1/2, or 27 1/2 streets, etc., they also have B 1/2! That is the main street half way between B street and C street. Were they combining arithmetic and spelling to come up with that one? I sure think whoever named these streets was smoking something..... After all, this is Colorado, home of people who love their pot!
No comments:
Post a Comment