Pioneer Fruit Company

Summary

Business	Dried Fruit Packer
Successors	Virden Packing, American Fruit Growers

The Pioneer Fruit Company was an early dried fruit packing company associated with California Fruit Distributors. There was a schism in 1913 when California Fruit Distributors (and their eastern backers) wanted distribution centralized through Atlantic Fruit Distributors, and Pioneer refused. The secretary of California Fruit Distributors backed down; Charles Virden, who had run fruit packing houses in the northwest, took over the secretary's role. Pioneer was completely owned by Virden Packing in 1923.

harles Virden solely owning Pioneer in 1926. ( Lodi Sentinel, May 6, 1926 Supposedly sold to American Fruit Growers in 1932 according to Solano Valley History Frank E. Collins bio

The Bassett Street plant is visible on the G.H. Lawrence 1906 panorama. Building appears to be George Allen Flour company on 1915 Sanborn map.

Pioneer Fruit Company In San Jose

Pioneer had a packing house on Bassett Street near the San Jose railroad yards. The Bassett Street plant is visible on the G.H. Lawrence 1906 panorama. Building appears to be George Allen Flour company on 1915 Sanborn map. Their ownership of the land is mentioned in

in groundwater pollution deed restrictions on Food Machinery Corporation land.

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Locations

Location	Years	Address	Details
Lodi	1913	Main Street and Lodi Avenue	FE Collins Manager, "Lodi Sentinel, Aug 30, 1913":http://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=2485&dat=19130830&id=UaAzAAAAIBAJ&sjid=f-4HAAAAIBAJ&pg=3476,5035558
Muir/Martinez			(1923, acc. to Oakland Tribune Aug 14 issue)
Napa	None
Newcastle	1905		Placer County.
Red Bluff	None
San Jose	None	385 North First Street
San Jose	1906	Bassett Street west of Terraine.	Plant to California Fruit Exchange, burned in 1907.
San Jose	1907, 1911	Pleasant Julian Street near Pleasant
San Jose	1928	Bassett at Terraine