Sorosis Fruit Company
| Business |
Dried Fruit Packer |
|---|---|
| Main Location |
Saratoga |
| Active |
1890 - 1908 |
The Sorosis Fruit Company was a dried fruit packer and owner of orchards located in Saratoga, California. The ranch was originally owned by Wlliam Farrington who first planted fruit trees[1] Farrington sold to F. M. "Borax" Smith; Smith had the property managed by Mark Calkins, with 200 acres of orchards as well as their own canning and packing plant[2]. Frank Abernathy was another early ranch superintendent[3] The company also was affiliated with other packers; Sorosis appears in San Francisco Call 1900 list of dropoff locations for California Cured Fruit Association. The ranch was sold in 1908. Joseph A. Teresi later ran the property and the fruit company[4].
August 2, 1903 San Jose Evening News mentions a new evaporator being built - a new bit of technology for the valley.
The September 13, 1906 Pacific Rural News described a bit about the ranch:
"First Car of Prunes Shipped from Valley: "San Jose Herald, August 29: the first car of this season's prunes was shipped by Sorosis Fruit Company on the Saratoga Road today, the destination being Minneapolis, and the purchaser being a wholesale house in that city. The shipment consisted of a full carload of the graded fruit, all of first-class quality, although not averaging large sizes.
"Manager Crandall stated to a Herald representative this morning that large sizes are scarce this season throughout the valley, notwithstanding the belief some time ago that large sizes would be abundant. He stated further that the packers and growers will have to revise their figures, at least as far as this valley is concerned, as the prune crop here will be much less than has been estimated. Now that the harvesting is fairly under way, it is evident that the crop will fall considerably under the figures that were generally conceded several weeks ago.
"The 445 boxes shipped by Manager Crandall ran as follows: 25 boxes 40-50, 110 boxes 50-60, 170 boxes 60-70, 65 boxes 70-80, 50 boxes 80-90, 25 boxes 90-100.
The packing house buildings were later used by the Campbell Cage Company, a manufacturer of poultry cages[5][6]. The buildings suffered a fire around 1976; plans for converting the site to a subdivision were suggested to the Saratoga City Council on September 1, 1976[7].
Locations
| Location | Years | Address | Details |
|---|---|---|---|
| Saratoga | 1896, 1900, 1906 | 12760 Saratoga Ave. |
Photos
References
- ↑ History of the Sorosis Ranch: El Quito neighborhood history
- ↑ Sunsweet Story
- ↑ [ http://www.mariposaresearch.net/santaclararesearch/SCBIOS/fabernathy.html Frank Abernathy] biography from Eugene T. Sawyer, "History of Santa Clara County,California", 1922, Historic Record Co. p. 928
- ↑ Joseph A. Teresi biography, in Eugene T. Sawyer, "History of Santa Clara County,California", 1922, Historic Record Co., p. 1480
- ↑ Sorosis Social Hall Brings Fond Memories. April 2, 1976 San Jose News. A posting on a Saratoga Historical Society forum references the article and states that the packing house building was still in use in 1976 as the "Campbell Cage Company".
- ↑ Obituary: Loyd Williams. "During his high school years, he worked building poultry cages for the Campbell Cage Company. "
- ↑ Consideration of Application by Saratoga Foothills Development Corporation... September 1, 1976 Saratoga City Council minutes. "He advised that the Campbell Cage Company industrial activity had recently suffered a fire, and this somewhat changed the requirements that the planning commission placed under conditions for the rezoning approval."