Yesterday, I briefly mentioned that during the Great Depression that some of the grower members wanted to sell the Susanville mill. Some thought the cost was excessive, after all the growers passed a four million dollar bond to finance the construction of the mill and to purchase a billion board feet of timberland in 1919. At that time the growers agreed to assess themselves two cents per box. In addition to the assessment, for every 1,000 board feet of lumber , four dollars was budgeted to pay off the bonds, generating $300,000 annually. In 1934 Fruit Growers paid off the bonds, two years ahead of schedule and its Lassen Operation was debt free!

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