When one asks, I try to do the best to answer. A person thought Fruit Growers Supply Company was an odd name for a timber company. Fruit Growers is not a timber company per se, just a facet of its many  duties. Fruit Growers only got into that line by accident.

First, some very brief background. In 1893, the Southern California citrus growers formed a marketing co-operative later to be known as the California Fruit Growers Exchange. The growers co-op proved to be a success. In 1906, discussions were held of forming a second co-operative—this one to purchase agriculture supplies such as fertilizers, sprays, tissue wraps, etc. Another component was the need for wooden boxes for the shipment of citrus. It should be duly the nation’s fruit and vegetables were shipped in wooden boxes and the conversion to cardboard did not occur until after World War II. At first, it was discussed to have two co-ops, one to handle supplies and the other for boxes. It was finally agreed that one co-op could do it all. In 1907, the growers organized the Fruit Growers Supply
Company.

In the same year, due to multiple circumstances,  the price for wooden boxes nearly doubled to 23 cents a box. To make long story short Fruit Growers found some sawmills in far Northern California that could provide them with boxes for a reasonable price. These mills needed financial aid and Fruit Growers lent them money. One of these mills was the Northern California Lumber Company located at Hilt, Siskiyou County near the Oregon border. In 1910, the company defaulted on their loan and Fruit Growers took over the mill and thus its entrance into the timber industry. It is interesting to note the growers self financed the operation by a special assessment of three cents a box for a period of five years. The growers needed six million boxes annually, so that assessment raised a lot of money.

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