During the Great Depression of the 1930s Fruit Growers like so many sawmill operators on the West Coast had the debate whether to close their mills at Hilt and Susanville. This after all, with the realization that Fruit Growers could buy wooden boxes cheaper than they could manufacture. One other alternative was not just close the Susanville, but sell it.
The final decision was to keep the mills open. It would be costly, but Fruit Growers understood the long-term implications. If they closed the mills, they would lose many valuable employees and would be forced to start over once the economy rebounded. Logging operations at both Hilt and Susanville were suspended that year. At Hilt 1932 witnessed the end of railroad logging there. In addition in 1932, the Susanville mill operations were scaled back to a five-day week, rather than six to avoid layoffs. The decision paid off in the long run and were still able to meet the needs of the grower members.