Historic Hood River
Davidson Fruit Company, 1910
5-22-2019
Notes
Here’s the loading dock at the Davidson Fruit Company in 1910. Horatio Davidson is the third from the left. I don’t recognize anyone else.
There is a sign for “ice”. The ammonia based refrigerator was in operation making blocks of ice to transport fruit as well as for sale to the general public. They had two grades: the better ice was made with city drinking water, and the lesser grade was made with the Indian Creek water which powered the ammonia compressor.
L.E.
The lips on the guy with the hatchet look like he just ate a big handful of strawberries.
Probably everyone in Hood River knows this, but where did the Indian Creek water come down to power the ammonia compressor?
Arthur
@LE, the water was diverted from Indian Creek near the Columbia Gorge CC campus. It flowed in a ditch to just S of the Union Street power substation, then in wood pipe along Indian Creek Trail to a reservoir at what is now Wilson Park. Then it went in steel or iron pipes under 2nd street, down the stairs, all the way to just short of the railroad tracks where it took a left turn and powered a series of buildings along the tracks.
Arlen Sheldrakes
Father John L related stories of wrestling large chunks of ice down chutes into the fruit freight cars….probably Indian Creek water.
are these people headed to church? pretty neat duds for working folk.
nels
There are remnants of the water flow dam down on Indian Creek behind the college.
When Tom Senior was the City utility manager there was a constant leak of water oozing up in the street in front of the court house. And they were banning all homes from using water except for every other day. Finally digging into the problem, it was wooden water pipe that had been leaking considerably for many a year.