A Fresh Legacy

1890Apple orchards begin flourishing in Oregon’s Hood River Valley. The mild weather and naturally rich volcanic soil make for ideal growing conditions.

1919Record-breaking low temperatures and snow hit Oregon, and many of the apple trees in the Hood River Valley freeze. Growers replace many of their crops with pears.

1942Roy and Olive Webster come to Hood River from New York and buy land, soon to be known as Webster Orchards. They sell apples and pears nationwide via mail order. In the same year, Webster and his friends first swim across the Columbia River Channel. The swim becomes an annual event.

1951Webster Orchards builds their first cold storage facility on Van Horn Drive in Hood River.

1965Roy turns the business over to his son Wayne. Webster Orchards expands by adding more pear trees.

1960-1990This is a time of expansion and innovation. Wayne and Mary add cherry orchards, expand their pear orchards and develop a new style of planting on hillsides.

1992The Hood River County Fruit Loop is organized, bringing tourists to Hood River’s fruit producers.

1999Scott and Addison divert some capital and launch The Fruit Company in their parent’s basement. November 1, 1999 was the first day of online business.

2001Growth is strong and the business moves into the Old Diamond Fruit packing warehouse, a 161,000 square-foot building at 2900 Van Horn Drive in Hood River.

2003Oprah Magazine chooses the Fruit Company’s Holiday Pear Mixer for its Holiday O list.

2010Webster Orchards purchases eighty-two acres of cherry trees in Mosier, Oregon. The Fruit Company now packs and ships fresh cherries.

2011Fruit Friday, a weekly event where the public is invited to The Fruit Company to purchase excess inventory of gourmet foods and fruit at substantial savings, is established. If you are in Hood River on a Friday, please join us anytime between 8:00 am and 12:00 pm.

2012The Fruit Company purchases an additional thirty acres in Parkdale, Oregon, and plants the land with blueberries.

TodayThe Fruit Company proudly continues our family’s tradition of excellence, innovation and sustainability. Each season our gifts are bursting with a carefully curated selection of the highest quality fruit and artisanal products made by award-winning regional producers.