A two-story brick structure in the Chino Industrial park was one of two buildings remaining from the old beet sugar factory that was the backbone of Chino’s economy at the turn of the last century.
Clearing of the old sugar factory superintendent’s office, and surrounding open warehouses, makes way for four new industrial buildings totaling 118,000 square feet on five and a half acres at 13501 Fifth Street.
This site was the heart of the sugar making operation brought here by the Oxnard Brothers at the behest of Chino’s founder, Richard Gird. He contributed land and water to bring a much needed boost to his farm economy and land sales, which were in the doldrums four years after he subdivided the Chino Ranch.
Still remaining from the old sugar plant is a double warehouse building housing the Shield Packaging company, once known as Shield Aerosol, until environmental regulations did away with that propellant. Before that it was occupied for many years by the Mary Carter Paint Company.
Xebec Building Company went through all the paces associated with dismantling a historic building, submitting a Historic Resource Significant Evaluation which determined that the century-old building was unsound. The Chino Valley Historical Society had no objection.
A monument sign and raised planters made of bricks from the old building will mark the site’s historical importance. The new buildings have been designed with elements reminiscent of the architectural style used in the late 1800s.
During the sugar factory’s construction in 1891, a Santa Ana wind blew down three quarters of the 30-foot high two-foot thick brick wall of the main building because the mortar hadn’t hardened. It was quickly replaced, and on May 8 the first shipment of factory machinery, mainly from Germany, arrived on 16 railroad cars. Flags of the United States and Germany flew from the factory staffs. The machinery was accompanied by a Germanspeaking staff of engineers and administrators experienced in the process.
They formed the nucleus of a German community which resided on the west side of the small town, mainly along Fourth Street, which was known as “Dutch Row.” On August 20, at 2 p.m., Mrs. Gird, who had earlier laid the first brick, turned on the steam to put the factory in motion.
In 1891, until the factory went into operation, the town of Chino had 12 dwelling houses and four or five businesses, including the Champion. Up to 200 workers came in to build the factory. By the end of the year there were 150 houses and 500 people.
At its peak in 1916, the factory produced almost 340,000 100-pound sacks of sugar during a 97-day run, operating around the clock. The factory operated annually from August through October.
The factory buildings were demolished in 1937, twenty years after the plant closed. After the 1917 “campaign” the Chino operation was combined with one in Oxnard. Beet growth here faced soil depletion and disease, and the war took away much of the help. Torn down was the mammoth brick main building, the palatial residence of the superintendent and the sugar workers’ clubhouse building. The land, owned by the American Beet Sugar Company, was subsequently acquired by Chino Valley rancher Paul Greening, who established the Chino Industrial Park. Included was the brick buildings taken over by Alfa Leisure, producer of recreation vehicles. His son Robert Greening took over the project upon his father’s death.
Several factory-employed families remained in Chino after the factory closed in 1917, and played a prominent role in Chino’s development. Among them were the Bertschingers, the Jertbergs, the Sholanders, the Wellses and the Grays. Although the closing had brought a major exodus of employees, many were seasonal anyway. By the end of World War I the community had developed other agricultural resources, and soon a cannery and a walnut packing house would become the center of the local economy. Years later it would be the dairy industry, some of it on land that once produced sugar beets.
Copyright 2008 Champion Newspapers - Published April 19, 2008
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