MARKETING WESTERN BOXED APPLES 63 
» COLD-STORAGE HOLDINGS 
The public cold-storage warehouse is not linked directly in the 
chain of distribution. It does not hold possession of the fruit and 
is not responsible except to the extent of maintaining the desired 
temperature during the season of storage with exercise of care and 
prudence in the management of the plant and its contents. The 
storage concern is merely the trustee of the man who stores the 
goods, except the relatively small number of*privately owned com- 
mercial cold-storage plants. 
Public cold storages pay the incoming freight and often carry the 
storage charges until the apples are sold. In years when cold- 
storage space is plentiful, solicitors for cold-storage companies often 
make advances of 50 to 75 cents per box to the shipper. 
Cold storage of apples is a development chiefly of the past 25 years. 
Stocks in cold storage December, 1898, according to unofficial reports, 
were only 800,000 barrels. The increase was very rapid to 1903 
when there were 2,348,000 barrels, and in 1923 there were about 
10,000,000 barrels or much more than a quarter of the commercial 
crop. Cold storage is still mainly in the large cities where the space 
can be profitably used also for other products, making a demand for 
cold storage throughout the year 
Heaviest storage of boxed apples outside of the producing districts 
is in Chicago, New York, Omaha, Kansas City, Minneapolis, St. 
Paul, St. Louis, and Philadelphia. In the Pacific coast region the 
principal storages are in San Francisco, Los Angeles, Watsonville, 
Hood River, Wenatchee, Seattle, Portland, and the Yakima Valley. 
Yakima and Wenatchee combined have space for about 4,500,000 
boxes. Washington and California each usually has in cold storage 
1 to 2 million boxes at the height of the season. Storage stocks in 
San Francisco and Los Angeles include many receipts from the 
Northwest and the Rocky Mountain apple region. Watsonville 
storage is filled with locally grown Yellow Newtowns and Yellow 
Bellflowers. Some 300,000 to 400,000 boxes are stored in Oregon. 
Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, New Mexico, and Utah together 
store about as many as Oregon. The storage season becomes active 
in October, increases in November and December, then decreases 
rapidly. Holdings of boxed apples are usually very heavy in the 
Central States, far exceeding holdings of barreled apples; but New 
York and most Eastern States store most heavily of barreled apples. 
However, holdings of boxed apples in New York State often exceed a 
million boxes. 
At the height of the season in January, holdings of boxed lee in 
cold storage are from one-fourth to one-third of the commercial crop. 
Most of the stock has been taken out by the end of June. In January, 
1924, with a fairly typical season, the holdings were about one-third 
in the West, one-third in the Middle West, and one-third in the 
remaining sections. 
The greater part of the stock is moved during January, February, 
March, and April, but the long-keeping kinds, mainly Winesap and 
Yellow Newtown, in oiled paper wraps, are held to some extent 
throughout May and June. The chart, Figure 26, indicates the usual 
time of greatest holdings and the progressively rapid withdrawal after 
the first of the year. In many cities the boxed holdings persist a 
